"This person worked as a coordinator recruiting Yemenis and sending them to Syria after being trained by U.S. Special Forces in Qatar," the newspaper added.

Around 11 people were killed in Somalia's capital Sunday when a suicide attacker from the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shebab insurgents rammed a car laden with explosives into a convoy carrying officials from Qatar, police said.

"Several people have been killed, the blast was big ... the number of those killed is around 11," police official Mohamed Adan said.

The blast is the latest in a string of bloody attacks in the seaside capital, where al-Qaeda linked al-Shebab insurgents have vowed to topple the government and have set off several bombs and launched guerrilla-style strikes.

The car exploded close to a police station at the central K4 roundabout, a busy part of Mogadishu where many people gather to drink tea at roadside stalls.

"I saw eight bodies including a woman, some of them were burned very badly by the fire from the explosion," said eyewitness Ali Yusuf. "It was a terrible sight."

Reports say that the armored car hit in the attack had been damaged with its back windows blasted out. Other police officials said that at least 10 people had been killed.

A second bomb hidden by the roadside and remotely detonated was set off around the same time in the Daynille district of Mogadishu targeting passing security forces, but injured no one, police added.

The attack on Sunday comes after a week-long major security operation in the capital, with police closing down roads and searching cars for explosives.