Al Shabaab attacks African Union base in Somalia - military

Islamist insurgents battled for hours on Sunday with African Union troops after exploding a car bomb outside their base, Somali police, military and the militants said.Al Shabaab militants attacked the African Union (AU) peacekeepers' base in the town Bulamarer, 130 kilometres southwest of the capital Mogadishu, around 9 a.m. local time, residents from the area told Reuters.Since withdrawing from Mogadishu in 2011, the al Qaeda-linked group has lost control of most of Somalia's cities and towns.