MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A Somali military officer says its troops have repulsed an extremist assault on a military base.

Col. Ahmed Hassan said that the attack targeted a military base in Sanguni, a small village in southern Somalia.

Hassan said the troops identified a car bomb and detonated it and then extremists on foot attacked the base. He said the troops repelled the attack, killing 10 attackers.

However, a spokesman for al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaida, claimed that its fighters managed to enter the base and killed 27 soldiers. The Somali military dismisses that claim.