MOGADISHU, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Somali police said they on Saturday defused a bomb planted on a road used by Somali and African Union forces in Beletweyne in central Somalia.

Beletweyne police commissioner Isaaq Ali Abdulle told the media that his officers safely dismantled the bomb and were still inspecting the roads for any other bombs.

"We managed to pull out and dismantled a bomb on the road which the Somali and AU forces travel on regularly. We believe Al-Shabaab planted them to target the forces," said Abdulle.

The militant group Al-Shabaab commonly rigged bombs along roads used by the allied forces and in some cases caused fatalities.

The police chief called on locals to cooperate with the police and report any suspicious items on the road.