Somalian Fighting Leaves at Least 12 Civilians Dead in Capital, 34 Injured

At least 12 civilians died and 34 were wounded in fighting in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, last night between government forces and Islamist insurgents, said Ali Muse Sheikh, a paramedic at Nationlink and Lifeline Africa.

Al-Shabaab, the rebel militia that the U.S. accuses of having links to al-Qaeda, began a new offensive against Somalia’s Western-backed government on Aug. 23. The United Nations refugee agency said on Sept. 7 that 230 civilians have been killed in the clashes.

Last night’s fighting started after African Union peacekeepers attacked Islamist bases in northern Mogadishu, said Colonel Farah Ali Mohamed, a government security officer.

“We have killed several of their militias and one of their commanders surrendered to us,” Farah said.

Al-Shabaab claimed its fighters had repelled the attack, in which tanks were used.

“We have compelled them to return back and we have seized rocket-propelled grenades,” Sheikh Abdi Aziiz Abu Mus’ab, a spokesman for al-Shabaab, told reporters in the city last night.

Somalia hasn’t had a functioning central administration since the ouster of former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Most of southern and central Somalia is under the control of rebel fighters, while the Western-backed government holds only portions of Mogadishu.

To contact the reporter on this story: Hamsa Omar in Mogadishu via Johannesburg at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net.

• Tweet
• More
  • Business Exchange
  • Buzz up!
  • Digg
• Print
• Email