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Somali minibus attack toll rises
More bodies have been discovered in Somalia, near the scene of an attack on two minibuses outside Mogadishu. Local people returning to their farms after the attack said they had found a further 16 bodies, bringing to nearly 60 the number of civilians killed. The Ethiopian forces started shooting after their military convoy was hit by a roadside bomb, witnesses said. Islamist insurgents have beeng carrying out frequent raids in the Mogadishu area. After the latest attack on minibuses, witness Sahra Nor Osma told the Associated Press news agency: "Ethiopian convoys opened fire into different areas where thousands of displaced people were living; they killed everyone on the road." Another witness Fadumo Kheyre told AP: "Blood was pouring out of the buses." In a separate incident on Friday, insurgents attacked the convoy of President Abdullahi Yusuf as it was leaving for Ethiopia for talks over the country's fragile ceasefire. Following that attack, Ethiopian-backed government troops responded by opening fire, killing five civilians. President Abdullahi Yusuf has gone to Djibouti for talks with his estranged Prime Minister Hussein Nur Adde. The discussions are aimed at resolving a power struggle between the two men which could in turn affect a ceasefire agreement signed with the opposition in June. Posted by: Fred 2008-08-17 |
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