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21 Somalis killed in Mogadishu violence
[Iran Press TV] At least 21 people have been killed in a new wave of violence that rocked different parts of Somalia's war-torn capital Mogadishu, Press TV reports.As many as 12 people, including five government soldiers, died in the capital Mogadishu's northern neighborhoods of Yaqshid and Hiliwa on Thursday as fierce festivities broke out between al-Shabaab  ... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda... snuffies and Somalia's transitional government forces. Seven civilians, among them an old man and a woman, were also killed after mortar shells landed in the city's neighborhoods of SOS, Ex-Control Balad, Arafat Hotel, and Suqahoolaha. The mortar attacks had been launched in response to al-Shabaab's attacks on military bases in the same areas. "Government troops backed by the African Union (AU) soldiers have repulsed the attacks launched by al-Shabaab krazed killers. We are expanding areas under our control," said Omar Abdullah Ja'afar, a Somali military commander. He added, "The attack on our positions along the Ex-Control Balad Junction stoked an all-out battle. We intend to increase our sphere of influence. We have taken full control of areas in Suqahoolaha neighborhood that were previously under al-Shabaab control." Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch, Butch and the Kid finally brought their horses under control... two civilians were hit by stray bullets in Mogadishu's northern district of Karaan, and was struck down in his prime. Boilerplate follows... Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre. Strategically located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia remains one of the countries generating the highest number of refugees and internally-displaced people in the world. Posted by: Fred 2011-12-09 |
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