Some 300 armed Islamic militiamen seized a key port and airstrip on the northeastern outskirts of Somalia's capital on Saturday adding to some of the heaviest of four days of bloodshed between the rival factions, which has killed at least 73 people. Militia commanders have said that the fighters who are loyal to a group of radical Islamic clerics attacked a rival militia force in control of the main road leading to El Maan port and the Issaley airstrip.
Heavily armed fighters with rocket launchers, anti-aircraft guns, rocket-propelled grenades, assault rifles and trucks mounted with heavy weapons participated in SaturdayÂ’s battle .At least 300 Islamic militiamen were involved in the assault, witnesses said. There were reports of deaths, but an exact toll was unknown because intense fighting was continuing. |