http://www.shabelle.net/article.php?id=15584Landmine blast hits Ethiopian
army in Baidoa town, civilians killed
BAIDOA ( Sh. M. Network)- Big landmine blast struck Ethiopian troops in the
heart of Baidoa town,250km away south of Mogadishu on Thursday morning, the
first attack since the militants were pushed out of the town wednesday,
residents say.
The explosion occurred at a cross road in Baidoa as the Ethiopian troops
were trying to conduct security operations. The blast was caused by an
improvised explosive device (IED) that hit the army in military vehicles in
the area.
Local residents said security forces had sealed off the area around the
blast site.
It was unclear whether there were any fatalities or wounded sustained the
Ethiopian troops, but locals said a several civilians were killed by the
army who opened fire at crowds nearby the scene.
No comments were immediately available from the Al-Qaeda linked militants
of Al-shabab who withdrew from the strategic town of Baidoa on Wednesday
with no battle against allied forces from Somali government backed by
Ethiopian troops.
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http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jUfUtmOEnAdbxmG6_z8yv5qg6w1A?docId=CNG.c76f4c1c2c6085b688da0758c40aed34.241
Blasts in Somali town seized by Ethiopia from rebels
(AFP)–2 hours ago
MOGADISHU — Two strong explosions rocked the strategic Somali city of
Baidoa hours after Ethiopian and pro-government forces wrested it from
Al-Qaeda-backed insurgents, officials and witnesses said Thursday.
Shebab spokesman Sheikh Abdulaziz Abu Musab claimed responsibility for the
blasts late Wednesday, saying they had inflicted "heavy losses" on
pro-government forces.
He said the explosions "struck them when they entered positions our
fighters had emptied". He pledged to continue the conflict "until Islam
becomes the only principle that rules the country."
News of the blasts came as world powers met the fragile Somali goverment at
a London conference Thursday to try to build on progress in the struggle
against the Islamist militants, who have allied themselves to Al-Qaeda.
The Shebab claims of casualties could not be verified.
Ethiopian troops, who recently entered the country to back up a weak
government army, have placed the southern Somali town under curfew after
sweeping into Baidoa on Wednesday afternoon without resistance.
One resident, Warsame Adan, said a local factory had been targeted in one
of the blasts after Ethiopian forces took it over.
"We don't know if there were casualties, as we could not go out at night
because there was a curfew."
A man suspected of looting was shot dead by Somali forces, said Derow Nur,
another resident.
"He had entered a former Al-Shebab base and was killed by Somali troops,"
Nur said.
"The Ethiopian soldiers have set up bases around town, and traffic on the
streets is gradually getting back to normal," he said.
The black flag of the Shebab was hauled down off a flag pole in the centre
of town on Thursday morning and Somali government officials said the town
was calm.
They added that they would continue attacking the Shebab insurgents who had
fled Baidoa hours before the Ethiopian-backed forces took control.
"The city is quiet this morning, and people are feeling free for the first
time in more than three years," said Abdifatah Mohamed Ibrahim, governor of
the Bay region, which includes Baidoa.
"The enemy fled, and we will keep hunting them down to ensure stability
returns to the region," he added. "Security forces will intensify their
operations to end insecurity."
Baidoa was one of the Shebab's main bases and its capture leaves the
group's fighters in central Somalia increasingly isolated, with the African
Union mission (AMISOM) also chasing them out of the capital Mogadishu.
Although the insurgents still control large parts of southern Somalia, they
face a land and air offensive by Kenyan forces there.
However, Shebab fighters, who claimed their abandoning of Baidoa was a
tactical retreat, said they had seized back areas between the town and the
Ethiopian border lost in earlier battles.
"Mujahedeen fighters retook control of several areas the enemy seized on
their way to Baidoa," Musab said. The claims could not be verified.
The withdrawal follows the Shebab's abandoning of most fixed positions in
Mogadishu last August after failing to oust the transitional government in
four years of fighting
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Received on Thu Feb 23 2012 - 10:12:46 EST
