From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Thu Oct 22 2009 - 05:20:07 EDT
Shell fire kills at least 30 in Mogadishu
Thu Oct 22, 2009 7:54am GMT
* Rebels attack airport as president leaves
* African Union peacekeepers return mortar fire
(Updates death toll, adds quotes, details)
By Ibrahim Mohamed and Abdi Sheikh
MOGADISHU, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Artillery battles between Islamist insurgents,
Somali government forces and African Union (AU) peacekeepers killed at least
30 people in the capital Mogadishu on Thursday, residents and medical
workers said.
Witnesses said the rebels launched volleys of mortar bombs at the
international airport as President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed left for a meeting in
Uganda, prompting AU soldiers there to respond with artillery fire.
Medical sources and residents said at least 30 people were killed and scores
more injured in one of the heaviest exchanges to rock the lawless city for
weeks.
AU sources said Ahmed was not hurt in the shelling.
Farah Olow, a shopkeeper in the city's Bakara market, told Reuters six
people were killed by one shell that demolished a home there.
"They were taking cover in a concrete building, but such big shells can
penetrate the strongest house. We can't go out to count how many more are
dead. Bombs are raining on us," he said.
Fighting in Somalia has killed 19,000 civilians since the start of 2007 and
driven another 1.5 million from their homes.
Western security agencies say the Horn of Africa nation has become a safe
haven for militants, including foreign jihadists, who are using it to plot
attacks across the region and beyond. (Additional reporting by Abdi Guled;
Writing by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Giles Elgood)
C Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
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