 More than 30 civilians have been killed and 200 wounded in two days of fighting between Ethiopian troops and Islamist insurgents in the Somali capital, elders said Friday.
“The fighting is continuing and casualties are increasing day-by-day,” said Husein Said Korgab, the spokesman for the Hawiye clan, which is dominant in Mogadishu. “I can tell you that more than 30 people have been killed in two days of fighting. The number of wounded people is about 200,” Korgab told AFP. The toll is from Thursday and Friday clashes.
The latest round of fighting erupted late Tuesday when at least seven civilians were killed followed by a lull the next day, which was shattered late Thursday when both sides resumed hostilities. The elders accused the Ethiopian forces of targeting sites where there were no insurgents, leading to mounting civilian casualties.
| The Aethiops do seem a bit trigger-happy ... |
“Ethiopian forces are bombing down civilian sites, places where there are no insurgents. This morning, they have shelled places some 15 kilometres away (from the city), and people are fleeing again,” Korgab added.
| Translating Korgab, I think civilians = ICU gunnies, and civilian sites = mosques. |
Meanwhile, more Ethiopian troops deployed to Mogadishu to reinforce their collegues battling the insurgents backed by clan militia, witnesses said. “I have seen and counted about 40 Ethiopian armed vehicles this morning on the road from Baidoa to Mogadishu,” said Amin Hassan Ado, a resident in Afgooye, 30 kilometres (20 miles) west of the capital. “We are very much concerned about this troop reinforcement, it will worsen the situation.”
| Particularly if you're an ICU hard boy. |
“I have seen more troops pouring in. They have entered Mogadishu,” said Mohamed Hassan Moalim, who lives near Banadir Hospital in the south of the capital.
The deployment comes a day after a suspected suicide bomber hit an Ethiopian military base in the outskirts of the capital.
| Ah-ha, there's the reason the Aethiops are pissed ... |
The African Union envoy to Somalia Mohamed Foum arrived in Mogadishu and held talks with Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi on the deployment of more AU peacekeepers in the lawless country, officials said. About 1,500 AU peacekeepers from Uganda deployed to Mogadishu early last month have failed to stem the surge in violence. The Ugandans are an advance contingent of about 8,000 peacekeepers the pan-African body plans to send to Somalia someday to help Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed maintain control of the country. |