Festivities Fighting among hundreds of gunmen from rival clan-based factions in northwestern Somalia has killed more than 40 people and wounded 90, clan members said Wednesday. The fighting around Awleh, a remote village about 500 miles northwest of the capital, Mogadishu, erupted Monday and continued Wednesday. Details were sketchy and it was not clear what caused the clashes between the Sa'ad and Dir clans.
| I'm sure they had a good reason. After all, it was a Monday... |
Ali Diriyeh Alloreh, a senior member of the Sa'ad, said 25 people from his clan had been killed and 50 others wounded in the fighting between gunmen armed with rocket-propelled grenades, assault rifles and pickups fitted with heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft guns. Abdullahi Mohamed Ali Dayib, a member of the Dir, said 18 men from his clan had been killed in the clashes and more than 40 wounded. |