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Africa Horn
At least 140 killed in Mogadishu battle
2006-07-12
Headlines like this are common in Mog these days ...
MOGADISHU - At least 140 people were killed in two days of fighting in the Somali capital, which ended after one of the city’s last holdout warlords surrendered to Islamist militias, a hospital official said on Tuesday. “Approximately 140 people have died and 150 were injured. It was a very heavy exchange with most of the people dying outside hospital,” Ali Moallim, a senior administrator at Mogadishu’s Madina hospital, told Reuters.

Moallim said casualties from the two days of fighting, which started on Sunday and ended late on Monday when militia loyal to warlord Abdi Awale Qaybdiid began surrendering, would probably rise as many had not yet been taken to hospital.

The fighting pitted Islamist militias who control most of Mogadishu against gunmen backing Qaybdiid, a member of a routed alliance of quasi U.S.-backed warlords, and those of Hussein Aideed, a warlord and deputy prime minister in the interim government.
Posted by:Steve White

#20  Map of Somaliland; Map of Puntland.
Posted by: twobyfour   2006-07-12 23:18  

#19  Use UAV's and Hellfires from Djibouti - what? Worried the Somali air force will take them out? The Islamists will ban kites...nothing to worry about
Posted by: Frank G   2006-07-12 21:20  

#18  Take your pick: Saudi and Iranian money, Iranian, Pakistani, Yemeni, Egyptian, Soudanese advisors and volunteers, Chinese suppliers and technical support.

A regular team-building effort.
Posted by: Fordesque   2006-07-12 20:54  

#17  I do not see nation builing there. I see periodic hammering of Al Q assets in Somalia. Saudi money is behind this. We are right back to following the money issue and taking out the financiers. Everything else is treating the symptoms of the disease. We will not win this war until we deal with the key issue: FINANCING.

This goes for Saudi Arabia and this goes for Iran. People like Kimmie and Pencil Neck are clients of terrorist money. They will fall when the kingpins fall.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2006-07-12 16:20  

#16  The US Navy is on pirate patrol off Somalia, according to one of the mothers trailing daughter #2 carpools to summer school with -- her daughter's boyfriend is over there now.
Posted by: trailing wife   2006-07-12 14:45  

#15  Somalia sits right on top of major shipping lanes through the Red Sea and along the coast of Africa. We've already seen problems with Somali-based pirates. It will be very difficult to distinguish between some warlord's entourage and a terrorist training camp. This is DEFINITELY not good.
Posted by: Old Patriot   2006-07-12 13:58  

#14  well you see a terrorost camp goin up then blow it up
Posted by: Greamp Elmavinter1163   2006-07-12 13:38  

#13  It's not whether or not Somalia has strategic value in itself, but that we don't want Al Qaeda to have a safe haven where it can train new cadres to replace those killed in Afghanistan and Iraq, and those arrested in Europe. Afghanistan, too, appeared unimportant until the 9/11 attacks were launched from there.
Posted by: trailing wife   2006-07-12 12:29  

#12  The strategic parts are in the relatively sane and autonomous north (Somaliland and Puntland). They are going to declare independence and leave the south to abort itself.
Posted by: ed   2006-07-12 11:09  

#11  The issue is not only when to remove the garbage, but what to leave behind.

I'd like to say "slightly radioactive glass."
Posted by: Jackal   2006-07-12 11:06  

#10  Thought all the fighting in Mog was supposed to be over last week. Another flare up?
Posted by: 6   2006-07-12 10:54  

#9  Unfortunately, This choke point is a critical one. Plus, in addition to Sudan, it represents another significant country for AQ training.

The issue is not only when to remove the garbage, but what to leave behind.
Posted by: Captain America   2006-07-12 10:30  

#8  LOL Sorry for that bad grammer, I'm eating
Posted by: Jesing Ebbease3087   2006-07-12 10:26  

#7  Somailia's north border is a choke point for trading and oil. It also is also a gateway to Africa from Yemen and Saudi. It's a great safe haven and it's very close to Saudi financing.
Posted by: Jesing Ebbease3087   2006-07-12 10:23  

#6  Don't worry - if you've ever seen Somalis getting on a bus you'll kniow that this is a fight to the last man.
Posted by: Londoner   2006-07-12 10:21  

#5  

See for yourself.
Posted by: Jesing Ebbease3087   2006-07-12 10:20  

#4  I don't mean to sound ignorant but what is the strategic value of Somalia? What happens if this place goes over even more to the side of darkness (Islamic fundamentalist stronghold? Does this mean this place becomes another Taliban type Afghanistan where the Islamicfacists train and turn out more terrorists? If that is the case, I would agree it has strategic value.
Posted by: JohnQC   2006-07-12 08:18  

#3  This is the same crap that happened in Afghanistan after the Russians left. This is going to get ugly for us in a few years.
Posted by: 49 Pan   2006-07-12 07:38  

#2  casualities ... when ... militia loyal to warlord Abdi Awale Qaybdiid began surrendering, would probably rise as many had not yet been taken to hospital

Many of those surrendering had not yet been taken to the hospital? Don't they just usually impose sharia law and wack their necks?
Posted by: Bobby   2006-07-12 06:31  

#1  I believe militant Islam is fighting every religion on the planet at this moment. They seem to be hurting everywhere except Somalia. I don't want to save Aideed's ass, but Somalia has strategic value.
Posted by: Cobra   2006-07-12 00:48  

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