Somali hardline islamists capture new town
February 25, 2009 (ADDIS ABABA) — Some 17 people were killed today during fierce fighting for the capture of Hodur town in the northwestern part of Somalia by Al-Shebab, an extremist group accused of links with Al Qaeda.
Since the withdrawal of the Ethiopian troops from the neighboring country, the hard-line group seizes towns in the country and carries out attack on the government troops and the African peacekeepers raising fears about the fate of a fragile new government formed recently.
Al-Shebab captured Hodur, a small town near the Ethiopian border, on Wednesday after violent battle with the troops of the Somali government. Reports from the area say that more bodies could be found outside the disputed town, besides the 17 killed.
A medic at Hodur Hospital told the AFP that the number of the death toll was expected to reach 20. A figure confirmed by Al-Shebab regional commander Sheikh Hasan Derow who said they killed about 20 people and destroyed two armed vehicles.
In Mogadishu, the same fighters of Al-Shebab continued their attacks for the second day against the government and the African troops and killed more 48 civilians and 90 wounded in the capital.
Since the start of the insurgency in 2006 more than 16,000 civilians have been killed, one million people have been displaced, more than a third of the population depend on aid, and large parts of Mogadishu lie empty and destroyed.
Today the UN Security Council condemned the deadly suicide attack on the African peacekeepers base in Mogadishu, which caused the deaths of 11 Burundian peacekeepers and injured 17 others on Sunday.
The 15-member body reiterated its commitment to supporting a strengthened AMISOM, which it said played a vital role in helping to bring peace and security to Somalia, and commended the Governments of Uganda and Burundi for their contributions.
Al-Shebab claimed the responsibility of the attack against the compound of the African troops. However another group called Al-Hizb Al-Islami (Islamic Party) claimed also the responsibility for the clashes in the capital.
Both groups have intensified their fighting against the new president, who elected under UN mediated reconciliation talks in Djibouti, and his government which controls small parts of the capital only.
(ST)