Mogadishu hit by fresh fighting
October 30, 2007 - 0:0
Fighting between Ethiopian and Somali government troops and Islamist forces has continued in the Somali capital Mogadishu for a second day.
Gunfire echoed through the streets and angry residents demonstrated in protest at the presence of Ethiopian troops in their battle-damaged city.Three people were reported to have been shot dead when Ethiopian troops opened fire during one demonstration.
The unrest came a day after 10 people were reported killed in gun battles.
Somalia has seen a surge in violence since Ethiopian-backed government troops ousted Islamists last December.
The AFP news agency reported that a young boy and two other people died when troops opened fire at a demonstration.
The firing began after crowds threw stones and set tyres ablaze.
""They have started firing again and I have no way to move my family,"" said Sahra Osman, a widow with five children, quoted by Reuters as clashes erupted earlier on Sunday.
The BBC's Africa editor Martin Plaut says the latest clashes began after Ethiopia moved reinforcements and a convoy of 20 tanks and armored cars into the city late on Friday.
One of the vehicles was hit by a landmine and exploded.
On Saturday, Ethiopian troops moved out of their barracks and started fanning out across the city.
Government units control the east of the city, but the Council of Islamic Court, which was ousted in December's fighting, continues to hold some western parts of the city, from where it launches guerrilla attacks.
The latest fighting has forced schools and business to close.
Some 1,600 Ugandan troops are also in Mogadishu as part of a planned 8,000-strong African Union force to support the interim government.
Somalia has been without an effective government since civil war began in 1991.
The UN says some 400,000 people have fled the violence in Mogadishu in the past four months.
(Source: BBC)