25 people killed in inter-clan fighting

Two days of heavy fighting in Lower Shabelle region has left at least 25 people dead and many more injured, a local source told IRIN on Monday. The fighting which was concentrated in and around the village of Tobonka Buundo, near Afgoi, 20 Km south of Mogadishu, was between the Abgal clan and the Gare clan. The fighting broke out on Saturday, when Abgal nomads in search of pasture for their animals invaded Gare farms, said Abdulkadir Farah, an Afgoi resident. Ten people were killed on Saturday most of them Gare farmers. On Sunday, another 15 people were killed, when the Gare regrouped, armed themselves and mounted a counter attack, he said. "Unfortunately this is a yearly occurrence, when nomads in search of pasture and water collide with farmers" he said. Farah, however, said that this particular clash between these two clans has been brewing for a while, and " it was just a matter of time before it exploded". Farah said there had been few skirmishes between them over farm invasions before Saturday. Abgal and Gare clan elders are trying to contain the situation and the Transitional National Government has reportedly sent a military unit to separate the two sides. The situation is calm today, with no reports of further clashes, Farah told IRIN on Monday