More than 15 killed in renewed fighting in Mogadishu

At least 15 people have been killed and hundreds of families displaced in fighting that began on Sunday between rival militias in the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

According to witnesses on the ground, violence erupted in the Si Si area of north Mogadishu when armed groups loyal to Mogadishu militia leader Nur Daqle attacked militia led by the chairman of the Islamic courts, Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmed. Each side blamed the other for starting the fighting, said Hassan Ade, a local journalist.

Daqle and Ahmed both belong to the Agoon Yar subclan of the Abgal. The fighting is said to be a struggle to gain supremacy in an area dominated by their subclan. However, what originated as an internal feud immediately became a battle between the Islamic courts and the newly created Alliance for Peace and the Fight Against International Terrorism, which comprises several Mogadishu-based faction leaders.

Since February, fighting between the two sides has claimed more than 100 lives. Hundreds more have been injured and thousands displaced. Hospital sources said between 15 and 20 people were killed in the latest fighting. "Our estimate is the death toll as of yesterday [Sunday] is between 15 and 20," a doctor said. "We also have more than 40 injured people in different hospitals in the city."

The doctor said the number could be higher, "given the fact that many people were unable to reach hospitals." Figures for those injured or killed in the fighting on Monday were unavailable. "We can only collect the data once the fighting stops," he said.

The clashes, which subsided on Sunday night, "restarted with great intensity at 11:00 a.m. this morning [on Monday]," after heavily armed militia of the Islamic court joined Ahmed’s side. Militia of the Alliance took up arms in support of Daqle, Ade said. It had become "normal in Mogadishu that whenever fighting breaks out, it quickly draws these two sides [the courts and the factions], no matter how it started or who started it," he said. By Monday afternoon, the fighting had become less intense, but sporadic assaults with heavy weapons continued.

Many families displaced by the current clashes were reportedly fleeing to safer neighbourhoods. "Some have even left the city altogether and are now setting up camp in the town of Afgoi [30km south of Mogadishu]," said Ade.