Clashes in Somali govt seat
2006-06-09 17:57
Baidoa - At least five people were killed and eight wounded when clashes erupted in the temporary seat of Somalia's - largely powerless - transitional government on Friday.
Officials said the fighting pitted government troops against gunmen at an illegal checkpoint.
They said the clashes were unrelated to months of fierce battles between Islamists and a United States-backed warlord alliance for control of the capital Mogadishu.
Government spokesperson Abdirahman Nur Mohamed Dinari said the violence began when gunmen, loyal to a local clan militia commander, manning the roadblock refused an order to dismantle it.
"As a result of the fighting, four militiamen and an elder were killed and eight others wounded," said Dinari.
Elders said the casualty toll was higher, with seven dead and 13 wounded.
The clashes occurred near a former warehouse, home to Somalia's parliament in Baidoa, 250km northwest of Mogadishu.
'The government is determined'
Dinari said the government had made a decision on Thursday to help local authorities in Baidoa and five surrounding districts clear illegal roadblocks, where gunmen extort money from civilians, and disarm freelance and clan militias.
"This is a government policy and we are not going to reverse it," he said. "The government is determined to ensure all roadblocks are cleared."
Clashes at checkpoints are common among Somalia's many armed groups. The barricades are a major source of their income.
Friday's fighting involved soldiers loyal to transitional president Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed Yusuf - coming mainly from his home region of Puntland in the north - and gunmen from a militia controlled by the Raharwein clan, dominant around Baidoa.
The presence of Yusuf's troops has heightened tensions in the town, said witnesses, and local militia's had complained that fighters from northern Somalia were taking their jobs and income.
The government is temporarily based in Baidoa.
The capital of Mogadishu has been the scene of bloody fighting between the Islamists and the warlords since February, Nearly 350 people have been killed in the violence.