Fighting spreads in Somalia
2006-12-24 09:15
Mogadishu - Heavy fighting between Somali Islamists and Ethiopian-backed government troops on Sunday spread to new fronts in central Somalia on the fifth day of deadly clashes, pitching the country closer to an all-out war, both sides said.
The near week-long fighting erupted in the Islamist-held Beledweyne and Bandiradley townships, 300 kilometres and 630 kilometres north of the capital Mogadishu, they added.
"This is the heaviest fighting, it started early this morning around Bandiradley area and is still continuing," said Mohamed Mohamoud Jumale, the Islamists' spokesperson in the township.
Jumale said the fighting in central Somalia erupted after Ethiopian troops pounded Islamic positions.
"They (Ethiopians) attacked us and are using heavy artillery and tanks. I think this fighting will cause a lot of casualties but we hope Allah will assist us and we will win the war," he added.
Meanwhile, heavy artillery shells were heard near the government seat of Baidoa and in Burhakaba, controlled by the Islamists, according to residents.
"We don't know what is happening but the sound of the heavy weapons is being heard everywhere in the town and surroundings," said Mohamed Hasan Sahal, a resident of Baidoa, about 250 kilometres northwest of the capital.
Ultimatum expired on Wednesday
Fighting erupted early on Wednesday, hours after the expiry of an Islamist-imposed ultimatum for Ethiopia to withdraw the thousands of troops the Islamists say Addis Ababa has deployed in the country.
Ethiopia is supporting Somalia's weakened government against the Islamist forces, which control Mogadishu and much of the rest of the war-ravaged Horn of Africa nation that has been wracked by conflicts since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.
Arab League-mediated talks in Khartoum collapsed in November when Islamists refused to negotiate until Ethiopia withdrew its troops and the current violence ruins any hope of a possible resumption.
The violence escalated despited mounting calls from for restraint, with Egypt and the Arab League urging the belligerents to halt hostilities that have sent thousands of civilians fleeing.
'Dozens dead'
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said the fighting around Baidoa had left "dozens" dead.
The government claims its Ethiopian-backed forces have killed more than 500 Islamist fighters since Wednesday, while Islamists speak of killing at least 70 enemy combatants in the same region.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi said that 4 000 "foreign fighters" had taken advantage of the conflict to infiltrate the lawless country.
The Islamists have lamented that the international community has ignored the conflict and called on Muslims from all the world to join the "holy war" against thousands of Ethiopian forces deployed in the country to protect the weak government.