12 die in Somalia clan clashes

2008-05-04 15:39

Mogadishu - Inter-clan fighting in western Somalia killed at least 12 people and wounded at least 15 others during a land dispute, residents said on Sunday.

Osman Enow, a resident in the town of Luq, said a dozen people had been killed when fighting broke out on Saturday night and that the wounded were being treated under trees because there were no hospitals in the area.

Mohamed Abdi Kalil, the deputy governor of Gedo region, where Luq is located, said: "The clash was triggered by a land dispute, but the ensuing escalation of violence was attributed to a long-simmering rivalry between the clans.

"We are planning to send a group of elders from both warring sides to iron out the differences."

Disputes over land, water and pasture rights are common in Somalia, which has not had a functioning government since 1991. Fighting between Islamic insurgents and government troops supported by Ethiopian forces claimed thousands of lives last year.

The conflict in the impoverished country is complicated by clan rivalry.

- AP