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Somali explosions kill 2 troops
05/11/2007 12:07 - (SA)
Mohamed Sheikh Nor
Mogadishu - Two large explosions targeted a convoy of Ethiopian troops moving toward Somalia's capital early on Monday, said witnesses, and at least two Somalis were killed after the soldiers opened fire.
Resident Batulo Ali said it was unclear whether any of the Ethiopians had been killed, but two Somalis were shot dead and several others wounded after the troops fired on passers-by following the attack.
He said: "I have seen two dead Somali bodies on the road, they were killed by Ethiopian soldiers."
Another resident, Mohamed Ahmed, said the blast had been heard more than a kilometre away and "shook all the buildings nearby".
A local farmer, Mayow Ali, said the Ethiopian troops had sealed off the area immediately after the attack and prevented Somalis from leaving their houses.
The impoverished Horn of Africa nation was in the grip of a conflict between Islamic insurgents and the shaky United Nations-backed government and its Ethiopian allies.
Thousands of Somalis had died in the fighting since December, after the Islamic alliance was ousted from Mogadishu and southern Somalia by Ethiopian soldiers supporting the government.
Somalia had not had a functioning government since 1991, after rival warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and turned on each other. The chaotic nation was awash with weapons and divided among squabbling clans.
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