Castro Posted April 22, 2007 Sunday April 22, 2007 6:16 PM AP Photo NAI105, NAI106 By SALAD DUHUL Associated Press Writer MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - Insurgents and Ethiopian troops backing Somali government forces fought gunbattles in Mogadishu on Sunday, while a human rights group said at least 47 people died - some caught in crossfire in the previous day's fighting. The government, warning of an upcoming offensive, called on residents living in insurgent strongholds to leave their homes. Sudan Ali Ahmed, the chairman of the Elman Human Rights Organization, said six insurgents and 41 civilians died. Some of the civilians died of their injuries after being wounded during the previous day's heavy fighting, he said. Ahmed said the figures were based on what Mogadishu residents, hospitals and activists reported to his group Sunday. There were no casualty figures for either Ethiopian or Somali government soldiers. The new tallies bring the death toll in five days of fighting in Mogadishu to at least 212, with more than 291 wounded, according to the human rights group. Sunday's fighting was less intense than the previous day's, which saw battles spread across the northern and southern districts of Mogadishu, with mortars and grenades used as well as gunfights. Somali government forces captured Tawfiq Hotel, which was owned by a businessman sympathetic to the insurgents, said Deputy Defense Minister Salad Ali Jelle. ``People in Mogadishu should vacate their homes which are located near the strongholds of terrorists and we will crack down on insurgents and terrorists very soon,'' Jelle told the AP. In a separate development that could increase tension in the Horn of Africa, Eritrea suspended its membership of a regional body that mediated the Somali conflict. The unresolved border dispute between Eritrea and Ethiopia has drawn the two countries into war in the past, the Somalia conflict has also lately been seen as a proxy battle between them. Eritrea, which has denied U.S. accusations that it supports the months-old insurgency in Mogadishu, suspended its membership in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development because of ``a number of repeated and irresponsible resolutions'' the organization has passed ``that undermine regional peace and security,'' the Eritrean Foreign Ministry said in a statement late Saturday. It did not make any direct reference to Somalia. But in recent years, the seven-nation Intergovernmental Authority on Development has spent most of its time trying to resolve conflicts such as Somalia, rather than focus on economic development for which it was set up. The Guardian Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
