At least five people, including a child, were killed on Sunday in a new wave of violence in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, witnesses said.
”I saw armed men opening fire at policemen at Debka interception. Three policemen and a doctor who worked in a clinic nearby were killed,” witness Farah Hasan Sahal said in southern Mogadishu.
The police officers were targeted but the doctor was killed by a stray bullet, said Mohamed Ali yare, a bus driver.
In another incident in southern Mogadishu, Somali forces opened fire, killing a two-year-old child and wounding his mother, a witness said.
”No one is quite sure who they were shooting, but what I saw was a two-year-old child killed by the bullets and his mother injured,” said Hanad Guled, another witness.
Meanwhile, Somali Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein met clan elders in a bid to accelerate his recently outlined peace plan.
”The prime minister is meeting with opposition clan elders to discuss them with his new plans for reconciliation; maybe this will lead to broad peace talks,” an elder said.
Over the past year, the city has been rocked by almost daily violence pitting Ethiopian-backed Somali forces against Islamist insurgents. The guerrilla fighting has killed hundreds of civilians and forced tens of thousands to flee. — Sapa-AFP