Clashes pitting Somali government forces and their African Union allies against Islamist rebels for control of Mogadishu's main market left at least 17 civilians dead on Thursday, officials said. Many of the victims died when stray artillery fire hit a bus station.
"At least seventeen civilian dead have been counted so far and nine of them were killed after artillery fire struck a bus station near Arafat hospital," Ali Muse, head of the Mogadishu ambulance service, told AFP. "Another 46 civilians were injured and the death toll could rise," he said. Tension has been building around Bakara market, long a stronghold of al Qaeda-inspired Shebab rebels, for the past 10 days and the vast majority of traders moved their wares out several days ago.
The Shebab had been digging in trenches inside the market, while government forces and their African Union (AU) backers had taken up positions around it. Somali government officials confirmed the fighting and claimed they were advancing onto new positions previously held by the Shebab. "We have beaten the enemy back and our forces are now advancing onto new positions very close to their last stronghold in Bakara" Somali deputy chief of staff Lieutenant-Colonel Yusuf Dhegobadan, told reporters at the frontline.
"The fighting started last night and is still continuing sporadically around some positions. "We took control of some key positions this morning ... and penetrated deep into their big trenches," he added. The attempt to rout the Shebab from Bakara is part of a broader sweep, initiated in February, to regain ground in Mogadishu. The new push has enabled the transitional government and its AU backers, at one point reduced to controlling just a few blocks in Mogadishu, to reclaim around half the capital.