Somalia fighting leaves 18 dead, dozens wounded

A heavy exchange of artillery between Islamist militants and government forces in Somalia's capital today left 18 dead and many more wounded. Of the 36 wounded, 11 were caught in an explosion when an artillery shell hit a bus near Mogadishu's Bakara Market. Two of the dead were peace keepers, while another six were rebel leaders who were linked to al Queda according to the Uganda led AMISOM mission.

According to the African Union peace keeping mission the figthing occured because of attempts to remove a network of tunnels and trenches used to move fighters and weapons around the capital by the jihadist movement Al-Shabaab.

The closing of these tunnels are a significant part of stabilizing the city according to AMISOM, which supports Somalia's traditional government. The combined forces control 60 percent of the city now; however, the government does not have much influence beyond Mogadishu. Thus Southern Somalia is under Al-Shabaab.

By Aleksandra Ruseva

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/02/20/somalia.violence/index.html