Somali government troops and their Ethiopian allies used tanks and heavy artillery to battle gunmen who struck a military base at the former defence ministry in Mogadishu on Friday, according to Reuters. At least three civilians were killed by stray bullets and retaliatory fire as the violence spilled over into the nearby neighbourhoods of Bar Ubah and Gupta. "The government soldiers and Ethiopians fired back using heavy artillery as well as tanks. The fighting continued for close to 20 minutes," said a resident. Interior Minister Mohamed Mahamud Guled "Gamadheere" confirmed the attack, but said there was no solid casualty figure yet. Homes in the area were struck by stray bullets and shells as the government forces and a vigilante group fired back at the attackers in Bar Ubah, witnesses said. Another resident who declined to be named said a civilian died after he was hit by a stray bullet and another was killed and nine wounded when a rocket hit a house. In nearby Gupta, a woman died and six children were seriously wounded as three artillery shells struck their iron-sheet shacks, said a woman who witnessed the strikes but declined to give her name. "One of the wounded is a boy with shrapnel lodged in his neck, and he was carried to the hospital with his neck hanging. We have no hope he will survive," the woman said.
