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At least 20 civilians were killed and dozens injured in
clashes between Islamic militants and government forces in
the Somali capital of Mogadishu, hospital officials said
Saturday.
The fighting in several parts of the capital Friday left 62
people injured, according to Madina hospital officials.
In the northern Mogadishu neighborhood of Manbolyo, seven
people believed to be from the same family were killed,
hospital officials said.
Four people were killed in the southern neighborhood of
Bakara, where the city's biggest market is located. Nine
more people died on their way to the hospital, said Dr.
Duniyo Ali, deputy director of Madina hospital.
Somali forces have been battling Al-Shabaab, the al Qaeda
proxy in the country. The militants are waging a war against
the government in an effort to implement a stricter form of
Islamic law, or sharia.
The horn of Africa nation has not had a stable government
since 1991, and fighting between the rebels and government
troops has escalated the humanitarian crisis in the
famine-ravaged country.
The U.N.-backed government fights the rebels with the help
of African Union peacekeepers.
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