Somalians flee capital after violent clashes
Residents began fleeing Somalia’s capital early on Monday after a night of fighting between a secular militia and gunmen loyal to Mogadishu’s Islamic courts reportedly left 18 people dead and 21 wounded. Witnesses said the fighting began when gunmen working for a militia commander linked to the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counterterrorism opened fire on a gun truck carrying the bodyguards of Islamic Court Union chairperson Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed. Full Story