Friday, October 26, 2007
The cause of the explosion at a market in Belet Weyne's city center is unknown, said Ahmed Ato, who arrived the scene minutes after the blast. The town is about 300 kilometers (186 miles) north of the capital.
"I have seen four men lying in a pool of blood. The scene was gruesome and disgusting," said Ato. He said all the dead were civilians, but two policemen were among the wounded.
The Somali government and its Ethiopian allies are fighting an Islamic insurgency, and explosions targeting policemen or soldiers on patrol in markets are common. Thousands of Somalis have died in the fighting since the Islamic group was pushed out of the capital and much of southern Somalia last December.
Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other.
Source: AP, Oct 25, 2007