Another Somalia soldier killed in targeted assassination

[Hiiraan boy]

MOGADISHU, Somalia May 17 (Garowe Online) - A government soldier in Somalia was shot to death Thursday morning at a crowded marketplace in Mogadishu, witnesses and business owners said.

A man in civilian clothes shot the soldier in the head before melting into the frenzied crowd at Bakara market and escaping, the witnesses added.

Government forces have been demolishing illegal kiosks in the Bakara market in recent days. The troops have also been providing security at the busy marketplace, following an agreement between the government and local businesses.

Yesterday, another government soldier was fatally shot in the same market when he tried to disarm an armed man.

Many soldiers and other government personnel have been killed in guerrilla-style attacks since January when Ethiopia-backed government troops defeated Islamist rivals.

Earlier this week, a Mogadishu district commissioner was assassinated by unknown gunmen who managed to escape.

The Somali transitional government is struggling to restore central rule in Mogadishu after 16 years of factional conflict and crime, but rebels have vowed to wage war until all foreign troops, including African Union peacekeepers, are withdrawn.

Four Ugandan peacekeeping soldiers were killed yesterday when their truck was hit by a roadside bomb.