Report: 113 slain over 3 days in Somalia

[Hiiraan boy]

By SALAD DUHUL, Associated Press Writer 11 minutes ago

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Three days of fighting between Islamic insurgents and Ethiopian troops backing the government has killed at least 113 civilians, a local human rights group said on Friday. The U.N. said hundreds of thousands of residents had fled.

"We condemn both sides of the conflict and call on them to immediately stop the mass massacre in the capital," Ahmed told The Associated Press.

Mogadishu‘s streets have seen continuous fighting on Friday between Ethiopian troops backing the government and insurgents, and civilians are frequently caught in the crossfire. Four days of bloodshed last month killed more than 1,000 civilians and wounded 4,300 in the country‘s worst violence in more than 15 years.

Abdillahi Hassan Ali, whose home is on the insurgents‘ side of the front line, said masked men were firing rocket launchers and Kalashnikov assault rifles at the Ethiopians. The masked men also had some pickups mounted with machine-guns. Whenever the Ethiopians fired back, the insurgents would hide behind houses, Ali said.

Somalia‘s transitional government was formed in 2004 with U.N. help but has struggled to extend control over the country.