Heavy fighting flares in Southwestern Somalia on Tuesday

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, May 15, 2002

Heavy fighting flares in Southwestern Somalia on Tuesday

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Heavy fighting flared up on Tuesday between forces loyal to the Ethiopian-backed Somali Reconciliation and Restoration Council (SRRC) and others loyal to the Jubba Valley Alliance in the southwest of Somolia.

According to the reports reaching here, the fighting, in and outside of Garbahaarrey, regional capital of Gedo, started at about 10:00 a.m. local time (0700GMT) Tuesday morning when about 80 heavily armed men attacked Garbahaarrey.

People who fled the town to the nearby villages said the fighting has been from a door to another and from a street to the next.

It is very difficult to find out the exact casualty figures which resulted from this fighting. But the fighting has culminated at about noon local time when all VHF commercial radios and telephones went dead.

An eyewitness, who fled the fighting in Garbahaarrey to the nearby village of Bura, about 20 kilometers west of the town, told me via VHF radio that the fighting was intense, but no battle wagons were involved.

The man who asked not be named said he could assure that the towns had fallen to the Ethiopian-backed SRRC.

The eyewitness said he did not see any dead people, "because I had to rush to safe my life," he told me.

According to the latest reports from Bardhere, about 120 kilometers south of Garbahaarrey, the fighting stopped shortly after 14:00 p.m. local time (1100GMT).

Also, elders from Bardera town who also expressed concern that the fighting might further spread elsewhere confirmed me that the town had fallen to the SRRC fighters.

The opponents of the SRRC have characterized the attack on Garbahaarrey as a suicide attempt similar to the one in which General Morgan took control of Kismaio town last year for less than 24 hours.

There has been several attempts of peace meetings between the two sides, but each time the tentative has failed because of suspicion each group is having from the other.

One of the sides is supported by Ethiopia and the other side is sympathized by the Jubba Valley Alliance controlling Kismaio which also has a relation with the government in Mogadishu.

The fighting also has a sub-clan animosity between the two sides.

Nonetheless, the eyewitnesses have not reported any physical Ethiopian involvement in this fighting.

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