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| Version 6 | Version 7 |
|---|---|
| Islamists abandon Somali capital | Islamists abandon Somali capital |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Islamist fighters have left the Somali capital as government forces backed by Ethiopian troops advance on the city. | |
| A government spokesman told Reuters news agency that Islamic leaders had "dispersed into thin air". | A government spokesman told Reuters news agency that Islamic leaders had "dispersed into thin air". |
| As the militiamen withdrew, gunfire echoed through Mogadishu and there were reports of looting. | |
| Ethiopia began a large-scale offensive at the weekend to back Somalia's interim government, capturing ground previously held by Islamist militias. | Ethiopia began a large-scale offensive at the weekend to back Somalia's interim government, capturing ground previously held by Islamist militias. |
| A senior Islamist leader, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, told al-Jazeera television: "We did not leave the capital to chaos." | |
| "We left it to avert heavy bombing because Ethiopian forces are practising genocide against the Somali people," he added. | "We left it to avert heavy bombing because Ethiopian forces are practising genocide against the Somali people," he added. |
| We have taken over the two control points on the main roads outside the city Abdirahman DinariSomali government spokesman Violence alarms press US keeps a close watch | |
| Hundreds of gunmen who had just fought for the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) took off their uniforms and submitted to the command of clan elders, the Associated Press news agency reported. | Hundreds of gunmen who had just fought for the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) took off their uniforms and submitted to the command of clan elders, the Associated Press news agency reported. |
| Some began looting UIC buildings, it added. | Some began looting UIC buildings, it added. |
| Residents reported heavy machine-gun fire in northern parts the capital early on Thursday - the ninth day of a conflict which the two sides say has left hundreds dead. | Residents reported heavy machine-gun fire in northern parts the capital early on Thursday - the ninth day of a conflict which the two sides say has left hundreds dead. |
| Correspondents say the UIC's departure leaves a power vacuum in Mogadishu, raising fears of a return to clan warfare that blighted the city in the 1990s. | Correspondents say the UIC's departure leaves a power vacuum in Mogadishu, raising fears of a return to clan warfare that blighted the city in the 1990s. |
| Troubled history | Troubled history |
| A joint force of Ethiopian and Somali government troops are reported to be just 30 km (18 miles) from Mogadishu, threatening to besiege the capital. | A joint force of Ethiopian and Somali government troops are reported to be just 30 km (18 miles) from Mogadishu, threatening to besiege the capital. |
| Government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told Reuters: "Our forces already effectively control Mogadishu because we have taken over the two control points on the main roads outside the city." | Government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told Reuters: "Our forces already effectively control Mogadishu because we have taken over the two control points on the main roads outside the city." |
| He added that government forces would enter Mogadishu in the "coming hours". | He added that government forces would enter Mogadishu in the "coming hours". |
| Mogadishu residents have reported seeing convoys of Islamic fighters driving south. | Mogadishu residents have reported seeing convoys of Islamic fighters driving south. |
| It is believed they are headed for the port city of Kismayo, their last remaining stronghold, 300 miles (500km) to the south. | It is believed they are headed for the port city of Kismayo, their last remaining stronghold, 300 miles (500km) to the south. |
| But a senior UIC official Omar Idris said it was too early to talk of defeat. | |
| "The Ethiopians now are advancing but that is not the end. We know what happened in Iraq, the experience of the Americans... I think this is very, very early to say that the Islamic Court forces were defeated," he told the BBC's World Today radio programme. | |
| At the weekend Ethiopia began a major offensive to support the weak government against the UIC - which previously held much of central and southern Somalia. | |
| The African Union has called for Ethiopian forces to leave Somalia. | |
| However the United Nations Security Council has failed to agree on a statement calling for the withdrawal of all foreign forces. | However the United Nations Security Council has failed to agree on a statement calling for the withdrawal of all foreign forces. |
| The UIC - which seized of the capital six months ago - had introduced law and order to the capital and much of southern Somalia for the first time in 16 years. | The UIC - which seized of the capital six months ago - had introduced law and order to the capital and much of southern Somalia for the first time in 16 years. |
| The US and a number of other countries accuse the UIC of links to al-Qaeda, charges it denies. | |
| Somalia and Ethiopia have a history of troubled relations, and Islamists have long called for a holy war against Ethiopian troops. | Somalia and Ethiopia have a history of troubled relations, and Islamists have long called for a holy war against Ethiopian troops. |