Fighting in Somalia capital kills at least 22

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Heavy fighting between government forces and fighters in Somalias capital on Wednesday killed at least 22 people, including Mogadishus police chief.
Fighters with links to Al-Qaeda stepped up attacks on the government in early May to try and oust President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. Fierce clashes have killed nearly 300 people since then. The Al-Shabaab group has so far resisted government attempts drive its fighters from the capital and the activists, along with allied group Hizbul Islam, control most of southern Somalia bordering Kenya and parts of the central region.
The fighting on Wednesday came after government forces attacked fighters in Mogadishu, the latest in a string of offensives to try and dislodge the insurgents from the capital.
Eyewitnesses said a mortar bomb killed eight people in one house alone in Bakara Market, a rebel stronghold. Other residents said there was fierce fighting in the Hodan area.
Mogadishu Police Chief Ali Said was killed in the government attack and people in various parts of the city were struck down by stray bullets.
The commander died in the fighting this morning when the troops overran the Opposition trenches, Abdiqadir Odweyne, a senior police official, told Reuters. Dead bodies lay in the streets and hospital wards were packed with casualties.
We have received 50 people injured in todays fighting, Dahir Dhere, Deputy Director of the Madina hospital in Mogadishu, told Reuters.
We do not have a specific number, but at least 500 fighters are in Mogadishu alone and I think this is a great danger to the entire region, Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke said. Some middle ranking Al-Qaeda officials came into the country and they want to make a base in Somalia.
If these guys succeed in taking over Somalia, they will create havoc in the continent, he told Reuters in Nairobi.
Analysts say the fighting in Mogadishu is the worst for years and the chances of any negotiated peace are waning.
African Union peacekeepers are protecting key sites from the fighters but government forces have so far lacked sufficient strength to score decisive wins within or outside the capital.
The government said it was confident of retaking major towns but once again called on African and Western nations to deliver on promises of logistical and financial support.
The consequences of Al-Qaeda taking over will have greater repercussions, said Sharmarke. The world should not take anything for granted.