Nearly 3,000 noncombatants have died since December, when a guerrilla war against the government began

By Mohamed Olad Hassan

MOGADISHU, August 11, 2007 - Mohamed Hussein heard the grenade explode and he froze.

Hussein, 39, knew what was coming next because he has been through it before: gunfire arriving from every direction as soldiers frantically tried to kill the person who had thrown the weapon.

When the shots finally stopped, Hussein saw four bloodied corpses, all of them civilians caught in the crossfire. It's a tragic, common story in this capital, where streets are marked with blood and the sight of burned-out cars is common. Nearly 3,000 civilians have died since December as Islamic insurgents launched a guerrilla war against the government and its Ethiopian military backers, human rights groups say.

"The whole time I was frozen in terror and shock," Hussein said of the attack last month. "Government soldiers fired in every direction, killing four innocent people on the spot."

The seemingly endless stream of death is shocking even in this bloodstained city: pregnant women, the elderly, entire families -- all victims of Somalia's devastating violence. Last month, five children who stopped to play with a land mine -- apparently mistaking the device for a toy -- were blown away when it detonated.

Somalia and Ethiopian officials refused to say how many of their troops have been wounded or killed, and no other groups have compiled figures. The chaos makes counting difficult, but witness reports indicate the numbers of combatants killed are far fewer than the civilian casualties. Somali officials say they are desperately trying to pacify Mogadishu, but they need to wipe out insurgents.

Abdi Haji Gobdon, the government spokesman, refused further comment on civilian deaths.

John Holmes, the U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, has said the fighting in the city has violated international humanitarian law. "When you have a pitched battle going on in a city full of civilians, that is not in accordance with the Geneva Conventions," he told the Associated Press in May.

Somalia has been ravaged by violence and anarchy since warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, then turned on each other. The U.N.-backed transitional government formed in 2004 has struggled to assert any real control.

A radical Islamic group with ties to Al-Qaida ruled the capital and much of southern Somalia for six months last year, but they were driven out in December when Ethiopia -- the region's military powerhouse -- sent troops here. Remnants of the group have launched an Iraq-style insurgency, with near-daily roadside bombs, land mines and grenade attacks.

The attacks generally aim for Somali troops and their Ethiopian allies. Yusuf Osman Hussein, a spokesman for Mogadishu police, said civilians are so often caught because officers and soldiers simply don't know the people they're targeting. The insurgents wear no uniforms.

Source: Associated Press