Thursday, April 16, 2009
Speaking to the local Shabelle radio in Mogadishu, Omar said the recent toll includes lawmaker Abdulahi Isse Abtidoon, who was shot dead by unknown gunmen near his home in northern Mogadishu on Wednesday. The killing is "unacceptable," he said.
Early in the day, another official allied with the Somali government Sharif Mohamed, a senior Islamist commander, and his body guard were killed by suspected radical groups in Mogadishu.
"In fact our tolerance is waning and we will take steps against those who are behind the wave of senseless killing of the officials," Omar said.
According to the official, although the new government led by Islamist President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has been avoiding clashes among fellow fighters, the killings will not go "unpunished."
Islamist insurgent groups of Al-Shabaab and Hezbul Islam (Islamic Party) are opposed to the Somali government and have vowed to target anyone with links to the government.
Al-Shabaab, listed by Washington as a terrorist organization with links to al-Qaida, controls much of southern and central Somalia, while the Somali government dominated by moderate Islamists runs pockets of Mogadishu and in central Somalia with the support of the African Union peacekeeping force.
Source: Xinhua, April 16, 2009