Government officials say expatriates captured Hudur town from them

MOGADIHSU -The commissioner of Hudur town Mohamed Moalim in Bakool region said Thursday that foreigners allied with al-Shabaab Islamists attacked and captured Hudur town from them. Witnesses said Wednesday at least 18 combatants were killed in fighting between government soldiers and al-Shabaab militants in Hudur town. "The militants who attacked us yesterday were mostly expatriates from Yemen, Eritrea, and Sudan,” said Mohamed Moalim. He said that 8 soldiers were killed from them and claimed that they killed about 40 from al-Shabaab, but Sheik Hassan Abu Ayman, the governor of Bay and Bakol regions of al-Shabaab said four of their fighters were killed and added they killed the other side four. More than 16,000 civilians have been killed in the two-year-old insurgency, one million people have been driven from their homes, more than a third of the population depend on aid, and large parts of Mogadishu lie empty and destroyed. Al Shabaab gained support as one of many insurgent groups waging war against Ethiopian troops propping up the country's previous government. An Ethiopian withdrawal in January placated some Somalis, but al Shabaab has now turned its fire on the AU force, AMISOM, and the new government. Regional diplomats hope the inclusion of moderate Islamists in the new administration may marginalise hardliners like the group, which is on Washington's list of terrorist organizations and is known to have foreign fighters in its ranks.