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AMISOM apologises for shooting civilians in Mogadishu

Storyline:National News

Ugandan soldiers serving in Somalia under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) arrive to welcome Somali president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed (unseen) at the base in Mogadishu on November 22, 2009. Somalia's embattled president appealed to the international community on November 23, 2009 to do more to prop up his transitional government, fighting for survival against an Al Qaeda-inspired insurgency. President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed told AFP in an interview that his government's chances of survival are greater today that when he came to power in January with international backing. AFP PHOTO / YASUYOSHI CHIBA

African Union mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has apologised for the killing of a Somali driver and injuring two other citizens on Wednesday in Somali capital, Mogadishu.

In a statement on Thursday, AMISOM said that the incident took place at a military camp when a convoy of civilian contractors stopped at checkpoint for a routine security check.

“Unfortunately, one of the soldiers conducting the security check accidentally shot a driver dead and injured two others.” said the Mission.

The statement noted that AMISOM and the security authorities of the Federal Government of Somalia were launching a joint investigation into the incident.

Earlier this month, five people were allegedly killed in an Amisom indiscriminate mortar bombardment on civilians area near Janaale town in Lower Shabelle region of southern Somalia.

AMISOM said last week that it will in the next three months conclude a compensation plan for civilians who suffer harm as a direct result of its operations in the Horn of Africa country.

“We want to ensure that we bridge and strengthen the relationship between Amisom and the local communities and this is part of our efforts to win the hearts and minds of the local communities, which is an important dimension for defeating the Al-Shaabab,” AMISOM said in a statement issued in Mogadishu.

In July last year, Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Amisom troops in Somalia of killing of six people at wedding in Marka town. The group asked Amisom to investigate the alleged killing by but Amisom refuted the allegations noting the troops were responding to Al-Shabaab attacks.

“Gunning down people at a wedding or anyone else in cold blood as punishment for insurgent attacks will only make things harder for the African Union forces in the future.” said  Maria Burnett, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch said in the report.