Five mortars slammed into Somalia's presidential palace tonight and gunfire rattled across Mogadishu in the latest outbreak of violence in chaotic Somalia, witnesses and officials said.
"Eight mortar shells were fired at Villa Somalia, but only five hit. The other three went into nearby houses," a senior government source said, confirming that President Abdullahi Yusuf was inside at the time of the guerrilla-style attack.
Suspicion fell immediately on Somali Islamists, who controlled most of the south until an offensive by the government and allied Ethiopian troops over Christmas and the New Year drove them out of Mogadishu.
Now scattered to remote parts of the south near the border with Kenya, the Islamists have vowed a guerrilla war. Two ex-fighters told Reuters earlier on Friday they had returned to Mogadishu and were planning attacks on Villa Somalia and other targets.
"Many Islamists have started infiltrating Mogadishu again," one said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Yusuf arrived in the city days ago to take up residence in the bullet and mortar-scarred building that used to house former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre, whose ouster by warlords in 1991 ushered in the last 16 years of anarchy and bloodshed in the Horn of Africa nation.
It was not yet known if the 72-year-old Yusuf or any other of the occupants were hurt during the attack.
Asked if there were deaths, the government source said: "It is complicated. I cannot confirm at the moment."
Witnesses said that after the mortar attacks, assailants with machine-guns ran towards the building where they fought presidential guards around the hill-top compound for about 20 minutes.
The Islamists regard the Ethiopians as illegitimate occupiers.
An African Union commission that visited Mogadishu in recent days recommended a 7,650-soldier force, or nine infantry battalions of 850 each, be deployed to Somalia "as soon as possible".
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi is anxious to withdraw his forces. The AU force would protect the government and provide training for Somali clan militiamen who would make up a new, national army.
Additional reporting: PA