Somalia:Two prominent Somali radio journalists were killed in Mogadishu on Saturday, the first by gunmen in the morning and the second, the radio station's co-owner, in an explosion hours later as he returned from the reporter's funeral.
The killings targeted Horn Afrik radio, which has been criticised by the Ethiopian-backed Somali government and also by hardline members of an insurgency that has been battling government and Ethiopian forces for months.
Mahad Ahmed Elmi, a popular talk show host, was shot at point- blank range about 7.30am near Horn Afrik's offices in the capital. He died on the way to hospital.
Many Mogadishu residents attended his funeral in the afternoon, as did Ali Iman Sharmarke, co-owner and co-director of Horn Afrik, and other journalists, despite fears that they might be targeted, a local journalist said. A few hours later, the car carrying Sharmarke struck an explosive device in the road.
The attacks occurred in the context of a broader campaign against local reporters in a city that has again become one of the most dangerous in the world. On Friday, Somali police raided the offices of the privately owned and popular Shabelle radio, forcing it off the air for the third time since January.
During a crackdown on insurgents by Ethiopian forces in April, Horn Afrik's offices were heavily shelled, but journalists continued reporting as several hundred thousand people fled Mogadishu.
Horn Afrik, founded in 1999, is considered the first independent radio station in Somalia. Though its staff is mostly drawn from Mogadishu's dominant Hawiye clan, which tends to oppose the government, it has often aired stories critical of Hawiye leaders.
The station's reporters also have aired stories critical of all parties to the conflict: the current government, the Ethiopian forces and the insurgents.
- (Los Angeles Times-Washington Post service)