Mogadishu Elders Ask Insurgents to Stop Airport Attacks

Over 100 community leaders in Mogadishu have appealed to the Islamist al Shabaab insurgent group to stop attacking the capital’s main Aden Adde International Airport and allow air traffic to flow. The elders, who included traditional leaders, Muslim clerics, civic and business leaders held a community conference in Mogadishu, where they said airport-related violence had only led to more deaths, injuries and the destruction of property. Airline companies have refused to land since September 16, when al Shabaab announced that it would down any planes approaching the airport. Over 60 civilians have since been killed in related violence and although AU planes have landed and departed safely, the insurgents routinely release mortar fire upon citing an approaching plane. [PE]