MOGADISHU, Somalia July 25 (Garowe Online) - At least five people were killed in the Somali capital Mogadishu midday Wednesday after a powerful explosion ripped through a major intersection, witnesses said.

The intersection near Arafat Hospital is manned by Ethiopian soldiers. Witnesses said the blast included a landmine explosion and several smaller blasts.

The Ethiopians opened gunfire in all directions immediately after the blast.

As of Wednesday night, the dead bodies of the three civilians were still spread out on the street, according to two eyewitnesses who live in the neighborhood. Residents expressed concern about diseases.

Ethiopian troops had sealed off the area and were preparing to protect themselves from a follow-up attack. Area residents were ordered to remain inside, even relatives of the dead victims.

Nine other people wounded in the attack were being treated at nearby hospitals.

Such attacks have become commonplace in Mogadishu, ever since the Ethiopian army helped install the interim Somali government in the capital after defeating rival Islamists.

The Islamists are suspected to be leading the insurgency, which has thus far claimed tens of lives, most of them civilians.

Meanwhile, the national reconciliation conference completed its first week of debates among clan delegates. Leading conference officials called upon the Islamists and other government opponents to attend the conference in search of lasting peace. [ Full story]

Observers said the officials' invitation alludes to a change of rhetoric for the interim government, whose top leaders previously refused to politicize the NRC.

Source: Garowe Online