MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - Two suspects were arrested Sunday in the deaths of two prominent Somali journalists who were killed within hours of each other, authorities said.

Mayor Mohamed Dheere announced the arrests but did not identify the suspects.

``These men are in the hands of police forces,'' Dheere said. ``They are being investigated.''

The victims were Ali Iman Sharmarke, owner of the HornAfrik Media Company, and Mahad Ahmed Elmi, who hosts a popular radio talk show for the same company. HornAfrik's broadcasts have criticized both the government and the Islamic militants who have been trying to topple the administration through a bloody insurgency.

Elmi was fatally shot outside his office early Saturday, while Sharmarke was killed hours later as he returned from his colleague's funeral. A remote-controlled land mine struck his vehicle.

Mogadishu is increasingly caught in a guerrilla war, with frequent roadside bombs and mortar attacks. Thousands of civilians have been killed, and a fifth of Mogadishu's 2 million residents have fled to squalid camps.

Islamic militants vowed to conduct an insurgency in December, when they were toppled by Ethiopian troops supporting Somalia's government. Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other.

Source: AP