mass murder apologies
Gen. Nathan Mugisha, the commander of AU Peacekeeping Mission in Somalia on Tuesday apologized for AMISOM’s shooting spree that killed two innocent civilians and injured nearly nine others.
“AMISOM is very sorry for the serious incident that took place in Mogadishu, today, Tuesday 23rd November and claimed the lives of two civilians” Mr. Mugisha said in a press release issued late Tuesday.
He said investigations are underway, adding that the information they have so far is that a AMISOM convoy, which traveling thwetween KM4 junction and the Mogadishu airport, fired on a crowd of people, killing two and wounding seven.
Magishu stated that they had arrested all the troops who fired to the people around the building of the United Nations Development Program (UNPD) in Mogadishu.
“We have a report that two died and seven others wounded. One of the injured is being treated in AMISOM’s hospital in Mogadishu. The other injured people are in Medina hospital. So we shall treat them if necessary, but we are very sorry and sorry for that, because we came here to help the Somali people to restore the peace and stability, but we did not come here to kill or wound any Somali,” said Nathan Mugisha.
He told the local media that he had contacted President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Premier Mohamed Abdullahi, the premier to discuss the the civilian deaths, spelling out that he vowed full and complete investigations into the event in order to put before justice those committed the crime.
“Somalis have the right to get angry, but your anger must not cut the relationship between AMISOM and Somali people” he was quoted as saying.
This apology from the AU peacekeeping mission in Somalia comes less than 24 hours after troops intentionally killed and wounded civilians in shooting spree in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu.
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i just wanted to remind readers of some of many indiscriminate murders perpetrated upon somali civilians by AMISOM, which International community see as a legitimate force.
Human rights watch (HRW) said in a report on events of 2009:-
“The TFG is almost entirely reliant on the 5,000-strong AMISOM force for its protection and survival. AMISOM forces have come under sustained attack, including deadly suicide bombings, and have on some occasions responded by firing mortars indiscriminately into opposition-controlled neighborhoods, including the area around Bakara market. In February 2009, AMISOM forces were accused of firing indiscriminately into crowds of civilians after coming under attack in Mogadishu. AMISOM opened an inquiry into the incident-the only time it has apparently done so-but no final report was produced.”
Human rights watch (HRW) went on to say in a report on 19th April 2010:-
“TFG and AMISOM officials deny that their forces have conducted mortar attacks that do not discriminate between civilians and military targets but eyewitness accounts belie those claims. While residents of areas subject to bombardment usually lack direct evidence as to which side fired, attacks on neighborhoods in northern Mogadishu typically followed mortar attacks fired by opposition forces from those very areas against TFG and AMISOM strongholds in the south of the city. One AMISOM official insisted to Human Rights Watch that al-Shabaab itself conducts the indiscriminate mortar attacks on al-Shabaab-controlled areas to discredit AMISOM forces, but offered no evidence to support this implausible assertion.”
the report goes further to show lack of care on the part of AMISOM to take prove measures taken to protect the civilian population…
“Residents of TFG-held areas of southern Mogadishu told Human Rights Watch that following attacks from opposition-controlled areas they often saw mortar rounds being fired towards northern Mogadishu from TFG or AMISOM installations, including Villa Somalia and the AMISOM base near the airport. Both TFG and AMISOM forces are deployed around these locations. But mortar fire coming from the AMISOM base by the Mogadishu airport could only originate with AMISOM forces as no other armed groups are based there.”
