Region

MOGADISHU — A massive car bomb exploded in a busy area of Mogadishu on Saturday, leaving at least 78 people dead, many of them university students, in Somalia's deadliest attack in two years.

The blast occurred at a busy intersection southwest of the Somali capital where the presence of a security checkpoint and a tax office often cause traffic jams.

Scores of wounded were carried on stretchers from the site, where the force of the explosion left the charred and twisted remains of vehicles.

The attack has not been claimed, however, Mogadishu is regularly hit by car bombings and attacks waged by Al Shabaab militants allied to Al Qaeda.

President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo condemned the attack in comments carried by the Somalia national news agency SONNA.

“This enemy works to implement the destructive will of international terrorism, they have never done anything positive for this our country, they have not constructed a road, never built hospitals and not education centres as well,” he said.

“All they do is destruction and killing and the Somali public are well informed about this.”

Many of those killed are believed to be university students whose bus was hit by the blast. Two Turkish nationals also died, police said.

“The number of the dead from the blast is still increasing, we now have 78 dead and 125 injured,” the director of the private Aamin Ambulance Service, Abdukadir Abdirahman Haji, told AFP.

Police officer Ibrahim Mohamed described the explosion as “devastating”.

“We have confirmed that two Turkish nationals, presumably road construction engineers are among the dead, we don’t have details about whether they were passing by the area or stayed in the area,” he said.

Turkey’s defence ministry wrote on Twitter it had sent a military plane “loaded with emergency aid equipment... in order to provide emergency aid to our Somalian brothers injured in the despicable terror attack in Somalia”.

 ‘Dead bodies scattered’ 

Sakariye Abdukadir, who was near the area when the car bomb detonated, said the blast “destroyed several of my car windows”.

“All I could see was scattered dead bodies... and some of them burned beyond recognition.”

Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khiere appointed an emergency committee to work on providing help to those who have been wounded in the blast.

“We will seek medical assistance outside the country for those whose health situation cannot be dealt with inside the country. We are calling on the Somali public both, inside and outside the country to take part in assisting the victims, and to stand together in the fight against Al-Shabaab,” the prime minister told Radio Mogadishu.

Mogadishu’s Mayor Omar Mohamud Mohamed told a news conference that the exact number of dead was not yet known.

“We will confirm the exact number of the number of the dead later but it is not going to be small, most of the dead were innocent university students and other civilians,” he said.

Witness Muhibo Ahmed said the attack was a “devastating incident because there were many people including students in buses who were passing by the area when the blast occurred”.

Mogadishu is regularly hit by attacks by Al Shabaab, which has fought for more than a decade to topple the Somali government.

The militant group emerged from the Islamic Courts Union that once controlled central and southern Somalia and is variously estimated to number between 5,000 and 9,000 men.

In 2010, Al Shabaab declared their allegiance to Al Qaeda.

The following year, its fighters fled positions they once held in the capital Mogadishu, and have since lost many strongholds.

But they retain control of large rural swathes of the country and continue to wage a guerrilla war against the authorities, managing to inflict bloody death tolls in attacks at home and abroad.

Two weeks ago, five people were killed when Al Shabaab militants attacked a Mogadishu hotel popular with politicians, army officers and diplomats in an hours-long siege.

Since 2015, there have been 13 attacks in Somalia with death tolls above 20. Eleven of these have been in Mogadishu, according to a tally of AFP figures.

All of them involved car bombs.

The deadliest attack in the country’s history was a truck bombing in October 2017 in Mogadishu which left 512 people dead and around 295 injured.

BEIRUT — Civilians on Friday packed a road leading out of a flashpoint town in northwest Syria, where two weeks of intensified fighting in Idlib province has displaced 235,000 people.

Pick-up trucks carrying mattresses, clothes and house-hold appliances ferried entire families out of southern Idlib province, most heading towards safer areas further north, said an AFP correspondent on the ground.

The latest violence in the extremist-dominated Idlib region has killed scores of civilians, despite an August ceasefire deal and international calls for a de-escalation.

More than 235,000 people fled the area between December 12 and 25, mostly from the beleaguered city of Maaret Al Numan which has been left "almost empty", according to the United Nations' humanitarian coordination agency OCHA.

OCHA spokesman David Swanson said Friday that more than 80 per cent of those who have fled southern Idlib this month are women and children.

"I can't live in the camps," said Umm Abdo, a mother of five who recently arrived in a displacement camp in the town of Dana, north of Idlib's provincial capital.

"The rain is very strong, and we need heating... clothes, and food," she said, her tired eyes showing through her veil.

Fierce battles, squalid camps 

The Idlib region hosts some three million people, including many displaced by years of violence in other parts of Syria.

It is dominated by the country's former Al-Qaeda affiliate, Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, whose chief this week urged extremists and allied rebels to head to the frontlines and battle "the Russian occupiers" and the regime.

Since December 19, HTS extremists and their rebel allies have been locked in fierce battles with regime forces around Maaret Al Numan.

Damascus loyalists have seized dozens of towns and villages from extremists in clashes that have killed hundreds of fighters on both sides.

The advances have brought them to within 4 kilometres of Maaret Al Numan, one of Idlib's largest urban centres.

According to OCHA, ongoing battles have further amplified displacement from the area and the nearby town of Saraqeb.

"People from Saraqab and its eastern countryside are now fleeing in anticipation of fighting directly affecting their communities next," it said.

The mass displacement could not come at a worse time, with heavy rainfall flooding squalid camps for the displaced.

"Being forced to move in winter months exacerbates existing vulnerabilities, particularly of the women, children, elderly, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups," OCHA said.

Since mid-December, the fighting has killed nearly 80 civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.

The escalation has forced aid groups to suspend operations in the area, exasperating already dire humanitarian conditions, OCHA said.

Idlib's residents mainly depend on critical cross-border aid, which came under threat last week after Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have extended such deliveries for a year.

The move raised fears that vital UN-funded aid could stop entering Idlib from January unless an alternative agreement is reached.

BAGHDAD — New rocket attacks in Iraq have killed a US civilian contractor, raising fears on Saturday that violence could escalate in the protest-hit country already engulfed in its worst political crisis in decades.

Washington recently promised "a firm response" to a growing number of attacks on its interests in Iraq, for which no one has claimed responsibility but which Washington blames on pro-Iran factions.

US-Iran tensions have soared since Washington pulled out of a landmark nuclear agreement with Tehran last year and imposed crippling sanctions, leaving Baghdad — which is close to both countries — worried about being caught in the middle.

In the latest attack, 30 rockets were fired at the K1 Iraqi military base in Kirkuk, an oil-rich region north of Baghdad, at 2220 GMT Friday, a US official told AFP in Washington.

"One US civilian contractor was killed and several US service members and Iraqi personnel were wounded," the US-led international coalition against the Daesh terror group said.

A direst hit on an ammunition depot caused secondary explosions, and four more rockets were found in their tubes in a truck at the launch point, a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Federal security forces, Shiite militia units and Daesh sleeper cells all have a presence in volatile Kirkuk province, which is claimed by both Iraq's Kurdistan and federal authorities.

Rockets and mortars 

The attacks come at a time when Iraq is gripped by its biggest wave of anti-government street protests since the US-led invasion of 2003 that toppled president Saddam Hussein.

The protesters, many of whom were born in the post-Saddam era, have vented their anger at a government they consider inept, corrupt and beholden to neighbouring Iran.

Violence has claimed nearly 460 lives, most of them protesters, and left some 25,000 people wounded, but the street rallies and sit-in protests have continued.

The protests led to the resignation of the Iraqi government nearly a month ago, and Iran and its allies in Iraq have since been pushing to place one of their men in the post of prime minister, sparking more popular anger.

The president is now threatening to quit in the face of this pressure.

During the period of wider political chaos, the country has also seen a rise of rocket and mortar attacks against Iraqi bases housing US soldiers and against American diplomatic missions.

Ten attacks since October 28 have left several Iraqi military personnel wounded and one dead and caused damage to the area around the US embassy in Baghdad's ultra-secure Green Zone.

Five rockets hit Al Asad Airbase on December 3, just four days after US Vice President Mike Pence visited troops there.

And more than a dozen rockets hit the Qayyarah air base in northern Iraq in November.

 'Very accurate' 

In Friday's attack, a Kirkuk provincial security official told AFP, "the shots were very accurate. The attack was aimed precisely at the area where the Americans are located, near the meeting room".

The rockets could also have been much more deadly, had it not been for recent poor weather that has led to delays in anti-Daesh operations and the postponement of a meeting scheduled for Friday on these missions, according to the Iraqi police.

A US source has said that pro-Iran factions in Iraq are now considered a more significant threat to American soldiers than the Daesh — the threat that saw Washington deploy thousands of troops to the country to assist Baghdad in countering the extremists' sweeping 2014 offensive.

Reflecting this concern, "a convoy of 15 American vehicles each carrying armour and weapons" recently arrived at the US embassy in Baghdad, according to an Iraqi security official.

Multiple US diplomatic and military sources have told AFP of their growing frustration with such attacks.

They say they are relying on their Iraqi partners to play a "de-conflicting" role between American forces and the Hashed Al Shaabi, an umbrella organisation for paramilitary groups largely made up of Iran-backed Shiite militias.

That is a complicated task, as the Hashed has been ordered to integrate with the regular security forces, but many of its fighters continue to operate with a degree of independence.

SIDON, Lebanon — With volunteer kitchens, makeshift clinics and donation centres, Lebanon's protesters are helping their compatriots survive the worst economic crisis since the civil war by offering services many can no longer afford.

"Our goal is to create a state of social solidary among all segments of society", said Wael Kasab, a volunteer at an open-air kitchen in the southern city of Sidon.

Across the country, protest encampments are bustling with volunteers trying to fill in for an absent state and cash-strapped charities that have closed their doors or reduced their activities in recent months due to deteriorating economic conditions.

Their efforts come amid warnings by the World Bank of an impending recession that may see the proportion of people living in poverty climb from a third to half the population.

In Sidon’s main protest camp, volunteers scoop rice and stew onto plastic plates.

They register names of people in need of medical care to refer them to a clinic for free treatment.

Under a plastic tent, Zeinab Najem arranges clothes on a metal rack as a group of women peruse a collection of thick winter jackets.

Najem said she first started the donation centre with only 10 items of clothing, but now her tent “looks like a store”.

“There are many people in need,” she told AFP.

 ‘Scared of coming days’ 

A few metres away from Sidon’s protest camp, charity groups have set up a kitchen that serves free meals to around 100 people per day.

Sitting at a plastic table in the restaurant, Abu Ahmad eyes a tin tray filled with stuffed courgettes, salad and rice.

“I cannot afford to buy my own food,” said the 83-year-old. “I will be full today... but I’m scared of the coming days.”

Lebanon, rocked by two months of anti-government protests and a political deadlock, faces its worst economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

A liquidity crunch has pushed Lebanese banks to impose capital controls on US dollar accounts, capping withdrawals at around $1,000 a month.

As a result, the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar has dropped by around 30 per cent on the unofficial market, leading prices to rise.

The faltering economy has also pushed many companies into bankruptcy, while others have laid off staff and slashed salaries.

In the northern city of Tripoli, where more than 50 per cent of the population lives in poverty, the effects of the crisis are stark.

The volunteer kitchen in the main protest camp there serves around 2,500 meals a day to long queues of hungry people flocking from all corners of the country’s second city.

Stores near the encampment are empty of clients, while shop owners sit idly outside.

 ‘No other solution’ 

To help small businesses survive the crisis, a group of volunteers collected 7 million Lebanese pounds (around $4,500 based on the official exchange rate) in donations.

They used the money to buy 130 food baskets consisting of rice, sugar, lentils, flour and oil, said Sara Al Sharif, who started the project.

The food was purchased from around 30 stores in Tripoli’s poorest district to help boost business, she said.

Had it not been for that initiative, grocery store owner Damal Saqr, 50, said he would have closed shop.

“I was on the verge of closing down... because of inflation and the [de facto] devaluation of the Lebanese pound.”

He said that his daily earnings do not exceed $12, barely enough to cover the $500 he needs every month to cover rent for his home and store.

“I can’t afford to buy goods for the store anymore,” he said.

In Beirut’s main protest camp, volunteers dressed in neon-yellow vests pack the back of a truck with piles of donated food.

Near the main central bank building in the capital, cardboard boxes and rubbish bags filled with donations line the sidewalk.

Protesters there chant against the ruling class as they distribute clothes, blankets and mattresses to the needy.

“It is our national duty to mobilise and help each other,” said Sarah Assi, a volunteer.

“We have no other solution.”

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories — Hundreds of Palestinians took part in protests along the Gaza-Israel border on Friday, the last of the Hamas-backed demonstrations until March.

Amid heavy rain and wind, the rallies had the lowest turnout in months, with tensions far lower than in previous weeks and no live fire by the Israeli army, an AFP correspondent said.

The often violent weekly protests began in March 2018, calling for an end to Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip and for Palestinians to be allowed to return to their homes.

Israel contends that any return of Palestinian refugees or their descendents would mean an end to its status as a Jewish state and accuses Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas of orchestrating the protests as a cover for attacks.

At least 348 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza by Israeli fire since the marches began, the majority during the demonstrations, according to an AFP toll.

A further 7,800 people have been wounded by gunfire, according to the World Health Organisation.

Organisers announced on Thursday the protests would halt until March 2020 amid dwindling turnout.

Hamas has over the last year shaped a precarious informal truce with Israel, which has slightly eased its blockade of the enclave in exchange for calm along the border, despite intermittent flare-ups.

As part of the agreements, Israel has allowed Gulf state Qatar to bring millions of dollars worth of fuel and cash into Gaza every month, easing a humanitarian crisis.

Israel has staged three aggressions on Gaza since 2008.

BAGHDAD — Iraqis were divided on Friday by their president’s threat to resign rather than accept a pro-Iran coalition’s candidate for premier, with some saying it was unconstitutional but others praising his civic-mindedness.

Barham Saleh has resisted recent attempts by a pro-Iran coalition to put forward nominees for prime minister that included a resigned minister and a controversial governor.

On Thursday, Saleh said he was “ready to resign” rather than accept a candidate already rejected by the protest movement that brought down the previous government.

Some 460 people have been killed and 25,000 injured since the unprecedented demonstrations broke out in October demanding deep reform that shows no sign of abating.

With the country plunged into crisis, some were hoping that the weekly sermon of influential Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani would offer a way forward.

The 89-year-old is Iraq’s top Shiite cleric and his opinion has long been decisive in the country’s politics. But he remained silent on the political situation on Friday, further distancing himself from the ruling elite.

‘Thank you Barham’ 

In Baghdad’s Tahrir Square — the epicentre of the protest movement — a banner was unfurled overnight alongside portraits of rejected candidates for the premiership with their faces crossed out in red.

“Thank you Barham for siding with the demands of the people and rejecting the candidates of corrupt parties. We are with you,” it read.

But not all protesters shared this view.

“This resignation will lead to chaos and give the political parties even more control over the country,” said Ali Mohamed, a protesting teacher in Babylon province south of the capital.

“The president needs to stay to resist these parties, he is the only barrier in place to ensure that a nationalist candidate is nominated” for prime minister, he told AFP.

Further south in the protest encampment in Diwaniyah, Mohamed Mehdi said he hoped Saleh’s resignation would be accepted.

“That would lead to the dissolution of parliament. Then early elections could oust all these corrupt leaders,” he told AFP.

‘Into the unknown’ 

In the halls of power, reactions to Saleh’s gambit were equally divided.

The pro-Iran bloc that claims to be the largest in parliament — and should therefore be entitled to nominate the premier — called on lawmakers to “take legal action against the president for violating the constitution”.

But the list of ex-prime minister Haider Al Abadi, now in opposition, called on Saleh to “reconsider his resignation” and work with all towards a “radical change in the balance of power”.

Abadi’s list — which came third in the last elections but has since lost many of its lawmakers to the pro-Iran camp — said blocs must “abandon the mentality of treason, intimidation and domination” threatening to plunge Iraq “into the unknown”.

The pressure mounted by the pro-Iran camp is enormous, according to the Wataniya list of secular former premier Iyad Allawi.

The list applauded Saleh’s “civic position” but called on him to stay on to form a “reduced transition government” under United Nations supervision to lead Iraq “from this impasse”.

The deadlock is pitting the pro-Iran camp against determined protesters, who have shut down schools and public buildings across the south.

The civil disobedience will continue, protesters say, until they obtain what they have been demanding since October 1.

Protesters want a total overhaul of a patronage system that distributes posts according to sect and are calling for the resignation of a political elite that has remained unchanged for 16 years.

In their place, they hope fresh polls could elect experts unaffiliated with the political system installed by the United States after it led an invasion of Iraq in 2003 that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Since then Iran has wielded considerable influence in Iraq.

Many of these demands may be difficult to implement.

Parliament approved a new electoral system this week, replacing list voting with first-past-the-post, but experts suggest this will favour local notables over technocrats.

And so far, parties in power have been able to cooperate enough to maintain a patronage system that has seen Iraq rank globally among the most corrupt states.

By Salam Faraj

CAIRO — A road crash in Egypt killed six people, including tourists from India and Malaysia, and injured at least 24 others on Saturday, security and medical sources said.

The accident occurred when two buses carrying tourists crashed into a truck east of Cairo on the road to the Ain Sokhna resort on the Red Sea, a security official told AFP.

A medical source said two female Malaysian tourists and an Indian man were killed along with three Egyptians — one bus driver, a tour guide and a security guard.

At least 24 others were injured, several of them tourists and some left in serious condition, a medical source said without giving further details.

Traffic accidents are common in Egypt where many roads are poorly maintained and regulations are laxly enforced.

But efforts by authorities to crack down on traffic violations, including speeding, appear to have borne fruit in recent years, with official figures showing a decline in road deaths.

In 2018 there were 8,480 road accidents compared to 11,098 the previous year, according to the bureau of statistics.

Deaths from traffic accidents fell from more than 5,000 in 2016 to 3,747 the following year and 3,087 in 2018, official figures show.

Ain Sokhna is a popular seaside resort town in the Suez governorate southeast of Cairo. It is also home to several petrochemical, ceramics and steel factories.