afrol News, 6 July - Five Somali children have had their lives cut short by an exploded landmine in the capital Mogadishu. The children were reportedly playing with the device when it suddenly exploded.

The children came across the landmine when they were asked to attend the Friday prayers at the mosque. Instead, they decided to play football and in the process, they came across the device. One of the children caused the explosion by throwing it against a wall.

The explosion took place near the livestock market in the north-east of Mogadishu, the home of the ousted Union of Islamic Courts and insurgents.

In December last year, soldiers of Ethiopia crossed the border to Somali to help the interim government of Abdoullahi Yusuf to dislodge the Islamists from power. Until their ousting, the Islamists were in control of key areas, including the capital.

The children were the victim of their country’s long war, which gave birth to the proliferation of arms and ammunitions.

Somali insurgents have been blamed for planting several roadside bombs and mines purposely to harm officials of the interim government and soldiers of both Somalia and Ethiopia.

Few days back, a Somali local government official escaped explosion attacked.

Somalia’s greatest post-war challenge would be how to identify and exhume hundreds of mines and other explosions secretly inserted by insurgents.

Since April this year, an operation geared towards confiscating weapons had been enforced in Mogadishu.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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