(Xinhua) — Somali insurgents attacked the Mogadishu airport and the motorcade of Somali president Abdullahi Yusuf, for the third time in a month, as the president was to fly for Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, presidential spokesman confirmed to Xinhua on Thursday.
“They (insurgent fighter) fired a number of mortars as the president was at the airport to leave for Addis Ababa to attend the Annual AU conference there,” Mohamed Mohamoud Hubsired, presidential spokesman, told Xinhua.
“The president and his delegation were unharmed by the mortar shells and he flew safely,” Hubsired added.
Witnesses also told Xinhua that the presidential motorcade was attacked before on its way to the Mogadishu airport but there are no reports of any casualty.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the Somali president but insurgent fighters twice attacked the President’s motorcade late last week as he was to fly to attend the now concluded UN sponsored peace talks between Somali government and one faction of the opposition Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia and when he returned home.
Usually insurgent fighters carry out attacks on the Mogadishu airport as Somali government or foreign officials depart or arrive in the restive coastal Somali capital Mogadishu.
The Somali transitional government and the opposition leaders signed a comprehensive cease-fire agreement Monday after weeks of indirect talks sponsored by the United Nations.
Hard-line members of the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia (ARS) and the Al-shabaab group rejected the results of the talks saying those who attended the meeting did not represent ARS and vowed to continue fighting the Somali and Ethiopian Woyanne troops.
The Asmara based faction threatened to sack the ARS chairman Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed for signing the peace deal with the government.