Somalis protest against US strike

At least 1,000 residents of the central Somali town of Dusamareb have held a protest against a deadly US attack.

The missile strike on Thursday killed the leader of a group which the US links to al-Qaeda. At least 10 others died when a house in the town was hit.

One of the protest organisers said people feared further strikes by US forces on the town.
The protest came as three Ethiopian soldiers were killed in a fighting with Islamists in the capital, Mogadishu.

Insurgents attacked an Ethiopian water tanker and the soldiers opened fire in response.
Ethiopian troops supporting Somalia's transition government come under regular attack in Mogadishu.

Fear

In Dusamareb, people protested against Thursday's US strike, shouting slogans such as "Down with the Bush administration".

One of the organisers, Abdirasak Moalim Ahmed, told the Associated Press news agency: "Our town has been severely affected by the recent US attack and still we fear because planes continue to fly over our city."

The target of the raid was Aden Hashi Ayro, a senior commander of the militant group al-Shabab.

Ayro and another Islamist leader were killed, along with three others in the house. The rest of the casualties were from surrounding homes.

Al-Shabab, which the US says is linked with al-Qaeda, controls parts of central and southern Somalia.

The group says it is a purely Somali movement and denies involvement with al-Qaeda.