Somali Opposition Fighters Cordon off Parts of Tense Capital

MOGADISHU, SOMALIA - Heavily armed Somali opposition fighters held positions in parts of the capital of Mogadishu Monday, a day after clashes with government troops erupted over the president's bid to extend his mandate, in the country's worst political violence in years.

Fighters used mounds of earth to barricade roads, while armed men and vehicles mounted with machine guns were stationed in opposition strongholds after the fighting that left three dead. "Both the Somali security forces and the pro-opposition fighters have taken positions along some key roads," witness Abdullahi Mire told AFP. The fragile nation has not had an effective central government since the collapse of a military regime in 1991 led to decades of civil war and lawlessness fueled by clan conflicts.