Somalia: war wounded in Mogadishu reach new peak

The number of war-wounded treated at the two main referral hospitals in the Somali capital Mogadishu sharply increased last year. More than 6000 such patients were admitted to Medina and Keysaney hospitals in 2010 compared to 5000 in 2009 and around 2800 in 2008. More than a third of the wounded (2300) were women and children, caught in the fierce fighting between the Transitional Federal Government forces, backed by the African Union, and armed groups such as Al-Shabab.