Mayor of Somali capital survives roadside bomb

Mugadishu, Wednesday, July 05, 2007 Simba Radio

A roadside bomb exploded near a convoy carrying Mogadishu 's mayor, the second attempt on his life in two months, his spokesman said.

No one was hurt in the blast targeting Mayor Mohamed Dheere, said the spokesman, Mohamed Muhyadin Ali.

"It was an assassination attempt, but luckily he survived," Ali said. In May, a bomb exploded near Dheere's convey, killing two civilians.

Today's explosion came an hour before the European Commission's representative for Somalia arrived in Mogadishu to discuss security and humanitarian issues with President Abdullahi Yusuf.

The Somali capital has seen little peace since government troops backed by Ethiopian forces drove an Islamic movement out of the city in December. Roadside bombs, attacks on government installations, assassination attempts and gunbattles have become common, and civilians are caught in the crossfire.

The Council of Islamic Courts ruled Mogadishu and much of southern Somalia for six months last year, during which they sought to impose an Islamic state. Insurgents linked to the Islamic group have vowed to launch an Iraq-style guerrilla war.

Battles in Mogadishu between March 12 and April 26 alone killed at least 1,670 people.

Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned against one another, defending clan fiefdoms. The government was formed in 2004 with the help of the United Nations, but has struggled to assert any real control