The Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which controls the Somali capital, Mogadishu, has arrested three men in connection with the killing on Sunday of an Italian nun working at a hospital in the south of the city, a security official said to IRINnews.
– We have three men in custody; one is a suspect in the killing and two are being held as witnesses, Sheikh Yusuf Mohamed Siad, the UIC security chief, said on Monday from Mogadishu.
He said security forces were hunting for a “second gunman who is suspected of involvement in the killing”.
Unidentified gunmen shot Sister Leonella Sgorbati as she left the Austrian-funded SOS Hospital for her home across the street. They also shot her bodyguard, who died instantly.
Sister Sgorbati was in charge of the school for orphans run by the SOS in the hospital compound.
Sister Sgorbati had been in Somalia for the past five years and spoke fluent Somali.
The UIC has condemned the killings and sent condolences to the families of Sister Sgorbati and her bodyguard.
Sheikh Siad said the motive for killing remained unclear but believed it was intended to “make the courts look bad”.
He added, “We have our suspicions but until we complete our investigation we cannot say for sure what the motive was.”
The UIC has been in control of much of southern Somalia, including the capital, since 4 June when it drove out a group of faction leaders who had controlled Mogadishu since 1991 when the administration of Muhammad Siyad Barre was toppled.
The UIC has vowed to restore order in Somalia and has started creating Islamic courts in the areas it controls.
Kilde: www.irinnews.org
