21/10/08 (B470-B) Shabelle / Plus de 30.000 écoliers somaliens ne vont plus à l’école pour des raisons de sécurité. De nombreuses écoles ont du fermer leurs portes // More than 30,000 lost schooling for Mogadishu’s insecurity (En Anglais – Info lecteur)

According to officials of Education agencies in excess of 30,000 students have lost schools education due to insecurity and targeting of teachers and students, an education official said Monday.

Mohamed Said Farah spokesman for Mogadishu Education Umbrella, said that schools have decided to close to raise awareness of the escalating insecurity that are hampering education in the capital in particular and the country in general.

“For the perilous situation of the city and soldiers based education houses and we are targeted by the different armed groups in Mogadishu for that more than 30,000 are now with out education, » Farah said.

The Mogadishu Education Umbrella brings together six non- governmental educational organizations that own and manage most of the schools in Mogadishu.

Somali government forces have raided a number of Schools and wounded eight teachers and students in the last week alone as well they made bases in and ahead of schools s military base according to Farah.

Many schools have been closed for the past 18 months since Ethiopian and Somali government forces ousted an Islamist administration in south and central Somalia. Near daily clashes raged between fighters and Ethiopian and Somali government troops since February 2007.

School authorities have called on government officials to prosecute those behind the raids on Schools. They also called on insurgent fighters to respect schools and not to wage their attacks close to the schools.