WORLD BRIEFING / SOMALIA

Mortar and machine-gun fire rocked the Somali capital, leveling homes and a mosque in renewed violence that has killed at least 35 people over the weekend as pro-government Islamist fighters clash with rebel gunmen, officials said.

It was some of the worst fighting in weeks in one of the most violent cities in the world, with both sides pounding Mogadishu with mortar shells and machine-gun fire. Residents were streaming out of the city seeking safety.

Fighting started late Saturday, and the next day at least 15 bodies were seen in the streets of Mogadishu. Hospital officials and witnesses in other parts of the city reported five additional deaths. Later in the day, a mortar round hit a mosque and a home, killing 15 people, said Yasir Mohammed, who counted the bodies and received minor injuries.

The U.S. worries that Somalia could be a terrorist haven, particularly since Osama bin Laden declared his support for the insurgent group Al Shabab. It accuses Al Shabab of harboring the terrorists who allegedly blew up U.S. embassies in 1998.