Turkish Airlines opens route to Mogadishu, first in 20 years

Turkish Airlines on Tuesday became the first major international commercial airline to land in Somalia's war-torn capital for 20 years dpa reported Turkish Airlines' website lists two flights per week from Istanbul to Mogadishu after the maiden flight, beginning March 14. Turkey has been heavily involved in providing aid to Somalia since last year's UN-declared famine, which has since been downgraded. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Mogadishu in August last year with a group of businessmen. Other small African airlines operate flights from regional destinations to Mogadishu, but Turkish Airlines is the first major player to begin operations since security improved in the capital. Militant Islamist group al-Shabaab pulled out of Mogadishu last year, and while it still continues to carry out bomb attacks, the daily barrage of bullets and mortars has died off. Al-Shabaab has been battling to oust the internationally-backed government since early 2007, but in recent months has been on the back foot, under pressure from Ethiopian, Kenyan and African Union forces. Somalia was plunged into decades of civil war and chaos following the 1991 ouster of military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.