Somalia's president is expected to announce a "state of war" against the al-Shabab extremist group after last week's truck bombing which killed 358 people in Mogadishu.

At least 10 Somalis, among them refugees, were killed during a firefight that broke out in Mogadishu when troops and residents looted truckloads of food meant for famine victims, two witnesses said.

The UN declared three new regions in Somalia famine zones yesterday, expanding the area where the highest rates ofmalnutrition and mortality are taking place, including the refugee camps in the capital, Mogadishu.