Mogadishu - At least seven civilians including a two-year- old boy died and several others were injured Monday during heavy fighting between Islamic insurgents and government forces in south Mogadishu, witnesses said.

"As the fighting erupted we ran to our home and lay down, but countless stray bullets were flying over the roof and hitting the walls," Mumino Abulahi, a resident in the area, told Deutsche Presse- Agentur dpa.

"Soon a shell landed nearby, instantly killing seven people ... and seriously injuring several others," she continued.

Fighting broke out late afternoon as government troops battled Islamic fighters with the support of Ethiopian and African Union forces.

The two sides used automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars during the battle, which appeared to be a militant attack on bases in the area.

"We have admitted nine wounded people - some of them were shrapnel wounds and others were bullets," Dahir Dhere, deputy director of Madina Hospital, told dpa.

The death toll was expected to rise as emergency services dealt with the aftermath of the battle.

Major Bariyge Bahuko, spokesman for the AU mission in Somalia, told dpa that no casualties were reported amongst his soldiers, but there was no information regarding government troops.

The militant group al-Shabaab, the armed wing of the Union of Islamic Courts, has vowed to step up attacks on foreign troops and civilians after a US airstrike killed its leader, Aden Hashi Ayro, in early May.

The Union of Islamic Courts controlled Mogadishu for around six months in 2006 before being driven out by government and Ethiopian troops, sparking an insurgency.

Somalia has been in a state of anarchy since the ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

It has been without an effective central authority, leading to constant inter-clan clashes that have left thousands dead and around one million displaced. (dpa)