World in brief: President unhurt in mortar attack

Somalia’s president came under mortar attack in his palace Tuesday just hours after moving in, but escaped unharmed in the assault that killed a 12-year-old boy and wounded three of his siblings.

Six mortars were fired at the hilltop palace hours after President Abdullahi Yusuf arrived from the southern stronghold of Baidoa.

Ethiopian tanks quickly sealed off the area, and several hundred Ethiopian and government troops created a 160-foot protective cordon around the palace.

Gunbattles raged as insurgents launched their most violent attacks since the interim government took control of Mogadishu at the beginning of the year.

A remote-controlled roadside bomb struck a convoy carrying Mogadishu’s deputy mayor, killing two aides and seriously wounding a bodyguard. Deputy Mayor Ibrahim Omar Sabriye was slightly wounded in the leg by the bomb that struck his four-vehicle convoy, said bodyguard Abdikadir Ahmed.

Ottawa

Immigration driving surge in population

Two-thirds of Canada’s rapid population increase over the past five years came from immigration – a force that in coming decades will account for almost all of the country’s growth, according to census figures released Tuesday.

Unlike the United States, where an influx of legal and illegal immigrants has fueled heated debate, there is little public discussion in Canada on the issue.

The data released by Statistics Canada show the country’s population grew 5.4 percent, the highest rate among the Group of Eight industrial nations.

About 1.2 million new immigrants accounted for most of Canada’s growth over the five years, far outpacing the addition of 400,000 native-born citizens, for a total population of 31.6 million.

London

Inquiry planned into veterans care

British lawmakers said Tuesday they will hold a formal inquiry on the treatment of wounded troops, amid reports that soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan are receiving shoddy care on their return home.

Conservative legislator James Arbuthnot, chairman of the all-party House of Commons defense committee, said an investigation into the defense medical services would begin in the next two months.

“As part of this inquiry, we will, of course, examine the care given to servicemen and women who have suffered injury or mental health problems as a result of operational service,” Arbuthnot said.

Such an inquiry would hear evidence from medical personnel, senior officers and troops themselves. Arbuthnot said the committee also planned to hold a Web forum next month allowing troops to contribute accounts of their experiences over the Internet.