MOGADISHU, Aug 10 (Reuters) - At least two people were killed in a gun battle between Somali troops and insurgents on Friday, a senior Somali police officer said.

In the latest bout of fighting, police officer Ali Nur told Reuters unknown insurgents attacked government positions in downtown Mogadishu early on Friday.

"They attacked us in five different places," Nur said. "We returned fire and they fled. When we advanced on them, they left two dead bodies."

He added that he thought those killed were insurgents.

Witnesses said gunfire rocked in Mogadishu in the early hours of Friday.

"It started about 1.30 in the morning. I heard heavy gunfire for at least 30 minutes," resident Mohamed Abdirisaq said.

Violence has flared despite a peace conference aiming to bring Somalia's quarrelling factions together.

Aid workers say the conflict has killed hundreds and displaced hundreds of thousands since Ethiopian-backed Somali troops kicked out Islamist fighters in November, ending a period of relative peace in Mogadishu.

On Friday, government troops raided the independent Somali Shabeelle Radio, arresting 10 journalists and detaining one they accused of inaccurate reporting, the station's director Jafar Mohamed Kukay said.

"They shut us down for four hours," he told Reuters.

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