By Aweys Yusuf and Ibrahim Mohamed

MOGADISHU, March 31 (Reuters) - Islamist insurgents fighting the Somali government on Monday seized a village north of the capital Mogadishu, the latest in a rising string of hit-and-run attacks on government troops.

Twelve people, including nine government troops, were killed during Monday's attack on the village near Bule Burte, 220 km (137 miles) north of Mogadishu.

Troops aligned to Islamist fighters have taken over towns from local administrations in southern and central Somalia, only to give them up or be routed by Somali or Ethiopian government troops later.

Residents in Bule Burte said Islamist fighters armed with rocket-propelled grenades and machineguns initiated the attack.

"Islamist fighters killed nine government soldiers whose bodies are lying at the centre of the town, and they also seized four government battlewagons," resident Mohamed Ali told Reuters.

Another resident, Abdulahi Abdi, said he helped carry some of the dead soldiers off the streets for burial after insurgents took control of the town.

"Islamists are now in control and the fighting has stopped but residents are afraid that government troops may attack back," he said.

Bule Burte itself fell briefly to what Islamist insurgents claimed was their attack but which was subsequently found to be part of a tax dispute with the regional government administrator and freelance gunmen who had earlier aligned with the Islamists.

Jowhar, a key town 90 km north of Mogadishu which served as a base for the interim government in 2005, was briefly captured last week in attacks that exposed the government's inability to assert its authority, despite support from Ethiopian troops.

The Somali government could not be reached for comment.

Fighting in the Horn of Africa country killed some 6,500 civilians last year in Mogadishu alone and more than 1 million Somalis have fled their homes as a result of the insurgency, most of which has been centred in the capital. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/) (Editing by Wangui Kanina; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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