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Convoy attacked as violence flares up in Mogadishu

An Ethiopian military convoy was ambushed as fresh violence erupted on the streets of Mogadishu yesterday, hours after the African Union agreed to send peacekeepers to war-torn Somalia.

The ambush, which triggered a major gunbattle in the volatile south of the capital, followed a brazen attack on the residence of the interim president which had highlighted the scale of the task awaiting the stabilization force.

The interim administration and peacekeepers not only face having to turn round Somalia's reputation for lawlessness but cope with resentment against the presence of the Ethiopian army which led the drive to oust hardline Islamists from Mogadishu late last month.

The vanquished Islamists, who had managed to restore a semblance of order during a six-month stint in Mogadishu, have in turn threatened a campaign of guerilla warfare against the interim government and their Ethiopian allies.

Witnesses said the gunmen who launched yesterday's attack on a convoy of tanks and armored vehicles had managed to melt away.

"When the Ethiopian tanks were attacked, they were forced to open fire in defence. There was fighting but the gunmen fled," Mohamed Sheikh Dahil said.

Dahil said the Ethiopian forces immediately sealed off the area and it was not immediately possible to determine whether there had been any casualties.

The identity of the attackers behind the assault on Villa Somalia, the residence of interim President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, also remained a mystery after they made good their escape.

While witnesses said the residence, also in southern Mogadishu, had come under attack from mortar shells, a government spokesman said a volley of anti-aircraft missiles had been used.

Abdirahman Dinari said the attack appeared to be the work of youths, although no-one had yet been apprehended.

The attack "was carried out by simple gunmen to show the international community that Mogadishu is still very unsafe," Dinari said.

The African Union agreed late on Friday to deploy a force of 7,600 peacekeepers.

The role of African Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) will be to "facilitate humanitarian operations in Somalia and consolidate peace and stability in Somalia," the AU said.

An initial deployment of more than 2,500 troops -- one-third the projected deployment -- would be dispatched immediately, mandated for an initial six- month period, a AU statement said.

The 7,600-strong force should later assume a UN mandate which would work towards long-term reconstruction in the country.
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