17/05/07 (B395) BBC : Ugandan troops to stay in Somalia – Les troupes ougandaises devraient rester en Somalie en dépit des pertes qu’elles subissent ..(En Anglais – Info lectrice)

Uganda
will not withdraw its peacekeepers from Somalia despite an attack on a convoy
of soldiers while on patrol in the capital, Mogadishu.

Army chief Aronda Nyakairima said the "terrorist attack" would not
deter them from pacifying Somalia.

Four soldiers were killed in the deadliest attack since 1,600 soldiers
were deployed to Somalia in March.

Meanwhile, a roadside bomb has exploded near the convoy of Somalia’s
prime minister but no-one is reported hurt.

"One of two men suspected of planting the bomb was captured on
the site," government spokesman Abdullahi Muhyidin Mohamed told Reuters
news agency.

Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Ghedi’s convoy was targeted
near the former parliament building as he returned from the airport, where
the plane carrying the bodies of the dead soldiers was taking off for Uganda.


‘Noble action’

AU commission chairperson Alpha Omar Konare condemned the attack and urged
the Uganda soldiers to remain engaged in the "noble action" of helping
Somalia.

"It is a terrorist attack to try and intimidate our force. But those
are kicks of a dying horse," Gen Nyakairima said.

A proposed force of 8,000 Africa Union troops is due to take over security
duties from the Ethiopian army.

Ethiopia’s troops have been in Mogadishu since December at the invitation
of Somalia’s transitional government fighting Islamist insurgents and clan
militiamen.

The attack came a day after Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf held talks with
his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni in Kampala over the mission.

Mr Konare appealed to the western government to support the AU mission to
enable it carry out its mandate in Somalia.

Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria and Burundi have pledged to deploy troops
for the AU mission but they are yet to announce the dates.