28/07/08 (B458) PRESS TV – 2.000 militaires éthiopiens investissent Mogadiscio … 2000 Ethiopian troops enter Mogadishu (En Anglais – Info lecteur)

More than 2000 Ethiopian troops in military vehicles, have entered the Helwia district in the north of Somali capital, Mogadishu.

The Ethiopian soldiers entered Pasta base in north Mogadishu early Sunday, a Press TV correspondent reported.

The report added that Somali government troops are forcing local residents living near the base, to evacuate their houses.

In another Somalia development, eight armed men in uniform dragged a 16-year-old girl out of a cybercafé in northern Mogadishu and killed her.

Somalia has been wracked by violence since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre led to a bloody power struggle that has defied numerous bids to restore normalcy.

Until the end of 2006, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) controlled most of southern Somalia and the vast majority of its population. It included most major cities such as Jowhar, Kismayo, Beledweyne, and the capital Mogadishu.

With the backing of the West and Ethiopian troops, forces loyal to the interim administration seized control from UIC fighters at the end of 2006. A surge in violence ensued. It is estimated that 60% of Mogadishu’s residents have since fled their homes.

After the collapse of the Siad Barre regime in 1991, the northwest part of Somalia unilaterally declared itself the independent Republic of Somaliland. However, the territory’s independence is not recognized by international bodies.