AU troops replace Ethiopians

2008-11-17 21:11

Mogadishu - African Union (AU) peacekeepers have started moving into positions usually manned by Ethiopian troops in the capital Mogadishu, witnesses and an AU mission source said on Monday.

The rotation of the AU mission in Somalia (AMISOM) is a key part of the ongoing Djibouti peace process, which provides for a gradual pullback of Ethiopian troops from the war-torn country.

"It's something we had planned because AU peacekeepers have to make sure that the Djibouti peace deal is implemented and that is why we deployed our forces around new locations in the capital," an AMISOM officer said.

The AU forces were from the Burundian contingent, which last month brought the total number of African peacekeepers in the Somali capital to at about 3 400.

The AMISOM officer did not provide details on the handover but witnesses said they had seen peacekeepers replacing Ethiopian soldiers in southern Mogadishu.

"I saw a convoy of AU peacekeepers entering the former military academy of Jalle Siad where Ethiopians are usually stationed and they seemed to be replacing the Ethiopian forces," local resident Abdulahi Mohamed said.

Witnesses also said AU convoys appeared to be moving towards the defence ministry.

Ethiopian troops have already scaled back their operations in Somalia in recent months, keeping only some troops to guard strategic positions and key institutions of the embattled transitional federal government (TFG).

A deal reached late last month between the TFG and the main Islamist-led opposition group calls for Ethiopian troops to pull out of areas in Mogadishu and the central garrison town of Beledweyn by November 21.

Under the deal, the Somali government and the opposition Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS) are to assemble a 10 000-strong police force to help the AU peacekeepers control the areas.

Ethiopia invaded Somalia in 2006 to rescue the TFG and oust an Islamist movement that had taken control of the most of the country.

- AFP