Ethiopians feed hungry Somalis
14/05/2008 17:08  - (SA)  

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Mogadishu - Ethiopian soldiers doled out relief food to hungry Mogadishu residents on Wednesday in an apparent bid to win over some of those opposed to their continued presence in Somalia.

The troops based in southern Mogadishu raised money and bought relief supplies - sorghum and maize - that they distributed to hundreds of Somalis, said Ethiopian Colonel Hadgu Tawalu.

"This will not be the end but the beginning, we would like to assist people in need," he added.

Deputy Mogadishu mayor Abdi Fatah Shaweye welcomed the move as a "very encouraging gesture".

Ethiopian troops entered Somalia in late 2006 to bolster the feeble Somali transitional government.

Earlier this month, London-based Amnesty International accused Ethiopians of carrying out arbitrary executions - mainly in Mogadishu - in their crackdown on Islamist rebels.

Addis Ababa flatly rejected the claims.

Last week, the United Nations said 2.6 million people in Somalia were facing acute food shortages and would require urgent humanitarian assistance to avoid a catastrophe. The figure is expected to reach 3.5 million by year-end.

But the UN and aid groups have scaled down operations owing to increased insecurity, largely blamed on Islamist militants who have waged a deadly guerrilla war since they were ousted from Mogadishu by joint Somali-Ethiopian forces in early 2007.

Somalia has lacked a functional government since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre touched off deadly factional clashes that have defied numerous bids to restore stability.

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