Somalian troops search for weapons

MOGADISHU – Somali troops and allied Ethiopian soldiers expanded their house-to-house search for weapons yesterday as this country’s fledgling government struggles to assert authority over a nation that has known little but clan warfare and chaos for 15 years.

Government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari said the search was taking place in several neighbourhoods but he refused to comment on the number of weapons seized, saying it was a military secret. On Saturday, troops were searching homes near Mogadishu’s main airport.”The government’s plan of disarmament is a way to stabilise the country,” Dinari told The Associated Press.The plan to rid Mogadishu of weapons is fraught in this capital, which is awash in guns after more than a decade of anarchy.Last month, the government, with the critical help of Ethiopia’s military, drove out an Islamic militia that had controlled much of southern Somalia since summer.On Saturday, Somalia’s acting parliament voted to allow the UN-backed government to impose martial law for up to three months in this Horn of Africa nation of 7 million people, deputy parliament speaker Osman Ilmi Boqore said during a legislative session broadcast live on a state-owned radio station.A few hours later, Ethiopian jets reportedly bombed at least one village in the south, killing three people, a traditional elder reported.Abdi Rashid Sheikh Ahmed told The Associated Press by phone from Af Madow that residents of the village of Bankajiiro came to his town with the bodies of three relatives they said died in the air strike.Lawmaker Abdulrashid Hidig, speaking from the port town of Kismayo, and Dinari, the government spokesman, said they had heard reports of air strikes but did not have any details.Nampa-APOn Saturday, troops were searching homes near Mogadishu’s main airport.”The government’s plan of disarmament is a way to stabilise the country,” Dinari told The Associated Press.The plan to rid Mogadishu of weapons is fraught in this capital, which is awash in guns after more than a decade of anarchy.Last month, the government, with the critical help of Ethiopia’s military, drove out an Islamic militia that had controlled much of southern Somalia since summer.On Saturday, Somalia’s acting parliament voted to allow the UN-backed government to impose martial law for up to three months in this Horn of Africa nation of 7 million people, deputy parliament speaker Osman Ilmi Boqore said during a legislative session broadcast live on a state-owned radio station.A few hours later, Ethiopian jets reportedly bombed at least one village in the south, killing three people, a traditional elder reported.Abdi Rashid Sheikh Ahmed told The Associated Press by phone from Af Madow that residents of the village of Bankajiiro came to his town with the bodies of three relatives they said died in the air strike.Lawmaker Abdulrashid Hidig, speaking from the port town of Kismayo, and Dinari, the government spokesman, said they had heard reports of air strikes but did not have any details.Nampa-AP