African Union, Arab League urge ceasefire in Somalia

Source: CCTV.com | 12-28-2006 08:28

The African Union and the Arab League have made separate calls for an immediate ceasefire in Somalia urging Ethiopia to withdraw its forces as soon as possible.

The Cairo-based Arab League has also called on the UN Security Council to immediately adopt a ceasefire resolution. It's hoping the UN will back efforts to restart dialogue among warring factions, to preserve the sovereignty of Somalia.

The war between the Ethiopia and Western-backed Somali government and the Union of Islamic Courts, the UIC, has lasted for about 10 days. On Wednesday, Somali government troops, aided by Ethiopian forces, carried out a full-scale attack clearing a major road to capital Mogadishu, seized in June by UIC forces. But a Somali government spokesman says it does not intend to attack the capital just yet. And Ethiopia has said its forces are only in the country to help Somalia's interim government deal a severe blow to the UIC's fighting capabilities. This, it says, will allow both sides to return to peace talks on a more even footing.

Editor:Du Xiaodan