AU troops leaving Somalia

The Prime Minister of Ethiopian, Meles Zenawi, has told parliament African Union peacekeepers in Somalia want to leave.

Ethiopian troops, who are due to pull out of Somalia at the end of the month, are to cover their withdrawal.

Ethiopia originally went into Somalia two years ago to help government forces drive Islamist forces from the capital, but different Islamist forces have been gaining ground in recent months and now control much of southern Somalia once more.

AU troops from Uganda and Burundi are expected to stay and possibly increase their numbers to make up for the planned Ethiopian pull-out.