Somalia's parliament has elected ex-warlord Sheikh Adan Mohamed Nur as its new speaker - one of the three top positions in the interim government.

Mr Nur, a close ally of President Abdullahi Yusuf, replaces Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan - sacked two weeks ago.

He was removed for having unauthorized talks with the Islamists, who ruled much of Somalia until last month.

Mr Adan had also opposed Ethiopia's military intervention to help the government drive out the Islamic group.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia says it is still seeking an early withdrawal from the country despite slow progress in drumming up an African peacekeeping force.

Analysts fear that unless the growing insecurity in the country is contained quickly, Somalia will slip back to the anarchic misrule which has prevailed in the country for the past 16 years.

Applause

Mr Nur - better known as Madobe - won the vote at the parliament in the city of Baidoa with 101 votes, ahead of his nearest rival's 53 votes.

There was applause and cheers when the announcement of his victory was announced via load speakers inside the parliament hall decorated with ornaments and the pictures of the various candidates, AP news agency reports.

Before his election, Mr Nur served as a justice minister in the current transitional government which was formed in neighboring Kenya in 2004.

He comes from the Rahwein clan - one of Somalia's four main clans - a requirement of the transitional power-sharing charter.

Correspondents say his predecessor had close ties with the businessmen who financed the Union of Islamic Courts and his attempts to negotiate a political agreement with the group infuriated the transitional government.

The dismissal of Mr Adan - who has a reputation for honesty, as well as for being independent-minded - was criticized by the United States.

Jendayi Frazer, US assistant secretary of state for African affairs, said it went against the spirit of reconciliation needed in Somalia and it was likely to have a negative impact on dialogue.

Martial law

The BBC's Mohammed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu says Mr Nur's appointment comes as martial law is imposed on the country - putting all powers into the hands of the president for the next three months.

The government has imposed new curfew restrictions in main towns to try to maintain stability.

Overnight, an unidentified group fired mortars at a military base in Mogadishu.

Ethiopia says it remains confident that the African Union (AU) will start to deploy peacekeeping troops in Somalia within three weeks despite the failure at the African summit to secure the full number of soldiers for the planned stabilization force.

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin told a news conference after the summit in Addis Ababa that his government still intended to withdraw its troops from Somalia.

The AU says it needs 8,000 troops to replace the Ethiopian army, but only 4,000 soldiers have been pledged so far by member countries.

Photo caption

Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan