Home
Discover Islam
Quran Recitations
Lectures
Fatwa
Articles
Fiqh
E-Books
Women
Boys & Girls 
Ramadan
Fatwa Audios
Month of Mercy
Women
Eed Al- Fitr
Food Recipes
Videos
Ethiopia has refused to reverse its decision to withdraw its forces from Somalia by the end of the year, despite a plea from the African Union (AU) to delay the move which it fears may result in a security vacuum inside the country.
The government in Addis Ababa said last month that it would pull its troops out by the scheduled time amid fears the war-torn country could descend into further anarchy unless more 'peacekeepers' are sent.
"We appeal to Ethiopia to consider phasing out withdrawal, until such time [when] more troops from Nigeria, Uganda and Burundi are deployed in Somalia," the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the AU said in a statement at a meeting in the Ethiopian capital on Monday.
There are currently some 3,000 Ethiopian troops in Somalia supporting the embattled Transitional Federal Government [TFG], which is based in the southern town of Baidoa.
A further 3,400 peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi make up the AU mission in the country.
That number is well below the 8,000 troops pledged by the AU two years ago.
But despite the shortfall Ethiopian officials said the pullout of their forces would go ahead.
"The decision to withdraw troops from Somalia was a commitment made by the country's authorities to parliament and will not be changed," said Tekeda Alemu, Ethiopia's minister of state.
About 850 Nigerian troops are expected to join the AU peacekeepers already stationed in the country.
Rift
Adding to the fragility of Somalia's TFG government is a growing rift between Abdullahi Yusuf, the president, and Nur Hassan Hussein, the man he sacked as prime minister.
The AU and the US government have backed Hussein and have so far refused to recognize Mohamud Mohamed Guled, the new Somali prime minister, who was selected by the president.
The TFG is also facing an escalation in attacks from opposition fighters, that threaten to reach Mogadishu, the capital.
Fighters from al-Shabab, a group which split from the armed Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), have control of several town and cities across Somalia.
The opposition controls the south of Somalia and has launched a series of raids on Ethiopian forces which have tried to defend the government.
At least 10,000 civilians have been killed in two years of fighting, while a million people have been forced to flee their homes.
PHOTO CAPTION
Ethiopian troops in Somalia
Al-Jazeera
Prayer Times
Prayer times for Doha, Qatar 
