Ethiopian troops enter Somalia to protect U.N.-backed government

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Ethiopian troops in armored vehicles rolled into the Somali town of Baidoa on Thursday, residents said, less than a day after Islamic militants reached the outskirts of the base of a U.N.-backed, but largely powerless government.

A spokesman for the Ethiopian government had said his country would protect Somalia's transitional government from attack by Islamic militias who control much of southern Somalia.

The Supreme Islamic Courts Council militia seized Mogadishu and most of the rest of southern Somalia last month and has shown signs of planning to install strict religious rule, sparking fears it was a Taliban-style regime. The U.S. has accused the militia of links to al-Qaida that include sheltering suspects in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

Numerous witnesses told The Associated Press that Ethiopian soldiers arrived Thursday afternoon in Baidoa, 150 miles northwest of the capital Mogadishu and about 100 miles east of the Ethiopian border.

The Ethiopians smiled and waved to residents as they drove into Baidoa. They kept off the streets after setting up a camp near the transitional president's home in Baidoa, residents said.

One resident, speaking on condition of anonymity because of fears of reprisals, said people were being kept off the roads leading to the building.

Dozens of Ethiopian troops, including those in armored vehicles, crossed into Somalia at the border town of Dolow on Thursday morning. Some drove on to Baidoa while others set up rear bases near settlements at the frontier, said Shukri Abdi-rahman, a Dolow resident.

Ethiopian's defense, foreign and information ministries spokesmen repeatedly denied Thursday that their troops had crossed into Somalia.

Ismail Hurreh, one of Somalia's several deputy prime ministers, dismissed reports that Ethiopian troops were deployed in Baidoa and refused further comment.

But late Wednesday, Ethiopia's Minister of Information Berhan Hailu told the AP his government would intervene to prop up Somalia's transitional government, which has no effective military of its own and only controls the town of Baidoa.

"We have the responsibility to defend the border and the Somali government. We will crush them," Berhan said.

By moving troops into Mogadishu, Ethiopia could help create enough breathing space for peace talks planned Saturday to move forward. Or it could set the stage for a military confrontation between the better-armed, better-trained Ethiopians and the Islamic fighters.