A special UN military force to protect aid workers has deployed for the first time in Somalia's war-ravaged capital, amid a wave of attacks blamed on al-Qaeda-linked Shebab insurgents.
The 400-strong "defensive" guard force of Ugandan troops, based at the heavily fortified Mogadishu airport, is "mandated to protect UN staff and installations" in the capital.
Despite the government's insistence it has improved security, the Shebab continue to carry out bombings - including targeting aid workers - in their bid to overthrow Somalia's internationally backed but fragile leadership.
Shebab suicide commandos last June blasted their way into a fortified UN base in central Mogadishu, killing 16 people.
"The deployment of the UN guard unit is an important step as we continue to expand our operations in support of the Somali people," UN envoy to Somalia Nicholas Kay said at a ceremony on Sunday to mark the start of operations.
Ugandan soldiers are already in Somalia as a key part of the UN-mandated African Union force AMISOM, which is fighting the Shebab.
The insurgents have been driven out of fixed positions in Somalia's major towns by the 22,000-strong force of AMISOM troops, but still regularly launch guerrilla raids.
Warplanes on Sunday pounded Shebab bases in their stronghold of Jilib in southern Somalia's Middle Juba region, some 320 kilometres southwest of Mogadishu.
Senior Shebab commander Sheikh Ibrahim Abu Hamze said warplanes had struck the town, but denied any casualties.
"The enemy tried to terrorise the children and women by dropping bombs in the suburbs of the city, but thanks to God, there were no casualties at all," Abu Hamze told AFP by telephone.
"The mujahideen fighters have managed to repel the enemy with anti-aircraft weaponry. They have fled."
It was not immediately clear where the jets were from, but Kenya is part of the African Union force and has used its air planes to strike Shebab bases before.
Recent Shebab attacks have targeted key areas of government, or the security forces, in an apparent bid to discredit claims by the authorities that they are winning the war against the Islamist fighters.
"We are proud to join the UN family, and will do our utmost to ensure the UN is able to continue its work in Mogadishu under safe and secure conditions," said Uganda's deputy army commander Charles Angina.
The UN force in Mogadishu comes amid a wider warnings of the threat of attacks by Shebab fighters or supporters in the wider region, especially in neighbouring Kenya.
The United States on Saturday said it was preparing to cut staff levels at its Nairobi embassy because of the mounting threat of attacks in Kenya by Islamist militants.
Earlier this week Britain, France and Australia also issued updated travel advice for their citizens in Kenya, following a string of grenade attacks.
