Islamists strike at departing Ethiopians

By Ibrahim Mohamed and Abdi Guled

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somali Islamists fired mortars at the presidential palace and ambushed departing Ethiopian soldiers on Wednesday, starting battles that killed at least 21 people and wounded a further 48, witnesses said.

The violence underlined fears of an upsurge in bloodshed after Ethiopia's military exit began in earnest this week.

Witnesses said security forces including African Union (AU) peacekeepers guarding the hill-top palace compound in the coastal capital responded to the Islamist attack with volleys of artillery shells, shaking the city for several hours.

Suspected militants from the al Shabaab group also ambushed a convoy of departing Ethiopian soldiers on a street not far from the palace. The Ethiopians fought back with a tank.

"We have collected 21 dead people and five of them could not be identified," resident and ambulance worker Musa Ali said.

Medical staff also spoke of transporting 48 wounded, including eight children, to hospitals. It was not clear how many civilians and how many fighters were among the casualties.

Some analysts say the ongoing withdrawal of some 3,000 Ethiopian soldiers will leave a vacuum, triggering more violence by rebels who have battled the U.N.-backed administration for two years, and are now increasingly fighting each other.

Others believe the Ethiopian exit could remove forces seen by many locals as occupiers and spur more moderate Islamist factions to participate in forming a new, inclusive government.

After vacating four bases on Tuesday, the Ethiopians left two more on Wednesday, one at a football stadium.

"The Ethiopians have deserted the stadium and many residents have come to watch," witness Abdullahi Hassan told Reuters.

"We see only chairs and their footprints."

HARDLINERS PLAN ATACKS

The Ethiopians have eight other bases in Mogadishu and face a 500 km (300 mile) journey through Somalia to the border.

Somalis are pessimistic about a return to peace in a nation that has suffered 18 years of incessant civil conflict.

"No Somali wants the Ethiopians to stay, but there will be chaos whether they withdraw or not," said a spokesman of Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca, a government-allied Sunni Islamist group.