Somalia's president urged the interim parliament on Saturday to act to stave off anarchy on the eve of its first session on home soil since one held in Kenya a year ago that was marred by fist-fights, Reuters reported. President Abdullahi Yusuf landed at an airstrip outside the south-central city of Baidoa and appealed to assembly members to reach a final deal to end a paralysing government split. He joined parliament Speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, titular head of a rival faction, and more than 200 members of parliament already in town for Sunday's session. The 275-member parliament is to meet for the first time in Somalia. It met in March in neighbouring Kenya and proceedings ended in fist fights, chair-throwing and a smashed ballot box. That solidified a rift in the government and Somali MPs say this meeting, agreed by Yusuf and Hassan last month, is the last best hope to rejuvenate the faltering administration. "We want to urge our colleagues from the cabinet and the parliament to end their differences so we can save the people of Somalia from anarchy," Yusuf told reporters after arriving. "We want to ensure we come up with a lasting agreement here." Hundreds of supporters braved the heavy downpour that coincided with Yusuf's arrival -- the first in months in the drought-ridden region -- and lined the potholed streets of Baidoa, dubbed the "City of Death" during a 1992 famine. More than 1,000 gunmen have been forced outside Baidoa, a city of 800,000 around 240 km (150 miles) northwest of Mogadishu. Uniformed police only will be allowed in the city. --more 22 11 Local Time 19 11 GMT
