An advanced contingent of 100 Burundian peacekeepers landed in the violent Somali capital Mogadishu, the first deployment of a larger group set to back up the Ugandan troupe already on the ground, an African Union (AU) official said Monday, according to DPA. The Burundian troops arrived Sunday after months of requests by the AU chief Alpha Oumar Konare to member states to send peacekeepers to the volatile country. The AU had pressed for a force of 8,000 to secure Mogadishu but the Ugandan force had been the only one in the capital since its deployment in March, despite promises of contributions by other countries. "The 100 Burundian peacekeepers landed yesterday in a Ugandan airplane. This advanced team will prepare the other Burundian peacekeepers' bases in Mogadishu," said the AU mission's spokesman, Paddy Ankunda. Another 1,700 Burundian troops are set to arrive in the capital, which has been beset by brutal violence since the Ethiopian-backed transitional government swooped in, ousting a popular Islamist group and sparking a vicious insurgency.
