African Union Asks UN to Deploy Peacekeepers in Somalia

The African Union (AU) has reiterated its call on the United Nations Security Council to send a peacekeeping force to replace the beleaguered AU mission in Somalia. Meeting in Addis Ababa, the AU Peace and Security Council also condemned insurgent attacks against peacekeepers and aid workers, urging Somali leaders to unite in support of the country’s transitional government, which it said would help implement a UN-backed peace deal signed in Djibouti last June. [PE]