Il-76 Delivered Equipment To Peacekeepers

An Ilyushin-76 cargo plane that had delivered supplies to Ugandan peacekeepers in the war-torn Somali capital of Mogadishu was shot down on takeoff Friday. The fate of the 11 people onboard is unknown, although local news reports say the entire crew was killed.

Witnesses told authorities a small missile struck one of the plane's wings. "One of the wings fell in the ocean and smoke was coming from the bottom of the plane," north Mogadishu resident Muse Hassan told The Associated Press.

The plane was operated by Belarus-based Transaviaexport, whose acting CEO Egi Azarian confirmed the plane was shot down. The incident comes two weeks after another Belarussian aircraft, carrying African Union peacekeepers into the war-ravaged city, made an emergency landing after being struck by a rocket-propelled grenade.

Troops from neighboring Ethiopia were sent into Somalia late last year to quash Islamic forces that had overtaken the country. This week, after months of sporadic and occasionally intense fighting, 25 Somalia elders reportedly agreed to halt hostilities and begin talks.

"We have asked the Ethiopian officials to pull their troops back from front line areas and force government troops to do the same," said one of those elders to the AP. "We have also promised on our part to pull our fighters back from the battle fronts."

FMI: www.transaviaexport.com/eng, www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/so.html