Officials in Somalia say U.S. naval warships have bombarded a remote coastal village where suspected Islamist insurgents had set up a base.

An Italian official says Somalia's President Abdullahi Yusuf will allow members of the ousted Islamic Courts Union to take part in next month's reconciliation conference. But deputy foreign affairs minister Patrizia Sentinelli says the ICU members would have renounce violence and be chosen by their clans.

The World Food Program says it is taking advantage of the current lull in fighting in Somalia to step up its food assistance to thousands of displaced people. It has begun a second round of food distributions to 122,500 people.

A hidden roadside bomb exploded in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, on Wednesday, killing four African Union peacekeepers and wounding another five. VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu in our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi reports that Iraq-style guerilla attacks are on the rise in Somalia.

A top United Nations envoy says the world body will investigate human rights violations committed during recent fighting in the Somali capital of Mogadishu.

The head of the AU Commission - Alpha Omar Konare - is quoted as saying it would be a "catastrophe" if Ethiopian troops left Somalia before African Union peacekeepers were fully deployed. However, he says if Ethiopia attempts to reinforce its presence and remain, it could block political dialogue.

The United Nations' top humanitarian official is in Somalia to urge the interim government to allow humanitarian aid to reach the country's people.

People displaced by the recent fighting in Somalia - the worst in 16 years - are gradually returning to parts of the capital, Mogadishu, but fear is preventing others from going back to areas where the military still has a strong presence, the United Nations refugee agency reported today.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today announced that it has distributed aid to 16,000 people in the most ravaged districts of Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, which has suffered the worst fighting seen there in 16 years.

African Union peacekeepers have begun patrolling the battered streets of the Somali capital of Mogadishu, days after the government declared victory over Islamic insurgents. About 1,600 Ugandan troops began roaming the streets of Mogadishu on Tuesday as thousands of residents began streaming back into the city.

Deeply deploring the civilian deaths resulting from renewed fighting in Somalia, the Security Council today urged the country's Government to reach out to all segments of the war-torn country's society, while demanding that the warring parties allow relief aid to reach those in need.

Somalia's Prime Minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi, is claiming victory over Islamic insurgents in Mogadishu, and he says fighting in the Somali capital is almost over. But the latest round of clashes raises concerns about future stability in Somalia and has led to calls on the transitional government to reach out to dissident elements. VOA's Bill Rodgers reports.