U.N. moves offices back to Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- The formal return of the U.N. special envoy to Somalia from neighboring Kenya is a sign of renewed hope for the country's future, officials said.

Augustine Mahiga, U.N. special envoy to Somalia, formally moved from offices in Kenya to the Somalia capital after a 17-year absence.

"I sincerely hope that the arrival of the U.N. Political Office will mark the start of renewed hope for the future of Somalia," Mahiga said in a statement.

Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for the African Union Mission in Somalia, told the BBC this week that pro-government forces managed to push north of Mogadishu for the first time.

AU forces, working alongside U.N. peacekeepers, are working to support the transitional government in the country.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the relocation of the U.N. office was a demonstration of the international commitment to Somalia. The last U.N. envoy designated for Mogadishu was stationed there in 1995.

Humanitarian aid groups, however, said their work in the country was curtailed by violence attributed to al-Shabaab, a militant group in control of areas outside Mogadishu. The Somali Red Crescent Society said this week that mortar shells struck hospital grounds in the capital, though no injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, U.S. Navy SEALS rescued American aid worker Jessica Buchanan and her Danish colleague Poul Thisted from their Somali captors in an overnight raid.