Somali Islamists urge Muslim fighters to join jihad

MOGADISHU, Dec 23 (Reuters) A Somali Islamist defence chief appealed to foreign Muslim fighters for the first time today to join his movement's ''holy war'' against Ethiopia.

''We're saying our country is open to Muslims worldwide. Let them fight in Somalia and wage jihad, and God willing, attack Addis Ababa,'' said defence chief Yusuf Mohamed Siad, known as Inda'ade, a hardliner who has given inflammatory remarks in the past.

''We want anyone who can help remove the enemy to come in,'' he told a news conference in the Islamist stronghold Mogadishu.

Ethiopian officials were not immediately available for comment.

The United States has accused the Islamists of drawing support from al Qaeda but they have denied it.

Inda'ade was speaking after four days of clashes between Islamist forces and pro-government troops that has killed dozens and wounded hundreds.

The most sustained combat in Somalia started late on Tuesday, the deadline Somalia Islamic Courts Council (SICC) had given Ethiopian troops protecting the government to leave the country or face war.

REUTERS LL RK1518