US: American citizens in Kenya and Ethiopia were yesterday warned of the risk from Somali suicide bombers as the fractious Horn of Africa nation slipped closer to all-out civil war.
A day after the collapse of peace talks aimed at bringing together Somalia's enfeebled government and its hardline Islamic courts movement, the US embassy in Nairobi issued an e-mail alert warning of a terrorist threat.
"These threats specifically mention the execution of suicide explosions in prominent landmarks within Kenya and Ethiopia. American citizens are advised to remain vigilant and to use extreme caution when frequenting prominent public places."
A spokeswoman for the embassy said the alert was issued in response to a letter posted on the internet warning of attacks on Somalia's east African neighbours.
It was purportedly written by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, the hardline leader of the Union of Islamic Courts which seized control of Mogadishu in June and has since taken a tranglehold on much of the country.
East Africa has been targeted by Islamic terrorists in the past.
Truck bombs exploded at the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, killing 224 people. Meanwhile, the UN warned that Somalia was slipping closer to civil war following the collapse of peace talks in Khartoum.
François Fall, the UN special envoy to Somalia, said: "The intransigence of both parties led to the collapse of the negotiations and now there is the risk of clashes."
The talks were placed on indefinite hold after the two sides refused to meet face to face in the Sudanese capital.
Negotiators from the Islamic courts said they would not take part in talks until Ethiopian troops - who are digging into positions to defend the government base of Baidoa - left Somali soil.
Western capitals fear the Islamists could turn Somalia into a haven for al-Qaeda.