Kampala — The bodies of the four Ugandan Soldiers who were slain while serving on a peacekeeping mission in Somalia were flown in yesterday for burial.

Receiving the bodies at the military air base in Entebbe, the commander of the Land Forces, Lt. Gen. Katumba Wamala, paid tribute to the soldiers, saying they died for a noble cause. He added that the death of the soldiers would not deter Uganda from achieving its mission in Somalia.

"When we were embarking on this mission, we knew that we would incur causalities, which is not a strange thing," Katumba said. He identified the dead as Sgt. Bunni Swalli (Yumbe), Pt. Happy Ronald (Bundibugyo), Pt. Otim Ongera Nelson (Pader) and Pt. Okello Maxwell (Lira).

The bodies in four metallic caskets draped in the African Union and UPDF flags were carried from the plane by four teams of six soldiers and placed in two military ambulances. They were received in an emotional military ceremony mounted by fellow UDPF soldiers in honour of their fallen colleagues. The bodies were then transferred to Bombo Military Hospital, pending burial arrangements.

Also aboard the plane were 30 UPDF soldiers serving on the mission, who came back home on pass leave. The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday condemned the mortar attack on the presidential palace in Mogadishu in which the soldiers were killed.

"Members of the Security Council condemned acts of violence against civilians, AU force in Somalia and the Transitional Federal Government," the council said in a statement. The council also condemned the increased fighting in Somalia and offered support to the government in its efforts to achieve peace, security and reconciliation.

In an interview, Katumba disclosed that the troops participating in the mission were still few and called upon other African countries to fulfil their pledge to send more troops to the war-torn country.

Katumba noted that Uganda had already met its commitment by sending more 750 soldiers to Somalia, bringing the number of UPDF troops on the mission to 3,745 while Burundi deployed 1,600 soldiers.

Katumba said he was impressed with the magnitude of support the mission was receiving from the international community, saying logistical support had gone up and the living conditions of the peacekeepers had improved.

The four soldiers were killed on Monday when al-Shabaab rebels fired mortars at the presidential palace in Mogadishu, injuring 14 other peacekeepers, nine of whom, were flown to Nairobi for further treatment. Five others were treated in Mogadishu and had recovered.