Ethiopian Woyanne troops have started to prepare to leave Somalia on the day they were supposed to complete their withdrawal, witnesses say.

The troops were packing mattresses, personal belongings and loading trucks with military supplies, they said.

But there was no sign that the Ethiopians had started to leave the capital Mogadishu, as they have promised to do by the end of the year. More on Woyanne ‘packing up in Somalia’

Somalis have reportedly welcomed the resignation of President Abdullahi Yusuf of the transitional federal government after he was accused of being the stumbling block to the peace process. More on Somalis Reportedly Welcome President Yusuf’s Resignation

 (Bloomberg) — Ethiopian federal police re-arrested opposition leader Birtukan Mideksa a year after she was released on a pardon following her arrest during the country’s disputed 2005 elections.

Mideksa, a leader of the now-dissolved Coalition for Unity and Democracy, was taken into custody today, said Temesgen Zewde, a lawmaker, who is a member of Mideksa’s new party, Unity for Democracy and Justice. More on Ethiopian Police Re-Arrest Opposition Leader Mideksa

NAIROBI, ADDIS ABABA, –The UN and the AU have both warmly welcomed the resignation of Somalia’s President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed as a positive development for peace prospects in that beleaguered Horn of African country. More on Somalia: Dictator Yusuf’s resignation welcomed by UN and AU

 NAIROBI, Kenya — Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, Somalia’s combative ex-warlord of a president who has been widely blamed for his country’s deepening crisis, resigned on Monday, casting Somalia into a deeper political abyss, but at the same time possibly creating an opportunity. More on It’s A New Day FOR SOMALIA, THE DICTATOR IS OUT!

Dictator  Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed resigned, ending a four-year tenure in which he failed to bring peace to the Horn of Africa nation that has been wracked by conflict for the past 17 years.

Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nor, the speaker of parliament, will assume the presidency under the country’s transitional federal charter, Yusuf told lawmakers in the nation’s parliament in Baidoa, 250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of the capital, Mogadishu. The address was broadcast on Capital Voice, a closely held broadcaster. More on The dictator of Somalia, Woyanne backed Yusuf is gone for good

Yesterday – marks the second year anniversary of the invasion of Woyanne  troops into Somalia. It was December 28, 2006 when Woyanne forces entered Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia after two days in the city of Bal’ad situated about 30 kilometers north of Mogadishu and the city of Afgoye situated 30 kilometers south of Mogadishu. More on Second Year Anniversary of Woyanne Invasion of Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somalia’s president will resign Monday to try to end government infighting before the country’s Ethiopian Woyanne allies leave, a senior ally said Sunday in the latest in a series of conflicting statements on the leader’s future.

President Abdullahi Yusuf will address a special session of the country’s parliament to announce his retirement from politics, said Abdirashid Sed, a confidant of Yusuf and the most senior figure to comment so far on the president’s plans. More on Somalia Woyanne puppet dictator Yusuf is expected to resign today

Friday December 26, 2008 (HOL) -  Reports from the city of Afgoye in Lower Shebelle region say that Ethiopian Woyanne troops stationed in the area opened fire and killing and wounding several civilians. More on Woyanne Troops Kill and Wound Civilian Passengers

 ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (Garowe Online) – At least 1,700 Somalis have been rounded up in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa over the past 48 hours, Radio Garowe reports. More on 1700 Somalis detained in Addis Ababa in past 2 days