The Somali National Front (SNF) faction said Ethiopian soldiers drove its militia troops out of Luq, in Gedo region of central Somalia, after a battle that started last night.

There was no immediate word on casualties and no comment from Ethiopia.

Ethiopia's army has previously entered border towns in Gedo region to fight the Islamic fundamentalist Al-Ittihad militia.

Al-Ittihad is closely allied to south Mogadishu faction leader Hussein Aideed who is allied to Eritrea, Ethiopia's enemy in a year-old border war.

SNF spokesman Ibrahim Jama Howelleh told reporters in Mogadishu that Ethiopia had shelled civilians indiscriminately. Independent sources in Luq contacted by high-frequency radio confirmed that Ethiopian forces had invaded to capture the town.

Spokeswoman Christiane Berthiaume of the World Food Programme (WFP) said the emergency operation would provide 103,252 tonnes of food to the most vulnerable through December.

These were pregnant and nursing mothers, children under the age of five, the disabled and the elderly facing food shortages due to failure of rains and lower-than-expected crop yields, according to the Rome-based agency.

``WFP is launching an appeal for $40.5 million to help 1.2 million people in eight regions of Ethiopia hit by drought,''

Berthiaume told a news briefing in Geneva.

``Many farmers have been forced to sell their oxen and other livestock because of the deteriorating food situation.''

General Abdel Rahman Siral Khetim expressed "regret (that) the Eritrean aggression is continuing on Sudan's eastern border territory, despite the positive atmosphere and goodwill that accompanied conclusion of the Doha agreement by Presidents Omar Al-Beshir and Issaias Afeworki in early May." ·

Khetim said he hoped that the goodwill that prevailed at the meeting in Doha would turn into "reality", according to reports, but he did not give details of the aggression he blamed on Eritrea, which has become a base in exile for political foes of the Islamic fundamentalist-backed regime of General Beshir. ·

He added that the armed forces "shoulder direct responsibility for protecting Sudanese oil", which is "vitally important for economic development." ·

Beshir, who initially came to power in a military coup which ousted an elected civilian coalition in June 1989, on Monday inaugurated a pipeline that will carry the country's oil to the Red Sea coast for export. ·

The 1,600-kilometer (1,000-mile) pipeline, costing about one billion dollars, is a major part of government efforts to step up oil exploitation activities in a country which has been gripped by civil war for more than 15 years and where the economy has been bled dry. ·

On recent fighting among pro-government south Sudanese factions in the oil-rich Al-Wihda (Unity) State, Khetim said it was being discussed by a committee headed by First Vice-President Ali Othman Mohamed Taha and including representatives of factions that concluded a peace agreement with the government in April 1997. ·

The committee, which also includes government ministers, has been in session behind closed doors since Tuesday, was also discussing revisions to the provisions and implementation of the peace accord, Khetim said. ·

The pact stipulated, mong other things, that armed units of the factions should remain stationed in their positions in south Sudan.

This provision has raised the question of which forces will be responsible for security around the oil fields in Al Wihda state, ·

The government army considers itself responsible, but so does the South Sudan Sudan Defence Forces (SSDF) of Assistant President Riek Machar, a former rebel leader, whose men were stationed there before the agreement. ·

The dispute sparked fighting between the SSDF and government-backed militiamen of Major-General Paulino Meteb, which reportedly resulted in the defeat of the SSDF, who were driven away from the oil fields. ·

According to Thursday's Al-Usbu daily, SSDF units in disarray are spread across different parts of Al-Wihda state and neighbouring territory. ·

It was earlier reported that SSDF commander Tito Biel had defected to the mainstream rebel Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in neighbouring Al-Buhayrat (Lakes) State. ·

Al-Usbu said that SSDF men went on looting and killing operations against civilians, forcing large numbers of people to flee to other regions. ·

China Road and Bridge Corporation said it would rebuild 221 km (138 miles) of road from Awash to Harar via Dire Dawa, while South Korean firm Keangnam Enterprise said it would rebuild the 91-km (57 miles) Hirna-Kulube stretch of the same highway.

The highway, which runs parallel to the trade route with the Red Sea port of Djibouti, would be completed within three years.

Ethiopia has launched a $3.4 billion, 10-year road development programme to rehabilitate 24,000 km of roads.