The latest US food assistance to Ethiopia is valued at about 38.4 million dollars, the Ethiopian Herald reported in its Sunday edition quoting a release from the U.S. embassy in Addis Ababa.

The paper said of the total food assistance, 25,000 metric tonnes would be delivered in response to the appeal made last week by the Ethiopian Government Relief Commission for more than 4.6 million people in need of emergency food aid this year.

The Relief Commission said failure of the "belg" rains during the "small rainy season" from February to mid-April this year in many lowland areas of the country, coupled with the scanty rains during the June-September main rainy season in 1998, had resulted in the increase of the number of people needing food aid this year.

The number of people needing emergency food aid for the remainder months of 1999 in Ethiopia had increased by over 1.2 million in the last six months.

The Relief Commission issued an appeal to donors late December saying over 3.4 million Ethiopians will need emergency food aid in 1999.

According to the daily Al-Rai al-Aam, an Eritrean delegation led by senior intelligence officer Abdel Rahman Jasir paid a three-day secret visit to Sudan last week and held talks with a Sudanese security committee charged with handling relations with Eritrea.

The reports said the delegation also included the Eritrean western military commander who is in charge of relations with the Sudanese opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA), headquartered in the Sudanese embassy building in Asmara.

A similar visit was reportedly made by a Sudanese delegation to Asmara three weeks ago.

Al-Rai al-Aam said the Eritreans delivered a message from President Assaias Afeworki to President Omar al-Beshir and met with the Sudanese security officials to propose a resumption of diplomatic relations and the "immediate" reopening of the embassies in the two capitals.

The Sudanese side rejected the proposal, calling on Asmara first to evict the NDA from the Asmara embassy building.

The paper, quoting unnamed sources, said Afeworki was apparently unwilling to order the Sudanese opposition out of Eritrea, preferring to maintain relations with both the Sudanese government and opposition.

He is awaiting the outcome of a meeting of the NDA scheduled to open in Asmara on Monday.

Al-Rai al-Aam sources regard the reported exchange of visits as indicative of improving relations despite the lack of confidence between the two governments.

The daily said the Sudanese and Eritrean foreign ministers would meet in Doha, Qatar, next Sunday in the presence of their Qatari counterpart Hamad ibn Jassim.

According to Sudanese Junior Foreign Minister Gebriel Rorec, as quoted by Sunday's Akhbar al Youm daily, a date for this ministerial meeting will be agreed in contacts to follow the return home of Foreign Minister Mustafa Othman Ismail from a European tour.

Rorec said "intensive" contacts were held by Khartoum and Asmara last week on the formation of joint technical committees as provided for in an agreement reached in May between the two heads of state in Doha.

He said he had information on "attempts" by Eritrea to restore relations and return the Asmara embassy building to the Sudanese government.

"If this step is taken it will demonstrate Eritrean sincerity towards respecting the (Doha) agreement," said Rorec, noting that the absence of diplomatic representation in Khartoum and Asmara was "harmful" to both countries and "has created a vacuum that has stepped up hostilities."

RRA spokesman Mohamed Ali Aden Qalinleh confirmed the fightings in Baidoa Sunday and told reporters here on Sunday afternoon that the town is now "under the full control of the RRA forces".

There's no official word as yet from Aidid's side over the fightings, but militia commanders loyal to him have denied that the town has changed hands.

Independent sources confirmed that the town is still in Aidid's control, but pressure is mounting high for its fall. An eyewitness in Baidoa told Xinhua by VHF radio that he has seen the corpses of 11 people including civilians. The eyewitness said three of those bodies were lying on a vehicle trying to escape to Mogadishu while the wounded are estimated to be in dozens, mainly civilians caught in the cross fire.

One of nine Aidid's militiamen brought for treatment in Dr. Hassan Jis Hospital in South Mogadishu said the RRA fighters have ambushed their vehicle heading toward the town, killing four of the occupants.

Another wounded man said five vehicles including a public transport bus and a battle wagon have been seized by the RRA.

According to travelers who reached Mogadishu just before noon, there has been a total panic among the civilians in the town as deafening noises of the heavy shellings fired by both sides continued in the heart of Baidoa.

The eyewitnesses said the exchange of heavy anti-aircraft machine gun fires and rocket-propelled grenades have made the town a hell of mess while the civilians have started fleeing in panic to every direction of the town especially toward the capital.

Heavy preparations for re-strengthening Aidid's militiamen in Baidoa are visible in South Mogadishu Sunday. Well-informed sources in Baidoa said that the RRA fighters have mounted their attack on the town when a large consignment of Somali bank notes is to arrive for businessmen at Ballidogleh airport, 90 kilometers south of Mogadishu.

Gebrselassie clocked three minutes 33.73 seconds for the 1,500 metres on a mild afternoon in Stuttgart, where he burst into the limelight with gold in the 10,000 metres and silver in the 5,000 at the 1993 world championships. Kenyan Benjamin Kipkirui was a distant second in 3:36.42 with Shadrack Langat, also from Kenya, third in 3:36.42.

Komen, who had opted for the 3,000 metres, clocked 7:32.72. Hailu Kekkonen of Ethiopia was second in 7:33.09 and Kenya's Richard Limo third in 7:34.70.

Briton Colin Jackson, who became world champion on the same track six years ago, shrugged off a brave challenge from Cuba's Anier Garcia to win the 110 metres hurdles in a world class time of 13.14 seconds. Garcia was second in 13.17.

Trinidad's Ato Boldon, the 200 metres world champion, won the 100 metres in 9.97 seconds, beating American Dennis Mitchell into second place.