FT933-14577 _AN-DGNB5AAXFT 930714 FT 14 JUL 93 / Rising death toll stokes Somali hatred against UN: The crusade against General Aideed has damaged the peacekeepers' claim of impartiality By LESLIE CRAWFORD THE killing of four journalists in Mogadishu on Monday shot, stoned and clubbed to death by a mob seeking revenge for its own dead -has laid bare how tragically the United Nations humanitarian mission in Somalia is unravelling. Since the UN launched its night-time bombing raids over the capital in retaliation for the slaying of 24 Pakistani soldiers last month, gunmen loyal to General Mohamed Farah Aideed have turned south Mogadishu into an urban guerrilla war theatre. The rising death toll - 35 UN troops, more than 100 Somalis - and the UN's decision to single out Gen Aideed as the chief villain in a land of feuding warlords, has stoked Somali hatred against what is now perceived by many as a foreign occupation force. On Monday, after American Cobra helicopters bombarded a compound in the heart of the city, the hatred spilled over to encompass all foreigners. The journalists who were mobbed and killed at the bombed compound were well known to the residents of south Mogadishu. These Somalis used to entreat foreign reporters to come to see the destruction wrought by UN forces. Mr Dan Eldon, a 22-year-old British-American Reuters photographer, was so well known in the area after working there for a year that he had been nicknamed the 'Mayor of Mogadishu'. That he should have been stoned to death indicates how radically the mood has changed. The UN's crusade against Gen Aideed has made the general into a local hero, when only a few months ago his authority was waning. It has also damaged the UN's claim to be an impartial policeman and further undermined its credibility among Somalis. Accounts of the recent attack diverge significantly. Gen Aideed's National Somali Alliance claims a meeting of clan elders was taking place when the compound came under attack. It says 74 people were killed and more than 200 wounded. But Mr Barry Walkley, the UN spokesman in Mogadishu, insisted yesterday that the compound was a command centre and rallying point for Aideed militia. 'We are convinced there was no loss of innocent lives during Monday's assault,' he said. 'UN troops counted 13 militia (members) dead and 15 wounded, maybe more. There is no way 70 people could have been killed. The question of UN-inflicted civilian casualties is straining relations among the 20-odd national contingents that comprise the 20,800-member UN peacekeeping force Suspicion, mistrust and national rivalries are undermining the UN's military command structure, formally under the authority of Turkish Gen Cevik Bir but led in practice by Gen Thomas Montgomery, commander of the US forces in Somalia. The 2,600-strong Italian contingent is now allegedly taking its orders from Rome and has refused to follow instructions from the UN command. Leading Italian newspapers were united yesterday in their condemnation of the US-led assault, after Mr Fabio Fabbri, defence minister, openly called for the suspension of all UN combat operations in Mogadishu. Rome fears the UN is sinking deeper into a military quagmire in Somalia and is reluctant to become involved in a prolonged, senseless conflict. Mr Fabbri's remarks earned him a sharp rebuke from Mr Boutros Boutros Ghali, the UN secretary general, who said it was unacceptable for any troop contingent to take action outside UN command. UN officials distrust what they see as Italy's separate agenda in its former colony. They suspect the Italian contingent may have struck a deal with Gen Aideed's Habir Gedir clan following the deaths of three Italian soldiers earlier this month. They believe the Italians may have created a safe haven for Gen Aideed's gunmen and perhaps even for the fugitive warlord himself. Aid agencies too are increasingly critical of the UN's military operation for losing sight of its political and humanitarian objectives. 'We are primarily concerned with the unnecessary loss of innocent lives,' said Mr Howard Bell of Care International, who was in Mogadishu during Monday's assault. 'Our relations with the military have deteriorated in the past month. It has become difficult to plan relief work as we cannot always rely on military escorts.' Care has withdrawn all but three foreign aid workers from Mogadishu due to the precarious security conditions in the capital. It says it has not been able to supply its 35 feeding centres there on a regular basis since the UN launched its military strikes in June. Before then, Care was feeding 175,000 displaced Somalis in the capital every day. The UN, however, insists that any idea of reconciling rival clans and promoting a political dialogue cannot be achieved until Gen Aideed's militias have been disarmed. 'We need more troops,' said Mr Walkley. 'This country is awash with weapons and we are not naive about the enormity of the task. Security has become our paramount concern.' But Mr Walkley admits that the UN is operating virtually under siege in the capital. It has retreated into a heavily fortified compound on the outskirts of town. UN staff are not allowed outside the compound and are transported to the airport and other sights by helicopter. Outside the capital, he says, progress is being made in bringing clan elders together for talks. Kismayo, the southern port, is reported to have been peaceful since two rival warlords were banished, and truces have been negotiated in other areas. But other Somalia watchers doubt whether the UN has the ability to fulfil its aims. 'The UN is being naive if it thinks it can transform a desert region of nomadic tribes into a model democracy,' said Dr Murray Watson, a scientist who lived in Somalia for 14 years. 'I cannot think of a worse test case for the UN's new role as global policeman. They simply don't have enough experts to know what they are doing.' He said: 'Somalis have a tradition in which blood crimes are repaid with blood. For the past month they have been counting the death toll inflicted by the UN. Foreigners will be killed in Somalia, whether they wear a Blue Helmet, a nurse's uniform or a camera.' Countries:- SOZ Somalia, Africa. Industries:- P9721 International Affairs. Types:- NEWS General News. The Financial Times London Page 4