(Adds Somali govt reaction, hundreds fleeing Mogadishu) By Guled Mohamed MOGADISHU, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Uganda's parliament voted on Tuesday to send peacekeeping troops to Somalia to help stem an unrelenting wave of hit and run attacks by insurgents on the interim government in Mogadishu. Some 500 residents have begun fleeing their homes in the capital, fearing more attacks on government installations and the administration's Ethiopian allies. Ugandan lawmakers agreed to deploy 1,500 troops as part of an African Union mission in a boost for the government struggling to restore stability in the chaotic nation since Ethiopian forces helped it oust Islamists in a December war. "They will go in as soon as possible, probably early next week," Ugandan army spokesman Paddy Ankunda said after the vote which was the last step in the constitutional process needed to approve such a deployment. Rose Namayanja, chairwoman of the Ugandan parliamentary defence committee, said the force could act in self-defence. Some Ugandan lawmakers voiced concern over the safety of the soldiers after threats from Islamist fighters that any foreign troops dispatched to Somalia would be attacked. Third Deputy Prime Minister Haji Ali Kirunda Kwejinja dismissed these concerns in parliament, where no opposition lawmakers voted because of a walkout. There were no abstentions. "We have reached out to all the leaders of the factions of Somalia," he said. "Uganda is welcomed by all factions". Somalia's interim government welcomed the vote. "It is one step forward to secure the security of Somali cities and we hope other African countries will contribute like Uganda," government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told Reuters. Diplomats have urged rich nations to back and fund the AU mission but only about 4,000 troops have been pledged of the 8,000 called for. Nigeria, Burundi, Malawi and Ghana have also offered to send soldiers. HUNDREDS FLEE MOGADISHU Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi vowed on Tuesday to bring the Islamists to justice. "(The Islamists) are not innocent and one day they will be brought to justice," Gedi told a news conference in Kenya. "We are not sparing any effort to pursue the remnants of the Islamic courts. ... (They) and their terrorist alliance are behind the sporadic attacks in Mogadishu." In the latest violence, a witness living near Commerce Minister Abdullahi Ahmed Afrah said a hand grenade was thrown at his house late on Monday. "He was in the house at the time of the attack but he survived, he was not hurt," the resident said. In another part of town, four mortars bombs landed near the port, but no one was injured, another witness said. Assailants opened fire at a police station but fled after heavy fighting. There was no immediate word on casualties. "Nearly 500 people have fled the areas where Ethiopian troops have recently moved to in an eastern part of Mogadishu," said one resident who declined to be named. "People fear being caught up by the mortars and rockets aimed at the Ethiopians." Western nations have pushed the government to engage in dialogue with all Somali parties, including moderate Islamists and powerful clans, to avoid a slide back into the anarchy Somalia has known since the 1991 ouster of a dictator. Four men who were arrested in Kenya last month after crossing the border from Somalia flew back to Britain on Tuesday and were detained by British police under anti-terrorism laws. (Additional reporting by Sahal Abdulle in Nairobi, Kate Kelland in London and Tim Cocks in Kampala)
