'Extra Ugandan troops' to tackle Somali rebels

Uganda is ready to send an additional 2,000 peacekeeping troops to Somalia despite threats from hardline Islamists of more attacks if peacekeepers are not withdrawn.

Coordinated explosions ripped through two nightspots in the Ugandan capital of Kampala on July 11, killing 73 people watching the World Cup final.

"If we're called on to contribute a stronger force in Somalia, we're ready to send an extra 2,000," army spokesman Felix Kulayigye said. The al-Qa'ida-linked al Shabaab group, which claimed the Kampala strikes, said it was avenging the killing of civilians by the African Union peacekeeping force.