Premier says rift over as he heads to Mogadishu

The prime minister of the Transitional National Government (TNG) of Somalia, Hasan Abshir Farah, is expected to leave for the capital, Mogadishu, on Monday, from Nairobi, where he is attending the Somali peace talks.

Abshir's decision to go home follows "intensive discussions and consultations between him and the president to end their differences", a TNG source told IRIN.

The prime minister had earlier admitted that there were differences between him and President Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, but he described them as "minor", stressing that they did not amount to a split within the TNG. "These are differences of opinion on minor issues which we are now in the process of resolving," he told IRIN last month.

On Monday, Abshir told IRIN that "everything has now been resolved and we are united". He said the aim of his trip was to brief the president and the rest of his government on the peace talks. "We will then come back to talks as one united single entity," he added.

There has been a widespread speculation of a split within the TNG's top leadership, with the president on one side and the prime minister and the speaker of parliament on the other. "The prime minister wished to dismiss certain ministers and the president refused," the TNG source told IRIN.

The ministers in question are reported to be Finance Minister Husayn Mahmud Shaykh Husayn, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Abdikarim Ahmad Ali and Education Minister Hasan Muhammad Jumbur - all seen as loyal supporters of President Abdiqassim Salad Hassan.

Meanwhile, Abshir told IRIN that the Somali peace talks were at a crucial stage "and are now running smoothly".

"The delegates seem to have realised that this is it, so we have to make a success of the talks," he said. "The TNG will play its crucial role to make the talks a success."