KAMPALA, May 20 (Xinhua) -- The Ugandan government has ruled out that a roadside bomb attack which killed four of its troops on an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AMISOM) was not the work of al Qaeda cells in the lawless country, a senior military officer said here on Sunday.

    Uganda's Chief of Military Intelligence Col. Leopold Kyanda, flanked by the Minister of State for Defense Ruth Nankabirwa, told a news conference that investigations showed that the attack occurred last Wednesday did not involve al Qaeda cells reported to be operating in the country.

    "We have established that the attack has not direct links with the al Qaeda cells," said Kyanda contrary to earlier reports by the AU that linked the killing to the terrorist group.

    Nankabirwa said investigations also showed that the attack was not targeting the AMISOM troops since it was the first time the peacekeepers were patrolling the area and that they had not announced their presence in the area.

    She said the AU troops have been carrying out confidence building measure among the Somali people including the warring parties.

    "Investigations so far carried out reveal that the force which was hit was patrolling a new area where they had not been before. This roadside bomb therefore may not have been specifically targeted at them," said Nankabirwa.

    Despite the attacks, She said, the troops will continue with their mission, adding that the situation in Somalia was not out of hand as it has been portrayed

    "Hell has not fallen. The situation in Somalia is manageable. We are making progress and we encourage other countries that pledged troops to deploy," said Nankabirwa.

    An 8,000-strong AU force is needed to stabilize the war-ravaged country but only half of that number has been promised.

    Uganda is so far the only country that has sent in 1,500 troops. The other countries, including Malawi, Ghana, Burundi and Nigeria, pledged to send troops but they have not given a timetable of their deployment.

    Somalia, which has lacked an effective central authority since the 1991 ouster of military strongman Mohamed Siad Barre, has faced increasing violence since the transitional government backed by Ethiopian troops ousted Union of Islamic Courts, a militia group, late last year.