Sunday 10 October 2004, 18:30 Makka Time, 15:30 GMT
Somali lawmakers have begun voting for a president in the 14th attempt in a decade to return government to the lawless Horn of Africa state.
A clan-based parliament made up mainly of militia bosses and clan leaders intends to select a head of state with the huge task of establishing the first lasting government in 13 years.
The anarchic country, which is seen as a haven for fighters suspected of al-Qaida links, remains so dangerous that the vote on Sunday is being held in neighbouring Kenya.
Ground zero
Hundreds of thousands have died from famine, disease and violence since 1991 when regional commanders ousted then military ruler Muhammad Siad Barri.
"Everything has been destroyed. They are starting from ground zero," Kenya's ambassador to Somalia Muhammad Affey said.
At least three hours behind schedule, lawmakers queued up to go through metal detectors and enter a national sports complex that is serving as the parliament. The building was ringed by paramilitary police armed with assault rifles.
The vote is the culmination of two years of peace talks designed at creating a new transitional government intended to shepherd Somalia to elections after five years.
Thirteen previous peace conferences have failed to stabilise the country of seven million which is divided into clan-based fiefdoms.
Weapons pledge
The first person to cast a ballot was assembly speaker Sharif Hasan Shaikh Adan.
He told reporters beforehand that in order to stand, candidates would have to first sign a solemn pledge to respect the result and hand over to the new government any weapons held by them or their supporters.
They would also have to promise not to disrupt the voting process itself, he said.
Fistfights, scuffles and walkouts have marred the few sessions the 275-strong parliament has held since it was selected at a reconciliation conference in August.
Among the many possible pitfalls is the danger that a sore loser could decide to play a spoiling role, as the new president prepares to establish his rule in militia-infested Mogadishu.
"If this government goes to Somalia without a consensus among the participants, particularly those with big guns, it will be very difficult to do anything good on the ground," said Somali analyst Jabril Ibrahim Abd Allah.
The candidates
Two of the 27 candidates - regional commanders Jama Ali Jama and Hasan Muhammad Nur Shatigudud - dropped out of the race without explanation on Sunday.
Prominent among remaining contenders are Abd Allah Yusuf, the military leader of the northeast Somali region of Puntland who is backed by neighbouring Ethiopia; Abd Allah Addu, a former finance minister and diplomat; Abd al-Qasim Salad Hasan, a wealthy Arab-backed politician who led a previous failed attempt at government; and heavily-armed regional commander Muhammad Qanyari.
Any candidate who gains a two-thirds majority on Sunday will win outright.
Failing that, there will be a run-off between the top six candidates, with the person winning the largest single share of votes becoming head of state, according to a Transitional Federal charter, or constitution, agreed in 2003.