Eleven Somalis who were allegedly tortured - or witness to tortures - by Italian soldiers during the UN peace-keeping mission in Somalia in 1993 have arrived in Rome to take part in an official inquiry. David Willey reports;

A quasi judicial inquiry under the chairmanship of Ettore Gallo, a former constitutional court judge, was set up last June after Italian newspapers published photographs allegedly showing Italian soldiers raping and torturing Somalis during their peace-keeping mission.

Italian troops were pulled out of Somalia, together with other western military contingents, after it became clear that the United Nations force was unable to protect food aid supplies for starving people as long as local war lords battled for control of the country.

The inquiry reported back to Prime Minister Romano Prodi last August that individual Italian soldiers had committed attrocities against Somali civilians but the report cleared senior officers from blame. The investigation was reopened however after an Italian NCO, Francesco Aloi, claimed that the Italian military commander of the time knew perfectly well about torture allegations.

Among the Somalis who arrived in Rome was a young woman who claims she was raped by Italian soldiers, a man who claims he was tortured by having electrodes applied to his body and another man who says he was tied up and beaten.

The group also includes representatives of a Somali human rights organisation, the Somali Intellectual Society.

The expenses for the group's trip to Rome have been paid for by the Italian government through the Italian ambassador in Somalia. They were taken under police escort direct to the military hospital here where they'll stay while they give evidence.