(Adds details, background)

MOGADISHU, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Several Ugandan peacekeepers were wounded in Mogadishu late on Tuesday when mortar bombs struck nearby as they guarded the Somali capital's seaport, the spokesman for the African Union (AU) force said.

"Several soldiers have been injured, but I have no more information right now," Captain Paddy Ankunda told Reuters.

Some 1,600 Ugandan troops are deployed in Mogadishu as the vanguard of planned 8,000-strong AU force to support the turbulent Horn of Africa nation's fragile interim government.

Five of them have been killed by Iraq-style roadside bombs and mortar blasts since they began duty in March -- but direct attacks on their positions have been relatively rare.

AlertNet news is provided by