(Adds Qaeda call)

MOGADISHU, March 25 (Reuters) - Leaders of the dominant clan in Somalia's capital said on Sunday a shaky, three-day-old ceasefire remained in place after talks with Ethiopian soldiers who back the interim government.

Hawiye elders have been negotiating with the government and Ethiopian military since about 20 people died last week in the worst violence in Mogadishu since a war to oust militant Islamists began earlier this year.

The upsurge in violence came after the government launched a campaign to disarm parts of Mogadishu.

Hawiye clan elder and spokesman Ahmed Diriye Diriye said the disarmament plan was on hold following orders from Addis Ababa, and said: "The ceasefire is still in place."

Diriye also said the government had been urged to send back troops that had come from the northern province of Puntland, another bone of contention for Mogadishu residents.

Pacifying Mogadishu is a momentous task for the interim government, which ended six months of Islamist rule in the city with the help of Ethiopia's military in a two-week offensive at the end of 2006.

An al Qaeda leader advised Somali Islamist fighters in a video posted on the Internet on Sunday to wage a guerrilla-style war against government forces, its Ethiopian allies and African Union peacekeepers.

"Adopt guerrilla war as it is the most durable form of battle with the least losses and biggest (enemy) casualties ... let the volcano erupt," said Abu Yahya al-Libi, who is believed to have escaped from a U.S. jail in Afghanistan in 2005.

"Wage a raid after another, ambush them, shake the ground under their feet with bombs, destroy their bastions with martyrdom operations and car bombs..."

The government, headed by President Abdullahi Yusuf from the Darod clan, is facing an insurgency from Islamists and clan militia in the coastal capital.

Hawiye leaders also met during the weekend with officials from an African Union (AU) peacekeeping force in Somalia, which is made up of 1,200 soldiers from Uganda.

"AU officials introduced themselves, shared with the Hawiye leaders their mission's mandate and told them that they want a stable Somalia," said one person at the meeting, who asked not to be named.

The formation of Yusuf's government is the 14th attempt to restore central rule to Somalia since 1991. He has called a national reconciliation conference for April 16, but whether it is held will depend on security in the city. (Additional reporting by Inal Ersan in Dubai)

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