UN envoy calls for thousands more troops to battle Somali militants

Somalia may need to triple its peacekeeping troops to 20,000 in the coming months to combat a surging threat by militants, a U.N. official said.

"The threat level in Mogadishu and in southern-central Somalia has actually increased," Augustine Mahiga told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday.

Mahiga said he is concerned about the security in the country and its impact in the region.

"A scaled up assistance from the international community is needed to make a difference," said Mahiga, the special envoy to Somalia.