The Houston Chronicles quoted a resident of the Somali port town of Kismaayo as saying “We welcome the Islamic courtsâ€. The paper also reported Hirale’s deputy, Yusuf Mire Mohamud, as saying “the Juba Valley Alliance has collapsed today.â€.
Could Bosaaso and Berbera be next? It is unbelievable to see the speed of political and military advancement of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU)!
Click here to view the article.
Dr. Michael A. Weinstein of The Power and Interest News Report (PINR):
Far from ameliorating the polarized power configuration pitting the I.C.C. against Ethiopia, which is determined to defend the T.F.G. and prevent the emergence of an Islamic state in Somalia, the second round of the Khartoum process — brokered by the Arab League (A.L.) — intensified the confrontation and spawned new conflicts. With all the players under severe duress, all of Somalia came into play, regional actors polarized as Western powers watched from the sidelines, and cracks appeared within Somalia’s society as local and clan conflicts surfaced, portending the possibility of civil war and a return to the extreme political fragmentation that had characterized the country before the I.C.C.’s surge through its southern and central regions in early June, after the Courts movement had expelled the ruling warlord coalition from Somalia’s official capital Mogadishu.
Interesting analysis! However, I just got the article from PINR through email few minutes ago and I will need to read it properly. Hopefully, I will be able to make a comment about this later this week.
In the meantime, you may like to click here to view the full article on the PINR.
The BBC News reports:
The African Union has approved plans to send 8,000 peacekeepers to Somalia to support the interim government. An alliance of Islamic courts which controls the capital and much of central and southern Somalia says it will oppose any deployment by force. A meeting at AU headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, agreed that the first soldiers should be in place by the end of the month. But obstacles remain as the AU does not have the funds to pay for the troops. The approval for the force by the African Union Peace and Security Council also appears to fly in the face of a shaky agreement between Somalia’s interim government and the Islamic courts not to allow any foreign intervention.
This is a big political mistake that could potentially ignite new armed confrontation between Somali Army on one side and Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf and his tribal militia with Ethiopian army on the other side. As I wrote before, Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf and the failed TFG must understand that the political legitimacy cannot be achieved through the barrel of the gun. It must be earned through popular support!
The Somali people must defend their country against the looming threat of foreign invasion!
Click here to view then full dispatch by the BBC.
The Kenya Broadcasting Corporation reports:
An Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has reaffirmed support for the ongoing initiatives to promote dialogue for sustainable peace in Somalia. However the meeting at State House Nairobi today under the chairmanship of President Mwai Kibaki, the noted that the prevailing situation posed a threat to peace and gravely undermined the ability of the Transitional Federal Institutions in Somalia to consolidate the gains made so far to achieve long-term stability. The meeting, attended by President Abdulahi Yusuf of Somalia and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia re-affirmed support for the Transitional Federal Charter and Federal Transitional Institutions as an embodiment of the common will of the Somali people. In a communiqué issued at the end of the consultation, the IGAD forum expressed support for the ongoing dialogue between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and encouraged both parties to strive to overcome any differences by actively pursuing genuine reconciliation. The forum further reiterated that any dialogue must be based on the will of the Somalia people and preserve the sanctity of the Transitional Federal Charter and Federal Institutions which provide a solid political framework to achieve a lasting solution to the Somali problems. They endorsed the revised Igad Mission to Somalia (IGASOM) deployment plan as approved by the African Union (AU) peace and security council and further called on the AU to provide the requisite funds to enable the implementation of the first phase of the plan.
IGAD is a dysfunctional organisation run by depots, dictators and the enemy of the Somali Nation (Ethiopia and Kenya). Hence, no one should be surprised by this act! They want the tragic Somali conflict to continue!
Click here to view the full article.
Wangui Kanina of the Reuters news agency writes:
East African leaders pushed ahead on Tuesday with a contested plan to send peacekeepers to Somalia, despite a separate military deal between the country’s rival powers that appeared to block foreign intervention. The regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which led talks that produced Somalia’s interim government in 2004, urged the African Union to speed approval of the proposed peacekeeping mission, release funds and help raise more money to support the deployment of troops. IGAD also called on the U.N. Security Council to meet “urgently” to consider lifting its arms embargo on Somalia, torn apart by factions fighting for control of the Horn of Africa nation since warlords ousted Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Late on Monday, Islamist and government delegates meeting in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, agreed in principle to join their military forces if they could agree on sharing political power. The pact stressed that neither side would accept military interference inside Somalia by neighboring countries and seemed to set up yet another possible conflict between the government and the Islamists.
The TFG must put screeching halt on this ill-thought and counter-productive plan. Col. Cabdullaahi Yuusuf and Cali Geedi cannot say we want to negotiate peace while at the same time they keeping fueling the conflict by pushing for African troop deployment in Somalia.
Somali peace talks need more honest peace brokers from the Arab and Islamic countries. As the saying goes “ Baadida ninbaa kula daydayi, daalna kaa badin, aan doonahayn inaad heshana daaying abidkaaâ€. Both Ethiopa and Kenya are working tirelessly for permanent break up of Somalia and further fragmentation of the Somali Nation.
We cannot and we must not allow Somalia’s enemies to sit on the driver’s seat as we did in the past!
Click here to view the full article onn Reuters.
The International Herald Tribune writes:
Somalia’s virtually powerless government and an Islamic militia that has seized control of much of southern Somalia have signed an agreement to eventually form a unified national army, officials said. The deal late Monday, which came after two days of peace talks in Sudan, did not specify when the agreement would take effect. Talks were to resume Oct. 30 in Khartoum. “The Islamic courts have met the expectations of our people,†said Abdullahi Sheik Ismail, one of several deputy prime ministers in the government. Both sides also agreed to form a peace committee in order to determine how to implement the plan. Ibrahim Hassan Adow, who signed on behalf of the Islamic courts, said: “We are pleased we came to this agreement within two days.†Another major point was that the Islamic courts will not take any more territory and will instead wait for the Oct. 30 talks. Both sides also agreed to stop the use of propaganda against each other.
I wonder what the TFG offered.
Click here to view the full report on the IHT.
Above story is reported also by Al Jazeera, LA Times and Ottawa Citizen.
The Dubai based Gulf News newspaper reports:
A copy of the agenda obtained by AP shows that the talks, expected to continue for several days, are to revolve around a June agreement to discuss political, security, social and economic issues as well as reconstruction. Negotiators have said they hope to discuss Cabinet positions for the Islamists and seats in the transitional parliament as well as the transitional charter. The Islamists could argue that they control a significant part of the country and on that basis should share power with Somali President Abdullahi Yousuf’s transitional government.
If true, this is really a big mistake by the ICU. I mean the ICU does not need to hold cabinet posts in the failed TFG. They already control the most strategic sectors of the country including Mogadishu. They should go ahead and assemble their own government by consulting with Somali people and its local leaders. The TFG had its chance to lead the country and it failed.
Somalia needs a fresh start!
The South African Mail and Guardian Reports:
At least 12 people were killed and 11 wounded on Monday when Somali police clashed with gunmen for control of the airport in the government seat of Baidoa, officials and witnesses said. The fighting erupted as members of the weak transitional administration met with Somalia’s powerful Islamic movement in Sudan but was unrelated to the peace talks, although it underscored instability in the lawless nation. Police said they had moved on the Baidoa airport to evict militia fighters who had set up shop there, imposing taxes and recruiting cronies into their ranks after having been dismissed as airport security workers. “Twelve people have been killed, seven militiamen and five from the government security,” Baidoa police official Omar Aden Abdulle said from the town, about 250km north-west of Mogadishu.
Click here to view the full report.
The Reuters news agency reports:
Talks aimed at reconciling Somalia’s fledgling transitional government and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), were continuing on Monday in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, under the mediation of the League of Arab States. At the same time Kenya announced that President Mwai Kibaki would on Tuesday chair a special summit of the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which will discuss the Somali crisis. IGAD, which comprises Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Uganda and Somalia, mediated the reconciliation talks that culminated in the formation of the transitional government in Kenya in October 2004.
Click here to view the full report.
Foreign interference and the presence of foreign forces on Somali soil, some of whom are already there, is a recipe for another civil war, instead of the pursuit of reconciliation and reconstruction.
Ibrahim Hussein Addow,
Leader of Somalia’s Islamic Courts Union Delegation
Khartoum, Sudan.
I agree!
The International Heard Tribune reports:
Sudan Negotiators for Somalia’s transitional government and its Islamist rivals met face to face behind closed doors Sunday for key talks in the Sudanese capital on political, security and economic issues. The talks — aimed at steering Somalia away from anarchic violence and toward peace and stability — revolve around a June agreement to discuss political, security, social and economic issues as well as reconstruction, according to a copy of the agenda obtained by The Associated Press. Somali parliament speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden was seen leading delegates from the U.N.-backed Somali government into the talks with Islamic courts representatives led by Ibrahim Hassan Adow, the group’s foreign affairs chief.
Negotiators have said they hope to discuss Cabinet positions for the Islamists and seats in Parliament as well as the transitional charter in talks that are expected to last several days.
The paper went on by saying:
Aden and Adow made no statements Sunday before going into the meeting but reaffirmed Saturday that they are committed to peace. Adow warned, however, that foreign interference in Somalia would be “a recipe for the renewal of civil war,” alluding to reports that Ethiopian troops had taken up position in three Somali towns.
As I have argued endless times in the past, I do not really understand the point of wasting time talking with the failed TFG and its Ethiopian Viceroy; Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf Axmed! Now, what will Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf offer to the ICU or to the Somali people in return for allowing him to continuing as a head of state? The answer to the question is simply NOTHING! Yes, I am aware of the fact that the Colonel has threatened to help full Ethiopian invasion of Somalia if he is asked to leave power and go home to Addis Abba. However, I do not think that there is anyone in Somalia today who is taking that threat very seriously other than the Colonel himself!
Having said that, I think, it is wise of the ICU leaders to show that they mean peace and that they are willing to talk to anyone in order to end the tragic political conflict in our beloved country. Nonetheless, no one should be under any illusion about the outcome of the inane talks in Sudan. It is just a farce!
Rupert Murdoch’s FOX News reports:
Top African military officials are studying a proposal to send a 3,500-strong peace force by October to Somalia, where an internationally recognized government appears increasingly weak in comparison to and its fundamentalist Islamic rivals. Officials said Thursday that four battalions, made up of Ugandan and Sudanese troops, will be trained in Kenya before being deployed in an initial phase to the conflict-ridden country, African military experts told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak to the media.
I think it is a huge political mistake to bring unwelcome African foreign troops into Somalia. Indeed, it will do more harm than good. Col. Cabdullaahi Yuusuf and the TFG cannot and should not be forced into the throats of the Somali people. The fact is that the overwhelming majority of the Somalia people refused to accept the legitimacy of the failed TFG.
Many people including myself have argued endlessly in the past that the TFG could function as a transitional government that could potentially pave the way for a more permanent political settlement for Somalia. Well, we were wrong and as it turned out the people of Somalia knew what is good for them better than any one else!
Now, let me tell you why I believe the deployment of foreign troops into Somalia is very bad idea. First, neither Kenya nor Ethiopia is an honest peace broker that cares about the well being of the Somali people and Somalia. On the contrary, the fact is that neither Kenya nor Ethiopia want emergence of strong and united Somalia. They want fragmented, weak, and disintegrated Somalia surrounded by strong Christian countries with Western political, economic and military support. The reason is that both countries annexed Somali regions illegally and they are afraid that strong future Somali government will revive Somali Nationalism and the noble idea of Greater Somalia including NFD and Western Somalia (Ogaden). I do believe that one of the reasons why the Somali peace process has failed thus far is the fact that both Kenya and Ethiopian were on the driver’s seat. In my opinion, the Somali political conflict need more honest peace brokers, preferably from the Arab and Islamic countries!
Second, the TFG is no more as it collapsed under its weight with cabinet ministers and federal MP’s deserting everyday by their dozens. The question is why would any body care to protect disgraced bunch of warlords, murderers and tribal chiefs with myopic political agenda that are doing nothing other than continuing endless political bickering among themselves? Democracy dictates the supremacy of the political will of the people. And the political will of the Somali people seems to be somewhere else at the moment!
Third, the Somali people will not like Ethiopian or Kenyan troops patrolling their towns and villages imposing illegitimate rulers that are protecting foreign interests that are detrimental to the well being of Somali Nation as a whole. Needless to say, any troops from those countries will most likely aggravate current political conflict in Somalia. As result, the security situation in the country will worsen!
Why put more gasoline on flaming fire?
Bottom-line: there is no rational argument for deploying foreign troops from Africa into Somalia!
The Irin News reported yesterday that:
After initially refusing to take part in peace negotiations, Somalia’s transitional government and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which controls the capital Mogadishu, have agreed to resume talks in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, officials said. “We have decided to participate in the talks in the interest of the people,” Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the UIC chairman, said on Tuesday. The two sides announced their participation after meeting a Kenyan delegation to the country, led by Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula, on Monday.
Personally, I do not understand what difference a “talk†between the collapsed TFG and the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) will make? I mean, the ICU control the most strategic parts of the country including Mogadishu and they seem to be advancing politically and militarily with an amazing speed. Meanwhile, the powerless TFG is disintegrating everyday with a serious and widening political gap between Cali Geedi and Col. Cabdullahi Yusuf Axmed. More importantly, neither Cali Geedi nor Col. Cabdullahi Yusuf Axmed has done anything tangible for the Somali people since they came to power almost two years ago. The fact is that Col. Cabdullahi Yusuf Axmed was busy building tribal government of his own appointing former taxi drivers and waiters as ministers while Cali Geedi was unable to understand what his role as a prime Minister was really all about!
In this scenario, there is no political incentive for the ICU to even contemplate talking with the failed TFG. Without a doubt, they are the victorious party in this political and military chess game. Hence, they do not need the TFG at all. However, some have argued that the “Western†powers could isolate them if they succeed to take over the entire country and as a result incapacitate any future government by ICU. Therefore, the ICU should try to talk to the TFG in order to reach power sharing agreement that could potentially pave the way for a coalition government.
I do not believe that this is an argument worth any consideration at all. There are several reasons for my out right rejection of this line of argument. First, neither Cali Geedi nor Col. Cabdullaahi Yuusuf is popular with the West. Second, as I argued before, The ICU made several important political signals indicating that they were willing to address U.S. security concerns in Somalia. Indeed, the initial U.S. policy regarding the ICU did not seem hostile at all. However, the fact that Sheikh Dahir Aways is appointed to very prominent and politically powerful position complicates the matter somewhat. Third, the overwhelming majority of the Somali people are at the moment with the ICU politically and militarily if need be.
In short, the ICU is increasing looking like the legitimate power in Somalia while the TFG is seen by the fast majority of the Somali people as bunch of murderers, warlords and tribal chiefs bickering endlessly among themselves with NO one around to listen them.
Can any sane person tell me why the ICU would waste time talking with those folks? They must push on and liberate the rest of the country including the northern and eastern regions!
Click here to view the full dispatch on Irin News.
The Reuters News Agency reports:
Somalia’s interim cabinet has been dissolved and a new one will be appointed within a week, President Abdullahi Yusuf said on Monday. “The bloated cabinet of (Prime Minister) Ali Mohamed Gedi’s government did not do anything during its tenure,â€Yusuf told parliament. “From today onwards, the government has been dissolved, only the prime minister will remainâ€
Well, this should not surprise anyone at all. The TFG collapsed long time ago and Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf has been trying hard to resuscitate a lifeless government that nobody really cares about. He has also been trying hard to distance himself from Cali Geedi and the rest of failed cabinet in a futile attempt to save himself from eminent political onslaught from the Somali Islamic Courts’ Union. I do not believe that Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf will be able to fool anyone other than himself!
Cabdullaahi Yuusuf had amble opportunities to find lasting political solutions to Somalia’s tragic civil war. The fact is that he failed and he failed miserably on everyone’s eyes! Hence, he is part of Somalia’s biggest problems not part of the solution as he mistakenly believes to be. Therefore, Somalia will be better of if he goes to where he really belongs; Addis Abba! His biggest political aspiration seems to have been to be an Ethiopian Viceroy in Somalia and he did indeed succeed doing that to some extend even though it may not have been long enough for him.
As I have written many times on this page, there is no viable alternative to the rule of the Islamic Courts Union! They must be given a chance to show what they are capable of doing! They succeeded to clean Mogadishu from the tyrany of warlordism. I am sure they will be able to clean the rest of the country including the northern and easter regions!
Click here to view the full dispatch on Reuters.
The Eritrea Daily Newspaper (Online Edition) reports:
Twelve more ministers walked away from the Western-backed weak interim government of Somalia Tuesday, raising fears of imminent collapse of the government, said reports from the area. Minister of Minerals and Water Mohamud Salad Nur and three other assistant ministers announced their resignation less than a week after 18 senior officials also quit, dealing a blow to the fragile interim government. Eight more ministers and assistant ministers later resigned after Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi called for peace talks with rival Islamists, scheduled for this week, to be postponed. “We had no option but to resign because we believe if the talks are postponed again it will affect the reconciliation efforts,” Minister of Fisheries and Ocean Resources Hassan Abshir Farah told Reuters. “Gedi’s government is unpopular among most members of parliament and its work plans will not be accepted by the national assembly,” Water and Mineral Resources Minister Muhamoud Salat Nur told reporters Tuesday.
Let’s face it; there is no viable alternative to the Islamic Courts Union. Hence, they must be allowed to take over the executive branch of the government. The Federal parliament should stay for the time being as a transitional body while the ICU consolidates the control of the country including the northern and eastern regions. Col. Cabdullaahi Yuusuf should go where he belongs; Adis Ababa! Cali Geedi can be allowed to stay in the country and work on animal “behindsâ€.
However, both of them should stand trial for treason once peace is restored through out our beloved country! Anyone who dares to betray the Somali Nation should not go unpunished! Period!
Click here to view the full report on Eritrea Daily.
Mohamed Olad Hassan of the Associated Press reports:
Somalia’s virtually powerless government was unravelling as a fifth of its cabinet resigned in disgust and the administration’s Islamic rivals took over the presidential palace in the capital of Mogadishu. Eighteen key ministers in the 102-member cabinet said on Thursday their government had failed to bring peace to this chaotic African nation as it emerged from 15 years of anarchy. The leadership had no power outside its base in Baidoa, 250km from the capital. According to a letter of resignation issued by the MPs: “We have seen that the government can’t carry out national reconciliation and development.†The MPs included the ministers for domestic co-operation and for planning and international relations.
The MPs has a good point! The TFG has failed. It must disband ASAP! The warlords must be ejected from the transitional parliament.
Click here to view the full dispatch on the South African News 24.
Alisha Ryu of the Voice of America sent a dispatch from Mogadishu and said:
Nineteen Cabinet ministers in Somalia’s fragile secular interim government in Baidoa resigned Thursday, possibly in an attempt to facilitate a power-sharing deal with rival Islamists. Meanwhile, the Islamists strengthened their grip on power, accepting the peaceful surrender of its last rival secular militia in Mogadishu. The list of those who resigned from Somalia’s U.N.-backed but powerless Transitional Federal Government includes seven ministers, seven assistant ministers, and four state ministers. In a joint letter, the ministers complained that the government lacked transparency and accountability and its leaders had failed to work toward national reconciliation and development since the interim body was formed 19 months ago.
If true this is a courageous act of patriotism. As I wrote before, no self respecting Somali parliamentarian should operation under Ethiopian colonial rule. The TFG must disband as soon as possible so that a care taker government can be installed.
Kuwaiti Times reports:
A mystery cargo plane that landed in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu yesterday has triggered accusations from the interim government that it was carrying weapons from Eritrea to support rival Islamists. In only the second arrival of a plane to Mogadishu’s old international airport since Islamists re-opened it days ago, residents reported seeing a medium-sized aircraft with no recognizable identity land and unload large boxes. “Eritrea has brought to Mogadishu by airplane weapons to support the Islamists,” Somalia’s deputy information minister Salad Ali Jelle told reporters from Baidoa, the provincial base of the fragile transitional government. Islamists blocked the area near the airport to stop residents from finding out about the plane, believed to be carrying guns and explosives, the official said, citing residents’ accounts as his evidence.
The last thing Somalia needs is more arms. We have enough of them!
Click here to view the full report.
David Gollust of VOA writes:
The Bush administration is again urging the main parties in the Somalia conflict to commit to dialogue for a unity government, and it is calling on Somalia’s neighbors to avoid any actions that might complicate those efforts. The U.S. appeal followed reports Wednesday that a Kazakh cargo plane carrying arms from Eritrea for Islamic militants had arrived in the Somali capital Mogadishu, and news accounts last week that Ethiopia had sent troops to shore up the country’s transitional government based in Baidoa. Both Eritrea and Ethiopia have denied intervening in the long-running Somali conflict and officials here say they cannot verify the news reports. However, the State Department is taking the accounts seriously. At a news briefing, State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said it is important that Somalia’s neighbors avoid any actions that would make the political reconciliation process in Somalia more difficult than it already is.
To me the Bush Administrations foreign policy regarding the Somali conflict is at best incoherent and it lacks strategic focus.
Mohamed Sheikh Nor of the Associated Press writes:
A mysterious Russian-built cargo plane believed to be loaded with weapons landed in this capital Wednesday, setting off a fresh round of allegations that Somalia has become a proxy battleground for its neighbors Eritrea and Ethiopia. The United States and other Western powers have cautioned outsiders against meddling in Somalia, which has no single ruling authority and can be manipulated by anyone with money and guns. But there’s little sign the warning has been heeded. Somalia’s virtually powerless government charged on Wednesday that the Ilyushin-76, only the second flight to land at Mogadishu International Airport in a decade was packed with land mines, bombs and guns. It said the shipment had come from Eritrea, which supports the Islamic militia that has seized the capital along with most of southern Somalia.
It looks that, detrimental to the Somali people, that history is repeating it self. Somalia was a battle ground for ideologically based proxy wars during the Cold War era! And now what have we got? Somalia as a new frontline on the “War on Terror†and Ethiopian/Eritrean proxy wars? Can a country be so unlucky like Somalia?
Click here to view the full dispatch on the Houston Chronicle.
Following are extracts from the U.S. State Department’s daily briefing.
July 26th 2006. 12:55 p.m. DTE
TRANSCRIPT:
MR. CASEY: Okay. Afternoon, everybody. Welcome to the State Department. Don’t have any statements or announcements to start you out with, so let’s go right to your questions.
QUESTION: Let’s try something that isn’t Iraq or Lebanon. The Somalia Government, which is pretty much, quite weak, is reporting the cargo plane landing with weapons that suspect it’ll be for Islamic militants. That situation doesn’t seem to be calming down; it’s getting more precarious. Does the State Department have a view? Is this a new battleground for Islamic militants? (more…)
The Pan-Arab Al Jazeera Television Network reports:
The leader of Somalia’s Islamist movement has rejected peace talks just hours after the country’s interim government agreed to meet in Sudan. Shaikh Hassan Dahir Aweys said the presence of Ethiopian troops sent to reinforce Somalia’s government had ruined any chance for peace. Aweys said: “Until Ethiopian troops leave Somali soil, we will never negotiate with the government.†Earlier on Tuesday, the government had agreed to attend unconditional peace talks in Khartoum.
This is a very dangerous move!
After this, the TFG becomes completely irrelevant unless of course Cabdullaahi Yuusuf asks the Ethiopians to complete their invasion through out the entire country. An impossible task if you ask me.
It is so sad to see the demise of the TFG so soon. So much time and resources were invested on its creation. However, both Cabdullaahi Yuusuf and Cali Geedi have no vision to lead the country as they could not see beyond myopic tribalist interests!
Shariif Xasan should dissolve the federal parliament as soon as possible and tell them to go home for now! A self respecting Somali parliamentarian cannot and should operate under Ethiopian occupation! Alternatively, the parliament could negotiate a peace deal the with Somali Union of Islamic Courts with the involvement of the TFG and then open the old parliament building in Mogadishu as an operational base. I am this could work well for Somalia and its people.
Bottom-line is that the TFG has failed. Hence, we must find an alternative way to govern the country!
Click here to view the full dispatch on Al Jazeera.
The leader of the Somali Union of Islamic Courts was quoted as saying:
We do not negotiate with a Government which is being helped by the enemy of Somalia.
I do not believe this is a wise move!
There should always be an open channel for a political talk between the opposing factions of the Somali bloody conflict. After all, the lives of millions of Somalis are on the line. Indeed, the future of the entire Somali Nation is at stake. Hence, we must look beyond personal difference and work for the common good of our people. Sheekh Sharif Axmed looked like a cool-headed and reasonable man and he must maintain that image by ordering his troops to move out of Bay region. He must also ask his delegates in Khartoum to resume talks with their TFG counterparts.
It goes without saying that the TFG must ask foreign invaders to leave Somali territories they captured and leave Somalia for Somalis! President Cabdullaahi Yuusuf must know that legitimate political power is something that must be earned through the collective will of the Somali people. He must stop acting like an Ethiopian viceroy! He is the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia including Western Somalia (Ogaden) which is under Ethiopian occupation!
Paul Harris of the Observer newspaper in London writes:
Somalia was edging closer to full-scale war last night as Ethiopian troops moved into a second Somali town, potentially bringing them into conflict with an Islamic militia that has taken over the capital, Mogadishu, and is seeking to spread its influence over the rest of the country. Eyewitnesses in Waajid said that about 200 Ethiopian troops had taken over the airstrip in the town yesterday morning. That follows moves last Thursday which saw Ethiopian troops take up positions in the town of Baidoa to back up Somalia’s beleaguered interim government, which is based there.
The Reuters news agency reports:
Arab League diplomats trying to reconcile Somalia’s transitional government with the Islamic leaders who control Mogadishu met representives from both sides in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on Thursday, but face-to-face discussions between the two parties were yet to take place, a member of one of the delegations said. Shaykh Bashir Adow, a member of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) delegation, told IRIN that both groups were also scheduled to meet Sudan’s President Umar el-Bashir later on Thursday. “We have had no a face-to-face meeting the TFG (Transitional Federal Government] delegation, but I expect that will happen soon,†he said. Somalia’s interim President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was leading the TFG delegation, which also included Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Gedi and speaker of the transitional parliament Sharif Hassan Shaykh Aden.
The Arab League and all Arab countries as well as Organization of Islamic States must intervene. They must, first and foremost condemn Ethiopian aggression on Somalia and its people. In short, Somalia must not be left alone for the Ethiopian wolves to feed!
The Ugandese New Vision newspaper says in an editorial:
Ethiopian troops are reported to have entered the Somali town of Baidoa as tensions continue to rise in the Horn of Africa. Though the Addis Ababa government has denied it, various reports indicate that they crossed the border into the city where the Transitional Government is based. The interim Prime Minister has, in the meantime, accused another neighbour, Eritrea, of arming the local forces. Somalia is in chaos again after a new force, the Council of Islamic Courts, took control of the capital Mogadishu, flushing out the warlords who had partitioned the country out among themselves since President Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991.
The paper went on by saying:
Now the equation has changed, with the new forces gaining ground all the time and the Ethiopians intervening. The African Union must act expeditiously to defuse a potentially disastrous powder keg. The AU must take a position on Ethiopia’s role; it must work towards reconciling the various local forces. It would be shameful for Somalia to lurch from one form of instability to another as Africa just watches.
Good talk! However, the problem is the fact that the AU is a dysfunctional organization run by depots and dictators!
Click here to view the full editorial column on New Vision.
The Reuters’News Agency reports:
Somalia’s Islamists refused talks with the government on Saturday, as witnesses said Ethiopia deployed more troops over the border to defend the government’s provincial base against an Islamist advance. A second round of talks had been scheduled to take place in the Sudanese capital Khartoum in a bid to stop an increasingly belligerent standoff between the two sides from spiraling into war. “We do not negotiate with a government which is being helped by the enemy of Somalia.†senior Islamist leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed said in a letter to Islamist delegates to the talks.
Sheekh Sharif Axmed and his group must not walkout from the negotiation scheduled to take place in Khartoum. Somalia does not need another bloody civil war that could take innocent civilian lives! Everyone must do everything they can to avert war. More importantly, the TFG must realize that it cannot achieve political legitimacy by allowing foreign invasion into the country. Indeed, if President Cabdullaahi Yuusuf and his government allows Ethiopian takeover of Somalia. They will be seen as traitors and rightly so! Hence, they must tell their Ethiopians allies to stay out of Somali territory.
Click here to view the full dispatch.
Dr. Ermias Abebe of Nazret.com writes:
The TPLF led EPRDF government of Ethiopia has, today? According to the BBC front page news, sent its army contingents unprovoked into the territory of Somalia. This is a critical step that will most probably have very detrimental consequences to peace within Ethiopia and stability in the entire Horn of Africa. Ethiopians, first and foremost, as well as Kenyans and other peoples of the region should be resolute in condemning this aggression if they want the region not to be the scenery of Islam-Christian conflict with possibly catastrophic outcomes of historic proportions reminiscent of the Gran Mohamed period in the 15th Century!
I agree with Mr. Abebe that the long-term strategic security interests of Ethiopia is harmed by this unprovoked assault on Somalia and its people.
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Prensa Latina Reports:
Somalia’s Islamic Supreme Council declared a Holly War on Ethiopia’s troops whom the witnesses claim entered Somalia to protect the fragile transitional government. The incursion in neighboring territory -that already occurred in 1993 and 1996- involves Addis Abeba in Somali domestic affairs that grow complex. The Ethiopian troops arrived on 100 trucks and deployed at six points in Baidoa, seat of the government pro tempore, at other three areas and on the road from Baidoa to Mogadiscio. Both Ethiopia and the government pro tempore denied the foreign troops’ presence, assured Sharif Sheik Ahmed, member of the Council board on a radio broadcast. Ethiopia’s decision is owed to the presence in Baidoa of Supreme Council militias and its interest to avoid a Muslim government from settling in at its southern border.
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