|
NAIROBI, September 5, 2009 –
Somalia has experienced conflict since 1991 when the late President
Mohamed Siyad Barre's government was overthrown by opposition forces. Up
to 2006, the fighting was largely between clan-based warlords clashing
over territory and resources. In the process, one of the worst
humanitarian crises in the world was created.
In 2006, Islamic groups in Mogadishu fought fierce battles against a
combined force of the warlords and defeated them. The groups, known as
the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), initially enjoyed considerable
civilian and business support from a community fed up with insecurity in
areas controlled by the warlords, including the capital.
The UIC ranks contained both radical elements, in the form of Al-Shabab,
and moderate members, but the radicals were a small minority. From
June-December 2006, it brought unprecedented calm to Mogadishu and other
areas of south and central Somalia.
In December 2006, Ethiopian forces, with backing from the United States
- which regarded the UIC as a terrorist organization - entered Somalia
and installed the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu,
where it had hardly made its presence felt since coming into being in
2004 after two years of talks in Kenya.
Subsequently, fierce fighting continued between UIC remnants, including
Al-Shabab and their supporters, and the combined forces of Ethiopia and
the TFG. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were forced to flee their
homes.
In December 2008, the Ethiopians withdrew from Somalia, leaving a small
African Union (AMISOM) force to defend the government.
In January 2009, a peace deal signed in Djibouti between the UN-backed
TFG and a faction of the opposition, the Alliance for the Re-liberation
of Somalia (ARS) saw the creation of a parliament which elected Sheikh
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed as president of the TFG. The former UIC chairman was
considered by many as a moderate Islamist.
Many Somalis hoped Ahmed’s election and the departure of Ethiopian
troops would end the violence and launch a new era of peace in the
country. They were wrong.
Ahmed’s government was opposed by a breakaway group from his own ARS,
led by his former ally Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys. Aweys, who was based
in Asmara, Eritrea, returned to Somalia and set up Hisbul-Islam (Party
of Islam).
The Djibouti peace deal was also opposed by Al-Shabab, which had long
split from the main UIC.
Whereas previous struggles for power in Somalia were fought along the
lines of the country's complex clan system, the current conflict is,
ostensibly at least, a war between groups with different interpretations
of Islam.
The protagonists
TFG forces comprise fighters who used to serve various warlords, former
members of the UIC, clan militia and Ethiopian-trained forces. These
disparate groups have weak central command and control, despite the
government’s efforts, so are rarely able to carry out a coordinated
attack. There have been incidents of fighting between the different
units.
The main threat to the TFG is posed by Al-Shabab. It is on a US terror
list and is accused of having links with Al-Qaeda. The group controls
much of southern and central Somalia, including parts of Mogadishu. Al-Shabab
is reportedly led by a shadowy figure who goes by the name of Abu Zubeyr.
His real name, according to Somali sources, is Ahmed Godane and he is
originally from secessionist Somaliland.
His main contact is through taped messages given to Somali radio
stations. The group's professed aim is to spread Islam across the globe.
The movement has been accused of kidnapping, assassinating government
officials and journalists, and other criminal activity.
While a keynote of Al-Shabab's official rhetoric is that clan
affiliation and geographic origin should play no part in governance, and
that any Somali should be able to serve as "amir", or leader, in any
part of the country, this policy does not appear to be followed in
central Somalia, where only locals are appointed amirs.
Al-Shabab views President Ahmed as a traitor to the Islamic cause and
has described him and his government as "Murtadiin" (apostates). It
believes in the strict application of Sharia law.
Like Al-Shabab, Hisbul-Islam is also fighting the TFG but is not known
to engage in kidnapping and assassinations. It also differs in outlook.
Hisbul-Islam is inward-looking and concerned with local rather than
international issues, according to Somali analysts. Aweys, its leader,
considers the Djibouti peace deal a betrayal. The group is reportedly
supported by Eritrea, a charge Eritrea consistently denies.
Hisbul-Islam insists it will stop fighting if all "foreign forces" leave
Somalia, including AMISOM troops (see below).
Ahlu Sunna Waljama is a Sufi sect, regarded as more moderate in its
interpretation of Islam than Al-Shabab. It joined the fighting in late
December 2008, dislodging Al-Shabab from the towns of Guri-Eil and
Dusamareb in Galgadud region. It now controls all of Galgadud in central
Somalia.
Ahlu Sunna Waljama has two branches. The first was formed by Sufi
clerics and enjoys support from Ethiopia. This branch is mainly
concentrated in central regions. The other is led by former warlords,
who apparently are using the name to reinvent themselves. This group is
mainly in the south around Gedo, Bay and Bakol regions. They have some
links to the TFG.
African forces
AMISOM, staffed mainly by troops from Uganda and Burundi, has been in
the country since 2007. In the past the force was confined to protecting
the president and prime minister and vital infrastructure, such as the
airport and port. In recent months its troops have been drawn into the
fighting as insurgents targeted them. Somalis have accused the force of
indiscriminate shelling when responding to attacks, a charge they deny.
The 5,000 or so AMISOM troops, supported by the US and UN, are
concentrated in Mogadishu.
Ethiopian troops
In January 2009, Ethiopia said it had completed the withdrawal of its
forces from Somalia. Since then there have been reports, denied by the
Ethiopians, of Ethiopian troops in parts of central Somalia. Local
sources in Beletweyne town told IRIN Ethiopian forces entered the town
on 28 August and are still there.
Source: IRIN, Sept 02, 2009
|
|
