Somalia’s decades of war continues with the formerly defeated Islamist movement about to stage its comeback.
This is probably a good thing for Somalia; many press accounts described life following the Ethiopian invasion as being characterised by a massive break down in law and order and security (as well as the massive spike in Piracy)
AFP: Mogadishu braces for final insurgent assault
MOGADISHU (AFP) — Somalia’s president was holed up in his compound and residents were fleeing Mogadishu on Thursday, as hardline Islamist insurgents prepared their bid to seize power.
Radical opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys urged his former Islamist ally President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed to leave office, as warring factions regrouped ahead of an expected final battle.
Insurgents have been redeploying forces from across the country to launch an unprecedented offensive, while Ugandan and Burundian African Union peacekeepers held the fort for Sharif’s beleaguered administration.
“We know they have deployed many militants and are getting ready for their final attack but they will never win,” Somali government security officer Colonel Ahmed Dahir told AFP in Mogadishu.
Sharif, who was elected Somalia’s president in January and received international backing, has not been able to build up his own security forces and his authority appeared to hang by a thread after days of fighting in the capital that killed dozens and wounded hundreds.
Government forces backed by AU peacekeepers controlled nothing in the capital but the p