War of words over Islamic Courts’ role

An international forum trying to reconcile rival political groups in Somalia has urged the Islamic movement to refrain from further expanding its authority by military means and instead engage the transitional government in dialogue.

The Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) took control of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, in early June and has since extended its authority in much of southern and central Somalia, challenging the authority of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which was set up in 2004 in a bid to restore law and order after 13 years without a national government.

The International Contact Group on Somalia (ICG), which met in Nairobi on Thursday, expressed concern over what it called "threats of militarisation of Somalia" and deplored violations of agreements reached during reconciliation talks in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, between the UIC and the TFG.

The two parties had, during the talks mediated by the League of Arab States, agreed to unite their forces and reconstitute the Somali national army and the national police force.

A third round of talks between the two groups is scheduled for Khartoum on 30 October and the ICG - which comprises Britain, Italy, Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Tanzania, the United States, the African Union, the European Union, the League of Arab States, the United Nations, as well as eastern Africa's Intergovernmental Authority on Development - strongly urged both parties to attend the meeting.

"The security framework to be agreed under Khartoum III should include operational provisions for military disengagement and demobilisation," the ICG said in a communiqué.

Despite calls for dialogue, however, Somalia's interim president, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, launched a scathing criticism of the UIC, saying its armed forces were led by a "jihadist wing ... under the banner of the black flag of the Taliban" and claimed that it was attempting to make Somalia a "safe [haven] for terrorism".

Yusuf urged the international community to help his government counter the threat posed by the Islamic movement and warned that his administration would have no choice but "to defend not only [ourselves but] also to liberate the masses under the ICU’s [UIC] oppressive occupation".

The UIC for its part dismissed Yusuf's allegations as "beneath contempt".

Ibrahim Hassan Adow, the head of the Foreign Affairs Department, who led the UIC delegation to the talks, told IRIN that although they were disappointed "we were not surprised by it.

It is a desperate attempt by a desperate man to garner sympathy and support."

Adow said such "malicious statements will not contribute to the reconciliation process. It is the same old cheap propaganda that our enemies have been propagating."

He said the international community should send observers "to see for themselves what is happening on the ground instead of depending on false and cheap propaganda".

Adow said, "Our aim has been and still is to restore law and order in our country."

Speaking to reporters after the ICG meeting, US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Fraser also criticised the UIC, saying its continued expansion was in contravention of agreements reached in Khartoum.

She said the TFG needed to be supported as the "legitimate mechanism for governance" in Somalia to prevent terrorists, who, she claimed, were already "residing" in the country, from entrenching themselves there.

Kenya's foreign minister, Raphael Tuju, said there was need for humanitarian help for the people of Somalia. "We believe that the international response to the problem in Somalia must put the issue of humanitarian intervention at the top of the agenda," he said.

The ICG also said it was committed to responding to the humanitarian needs of the people in that country.

Rivalry between the TFG and the UIC has heightened tensions in Somalia in recent months, forcing thousands of people to flee to Kenya.

An estimated 34,000 Somali refugees have arrived in Kenya since the beginning of 2006, with a dramatic rise in the number of newcomers in the past two months.

About 130,000 Somali refugees have been living in the Dadaab area of eastern Kenya since 1991.

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