Mogadishu ceasefire talks hit snag

Efforts to get a permanent ceasefire between rival militias in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, have hit a snag after one of the groups delayed sending emissaries to the venue of the talks, according to local sources on Wednesday.

The city had been the scene of heavy fighting between the militias from 22 to 26 March. More than 140 people were killed and 300 wounded, and thousands of families were displaced. The fighters have observed a temporary ceasefire since Sunday. "It has been holding" with no violations, said a local resident.

Talks to resolve the core causes of the conflict have been underway since Sunday in the north of the city, close to the epicentre of the fighting, with the mediators shuttling between the two sides, a source close to the talks said. The fighting in the city pitted militia loyal to businessman Abukar Umar Adani against those loyal to Bashir Raghe, a businessman and militia leader. Forces of the Alliance for Peace and the Fight Against International Terrorism, which comprises several Mogadishu-based faction leaders on Raghe's side, later joined the fighting as did Islamic court militias on Adani’s side.

"The Raghe side has been asking for more time to send its emissaries, and we are not sure what the problem is. But we have given them until today to come," a source said. "There is suspicion that they are buying time to reorganise for another round of fighting, but I hope that is not the case."

Another source dismissed any talk of a new round of fighting as "rumours". He said there had been "no indications that either side is preparing for war. Secondly, even if they wanted to, I don't believe they have the capacity to recover so quickly from last week," he said.

The mediators were confident that "the minor technical difficulties which have hampered progress should be resolved by the end of today [on Wednesday]," he said.