From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Sun May 24 2009 - 06:05:12 EDT
Insurgents in Mogadishu attack AU peacekeepers
Sun May 24, 2009 8:19am GMT
By Abdi Sheikh and Mohamed Ahmed
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Hardline Islamist insurgents in Somalia's capital
fired mortar bombs at the presidential palace and attacked African Union
peacekeepers on Saturday night at the end of a second day of heavy fighting.
Government forces and rebels blasted shells at each other in the afternoon
and fighters clashed in parts of Mogadishu. Two people were killed and 10
wounded near Bakara Market, an al Shabaab rebel stronghold. Fighting on
Friday killed at least 45.
A human rights group said many residents fled during a lull in the violence
on Saturday, joining 49,000 others who have fled the city during an upsurge
of violence over the past two weeks.
Neighbouring states and Western governments fear the Horn of Africa nation,
mired in civil war for 18 years, could become a haven for militants linked
to al Qaeda unless the new government of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed can
defeat them.
At night, heavy gunfire and explosions could still be heard.
"Opposition groups have attacked us with rocket-propelled grenades," a
senior Burundian officer told Reuters. "They are still firing at us and we
shall defend ourselves."
The African Union has some 4,300 peacekeepers from Burundi and Uganda in
Mogadishu to help protect key sites. Their mandate limits the force to
defending itself when attacked.
Islamist insurgents took up arms in 2007 to drive out Ethiopian troops
propping up a Western-backed government which failed to wield control over
much of Somalia.
Since the start of 2007, fighting has killed at least 17,700 civilians and
driven more than 1 million from their homes. About 3 million Somalis survive
on emergency food aid.
ERITREA RECALLS AU ENVOY
The Ethiopians withdrew at the start of 2009 and Ahmed was elected president
in neighbouring Djibouti in January. However, the insurgents have stepped up
attacks on the new administration and AU peacekeepers over the past few
weeks.
The hardline Al Shabaab, which Washington says has close ties to al Qaeda,
and Islamist guerrilla group Hizbul Islam have been spearheading attacks on
the capital and central Somalia.
Somalia's government has accused Eritrea of supporting al Shabaab fighters
with planeloads of weapons including AK-47 assault rifles and
rocket-propelled grenades.
The African Union (AU) stepped up pressure on Eritrea on Friday by calling
for U.N. sanctions, a no fly-zone and a sea blockade of Somalia to stem the
flow of weapons.
"(The United Nations Security Council should) impose sanctions against all
those foreign actors, both within and outside the region, especially
Eritrea, providing support to the armed groups," the 53-member AU said in a
statement.
Eritrea's president denies the allegation, saying U.S. agents are spreading
lies to blacken his government's name.
Eritrean Information Minister Ahmed Ali Abdu told Reuters the Horn of Africa
nation had recalled its ambassador to the African Union following the
statement. He denied a media report saying the country had suspended its AU
membership.
Until Friday, pro-government forces had not looked strong enough to break al
Shabaab's grip on parts of Mogadishu.
Last week's defection of a veteran warlord with hundreds of fighters may
have prompted Ahmed to order the new offensive.
But experts say pro-government forces would be hard-pushed to extend their
reach to distant provinces, increasing the risk of protracted fighting in a
country that has known little but violence and anarchy since its dictator
was ousted in 1991.
An important figure in any reconciliation would be hardline opposition
leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, who ran Mogadishu and much of southern
Somalia alongside Ahmed in late 2006.
But he told Reuters on Friday that fighting the Western-backed government
was a religious obligation and that the opposition forces would defeat the
administration soon.
C Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
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