From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Sun Feb 07 2010 - 10:04:21 EST
Somalia: Mogadishu residents flee planned govt offensive
Feb 7, 2010 - 12:42:05 PM
Hundreds of residents have started fleeing the embattled Somali capital of
Mogadishu as government forces and hard-line militant fighters prepare for
an all out war.
The massive exodus was witnessed in the areas under the control of the
militants where residents expressed great fear over the imminent battle
between the two sides.
"We are fleeing from Huriwa area, which we lived in since the withdrawal of
Ethiopian troops early last year. We heard that the area is under attack and
preparing to leave for the central parts" said a lady who added that at
least 10 families have left the area on Saturday.
The areas which saw massive exodus include the northern districts such as
Hodan, Wardhigley and Yaqshid, which are largely under the control of the
militants.
Al-Shabaab has deployed thousands of its fighters in the neighborhoods in
preparation for the planned government offensives.
Meanwhile, Somalia's pro-government armed group Ahlu Sunnah Wal-Jamaa
announced that it is planning to carry out attacks on the southern region of
Gedo in the coming days.
Sheikh Abdirahman Al-Azhar said the plan is to oust Hizbul Islam and
Al-Shabaab from the region, adding that recent attack on border town of
Balad Hawa was test run to determine the military capacity of their rivals.
"We must take the control of the region and liberate the people. The recent
attack on Balad Hawa was a test. We discovered the ability of our enemy," he
said.
Al-Azhari however refutes reports that his group is getting backings from
Ethiopia, saying the group's fighters are well-trained and equipped.
"We don't receive any help from neighbours, Kenya and Ethiopia, which we can
cross their borders whenever we want. We are getting the backing of the
residents who welcome our initiatives," he noted.
His sentiments come after government officials based in Dolow, a Somali
border town near Ethiopia vowed to recapture the southern regions of Jubba
from Al-Shabaab.
Somalia has been without an effective central government since 1991 when
warlords toppled the regime of President Mohammed Siad Bare.
SOMALIA: Islamist insurgents pour into Mogadishu
07/0/2010
<http://somalilandpress.com/11478/somalia-islamist-insurgents-pour-into-moga
dishu/>
<http://somalilandpress.com/11478/somalia-islamist-insurgents-pour-into-moga
dishu/> SOMALIA: Islamist insurgents pour into Mogadishu thumbnail
<http://somalilandpress.com/11478/somalia-islamist-insurgents-pour-into-moga
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NAIROBI (Somalilandpress) - An influx of fighters from Islamist insurgents
have filled the streets of the capital of the wartorn nation of Somalia as
the government announces fresh offensive against Islamist rebel, residents
and witnesses told Somalilandpress.
A local journalist has said on conditions of anonymity that heavily armed
Al-Shabab fighters arriving from the town of Baidoa have filled the streets
of Mogadishu on Friday and Saturday in an attempt to hold their positions.
The journalist also said hundreds of Somali government forces have been
deployed into the front line areas currently under control of Islamist
insurgents.
Somali president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has confirmed that his government was
ready to mount a fresh offensive against the rebel mostly in the capital
Mogadishu.
He added that his troops were ready to take strategic towns in southern
Somalia including Baidoa, Kismayu and Merka, curently under the control of
Al-Shabaab and Hisbul-Islam.
A large number of African Union troops have approached Merka and Baraawe
ports assisting the Somali government, Press TV based in Iran reported.
There are 5000 AU troops in the country mainly from Uganda and Burundi, the
Somali government has repeatedly requested at least 8000 in order to
flash-out the rebels.
The reporter has confirmed to Somalilandpress that civilians have fled their
homes in Mogadishu's southern districts of Hodan, Wardhigley and Howl-Wadag.
Some of the civilians are reported to have fled to Elsha, 15 Km (9 miles)
southwest of Mogadishu where at least one-quarter of a million Somalis are
already based, displaced by the war.
Al-Shabab hardliners, who openly admitted their links with Al-Qaeda control
most of southern Somalia while the weak Somali government backed by Western
countries are confined to small pockets of the country.
The fighting in Somalia has killed over 19,000 Somalis since 2007 and has
further displaced 1.5 million people inside the country while another
560,000 civilians have registered as refugees in neighboring countries.
Somalia is one of the world's worst humanitarian emergencies and was ranked
the most corrupted country in 2009.
The Horn of Africa nation has not had an effective government since warlords
overthrew longtime dictator Maj. General Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwCVrkpQD7s
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwCVrkpQD7s&feature=player_embedded#>
&feature=player_embedded#
Recruits to Somalia's hard-line Al Shabaab rebel group have been told that
the organisation is ready to send reinforcements to Al Qaeda in Yemen.
Somalia's hardline Islamist rebel group Al Shabaab said yesterday it was
ready to send reinforcements to Al Qaeda in Yemen should the United States
carry out retaliatory strikes and urged other faithful to follow.
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