Genesis of a lawless nation

Since the overthrow of Mohamed Siad Barre in early 1990s Somalia has been in ruins. Armed thugs and bandits roam the country, which had initially been ruled by murderous warlords.

The country then fell into the hands of Islamic Courts Union (ICU). In 2006, Ethiopian forces invaded Somalia with the support of a weak transitional government and ousted the ICU.

But the presence of the Ethiopians became highly unpopular and several other Islamist extremist groups emerged. Bloody battles ensued to oust the Ethiopians.

In January 2009, the Ethiopians pulled out of Somalia. Their withdrawal made way for a new US-backed Somali Federal Transitional Government led by former ICU leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed.

Early this year another Islamic extremist group, Al-Shabaab, which was initially an armed wing of ICU, emerged to challenge the transitional government. It has seized several towns outside Somali capital, Mogadishu.