AU troops decision pleases radicals
What you need to know:
Why group is Powerful
- Power: Al Shabaab, which means “Youth” in Arabic, is an al Qaeda-inspired militant group.
- Early success: Al Shabaab’s hardline militia pushed US-backed warlords out of Mogadishu in June 2006 and ruled for six months before Somali and Ethiopian forces ousted them.
- Support: Government says fighters have joined group from Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Gulf region.
MOGADISHU, Thursday
Sheikh Ali Mohamoud Raghe alias Sheikh Ali Dhere, the spokesman of al Shabaab, the radical Islamist group vehemently opposing the Transitional Federal Government in Somalia, sneered at the outcome of the African Union Summit in Kampala, Uganda.
He said that the Somali government and its supporters (the peacekeepers serving the African Union Mission in Somalia – Amisom) failed to get what they asked for.
“In the face of pressure, the puppet government and its supporters begged for massive military support,” said Sheikh Ali Dhere.
“They only got a ‘promise’ of small increase in the number of soldiers serving mercenary purposes,” he added.
The cleric said that the African leaders left the venue without fully responding to the pleas addressed at them.
“They only got the promise of 2,000 soldiers coming, followed by another 2000,” remarked Sheikh Ali Dhere.
He added that such increase will not help the beleaguered AU mission here (in Somalia).
Once again, the sheikh warned those countries contemplating sending troops to learn from what happened to those who have been in Mogadishu before them.
“If you send your youth (peacekeepers), they are going to meet the same deadly fate,” cautioned the clergyman.
Sheikh Ali Dhere accused the peacekeepers serving Amisom of annihilating the Muslim Somali people.
He added that further increase in numbers (of peacekeepers) will only worsen the plight of the people here.
“They always say that they are here for peacekeeping,” said the spokesman. “All they are doing is shelling the people.”
“If the mercenaries (peacekeepers) are harming our people, they should know that their people will not rest in total comfort,” threatened the Al-Shabaab spokesman.
The sheikh’s final remarks appear like adding insult to an injury. They reminded about the twin blasts Al-Shabaab claimed to have carried out in Kampala, Uganda on 11th of July, killing 76 people while being entertained by watching the final game of the World Cup.
Al-Shabaab’s statement is the opposite of the Somali government’s reaction to the outcome of the AU Summit.
Abdulkadir Mohamoud Walayo, the spokesman of the Somali government, said on Wednesday that the AU’s move to increase its force was crucial in improving security in war-torn Somalia and the entire region
