Islamists militias renew fighting in central Somalia

January 11, 2009 (MOGADISHU) — More than twenty people were killed and fifty wounded following the renewal of fighting between two Islamists groups in central Somalia.

The fighting erupted on December 27 for the first time between hardline Al Shebab militia and another local militia, Ahlu-sunah Wal-jamea, in the town of Guriel, 370 km north of Mogadishu, over the control of the area.

The Somali Islamists, who control most of central and southern Somalia, are divided over clans and doctrinal orientations. One faction, led by Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, has signed a peace deal with the U.N.-backed government but other factions, including al-Shabab, have continued to fight.

At least 25 people mostly fighters were killed as result of fierce fighting between the two Islamists militias on Sunday in Guriel, a trading town in central Somalia. It is considered as the heaviest clash between the two parties. The 27 December battle left 12 fighters dead.

The local group accused Al-Shebab of harassing their members and destroying the tomb of revered sheiks.

With the withdrawal of some 3,000 troops from Ethiopia after propping up the government for two years, Western diplomats hope the Islamist insurgency will fracture, and marginalize the hardline Al Shebab fighters who are imposing a strict version of Islamic law traditionally shunned by Somalis.

Washington says Al-Shebab have close ties to Al-Qaeda terror group of Osama bin Laden.

Somalia has been without an effective government since 1991 when the regime of Mohamed Siad Barre was toppled, following which the country was plunged into anarchy and factional violence. Conflict and famine have killed hundreds of thousands of Somalis.

(ST)