Somali Al-Shebab capture new town

May 17, 2009 (ADDIS ABABA) — Somali Islamists captured today a key town in southern Somalia threatening the existence of the UN backed government which now controls small parts of the capital.

Al-Shebab fighters seized on Sunday the town of Jowhar, the homeland of the president Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, without encountering resistance as the pro-government militias fled their positions.

However reports say three people died in the clashes.

Jowhar is 90 km from Mogadishu and a strategic location linking it to the volatile central region.

A spokesperson for Al-Shebab says the group will continue fighting until the government collapses and African Union peacekeepers leave the country.

The hard-line group also said they sending more fighters to the central region to reinforce troops in Hiran and Galgadud.

Somali Security Minister Omar Hashi Aden said Al-Shebab fighters are supported by foreign countries. In the past he had accused Eritrea of arming the Islamist insurgency but Asmara dismissed the charge.

“They are fighting in Mogadishu, and central Somalia. They have also started a war in Jowhar. They are economically and militarily supported … it is not cheap to sustain fighting.”

Al Shebab and allied groups like Hizbul Islam control most of Mogadishu, dominate the regions of Lower Jubba, Middle Jubba, Lower Shabelle, Gedo, Bay, Bakool, and are fighting for control in Middle Shabelle, Hiran and Galgadud regions.

Hizbul Islam is an umbrella opposition group including militant leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, seen as a powerful figure among insurgents.

The government of President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has approved the implementation of Islamic law, or Shariah but the hardliners want to topple the moderate Islamist government saying the approved law is not sufficiently strict.

(ST)