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Thousands flee Mogadishu as war approaches
Rival militias are gearing up for new clashes to win control of the Somali capital, sending thousands of terrified people fleeing from their homes, Mogadishu residents said Wednesday.Gunmen loyal to Islamic courts and the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism (ARPCT) who fought pitched battles in the city last month have re-armed themselves for what residents fear may be all-out war, they said. "Some people are very much terrified and they are leaving their houses since most are sure violence will erupt," said Daudi Yakubu Mohamed, a taxi driver who has so far ferried 23 fleeing families from enclaves in southern Mogadishu. Businessman Ahmed Ismail Abukar said dozens of terrified families have fled the volatile Daynile district in southern Mogadishu to Hamerwein district in the central part of the city inhabited by less belligerent clans. "People are leaving their homes and taking refuge in relatively peaceful neighbourhoods that are not dominated by Islamic courts or the alliance," Abukar told AFP. Several hundred extended families, accounting for more than 2,000 people, have left their homes seeking safety as militiamen have deployed in various parts of the city, residents said. Arms dealers in Mogadishu's Bakara and Argentine markets said their stocks have been emptied in recent days as the two sides boost weapons and ammunition supplies in anticipation of major clashes. "The market is dry and demand is high," said one trader, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity. At least 52 people were killed and hundreds displaced in Mohgadishu in March when the two sides squared off in the bloodiest clashes since the country collapsed into anarchy with the 1991 ousting of strongman Mohamed Siad Barre. The ARPCT, seen by many here as a US-backed anti-Muslim instrument, was formed in February with the stated goal of battling the threat of terrorism posed by the alleged growing influence of Islamic extremists around Mogadishu. The city's powerful Islamic courts, which provide a semblance of stability in the parts of the city they control, deny US and alliance allegations that they are harboring Al-Qaeda operatives and training foreign fighters. Washington has refused to comment on claims of its direct involvement in Somalia but on Wednesday issued a statement through the US embassy in Nairobi appealing for calm in Mogadishu. "The United States calls upon all Somalis to work together to encourage restraint and calm in the city," the embassy said in its first public comments about Somalia in several months. "Provocations and fresh outbreaks of violence in Mogadishu can serve only the interests of extremist elements," it said, urging that all differences be resolved through dialogue and the support of Somalia's transitional government. On Tuesday, the prime minister of that government, Ali Mohamed Gedi, said he had struck a deal with the United States to patrol Somali territorial waters to curb rampant piracy and stem terrorist threats. But Washington later denied any such agreement existed, while acknowledging that the US and Somali government officials were discussing counter-terrorism and anti-piracy efforts. Posted by: Dan Darling 2006-04-20 |
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