| Submit your comments on this article |
| Africa Horn |
| Islamist fighters take over security in Mogadishu |
| 2009-02-20 |
| Islamist fighters loyal to Somalia's new President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmad took control Thursday of key roadblocks in Mogadishu as part of a security plan for the war-torn capital, officials said. The fighters took the checkpoints in southern Mogadishu that were previously controlled by government forces. A UN-brokered peace deal between the Somali transitional government and a moderate Islamist opposition saw Ahmad elected president on January 31. The deal also calls for the formation of joint security units with the government troops. "Our Islamic Courts Union forces took control of the main transitional government positions including important checkpoints in southern Mogadishu," said Abdirahin Ise Ado, an Islamist spokesman. "We will ensure the security of the town," he told reporters. Police spokesman Abdullahi Hassan Barise confirmed the move, saying local authorities opted to remove police forces from the checkpoints in order to deploy Islamist forces. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 *giggle* |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2009-02-20 20:19 |
| #1 There's a new Sharif in town. |
| Posted by: Rednek Jim 2009-02-20 12:18 |