... Harakat ash-Shabaab al-Mujahidin aka the Mujahideen Youth Movement. It was originally the youth movement of the Islamic Courts, now pretty much all of what's left of it. They are aligned with al-Qaeda but operate more like the Afghan or Pakistani Taliban...
group to help bring an end to the years-long conflict in the Horn of Africa nation.
"Through the years,Turkey, the only Moslem member in NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization....
, andSomaliahave maintained a pleasant relationship," Abdihakim Aynte, an independent Somali researcher, said.
He saidAnkarahas notable advantages in mediating between the Somali rivals to end the bloody conflict.
Turkeyhas spearheaded efforts to provide aid to millions of Somalis ravaged by the years-long conflict in their country.
Last year,Ankaracontributed $201 million to the humanitarian relief efforts to help Somalis affected by a severe drought in the Horn of Africa.
Many Somalis considerTurkeyas their only "true Moslem friend", citing a visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan during last year's drought and the resulting famine.
Besides sharing the same Islamic values,Turkeyis also viewed as a country that lacks local proxies or other incentives to meddle in the internal politics ofSomalia.