Kwa mujibu wa wanaoshuhudia vita Somalia majeshi ya serikali ya yamefanikiwa kukidhibiti upya kituo cha polisi kilichokuwa mikononi mwa wapiganaji wa Kiisalamu mjini Mogadishu.
Kwa mujibu wa mashuhuda, majeshi ya serikali ya Somalia yamefanikiwa kurejesha mikononi mwao kituo cha polisi kilichokuwa kinashikiliwa na wanamgambo wa Kiislamu mjini Mogadishu.
Takriban watu watatu wameuawa katika mapigano yaliyotokea eneo la Yaqshid, lililokamatwa na wapiganaji wa Kiislamu mwezi mmoja uliopita.
Wakati huohuo maofisa kadha wa polisi wameuawa baada ya gari lao kukanyaga bomu lililotegwa barabarani kusini mwa Mogadishu.
Takriban watu 60,000 wamekimbia mapigano katika maeneo mbali mbali ya mji wa Mogadishu, ambapo watu wanaofikia 200 wameuawa.
Serikali ya muda ya Somalia inayotambuliwa na jumuia ya kimataifa, inadhibiti baadhi ya sehemu za mji wa Mogadishu na baadhi ya sehemu za nchi hiyo.
Wapiganaji wa Kiislamu wanamiliki sehemu kubwa ya kusini mwa Somalia.
Mwandishi wa BBC mjini Mogadishu Mohammed Olad Hassan amesema kukamatwa upya kwa kituo cha polisi na majeshi ya serikali ina maana itakuwa vigumu kwa wapiganaji wa Kiislamu kulinda maeneo mengine ya kaskazini mwa Mogadishu.
Mapigano ya hivi karibuni yametokea baada ya Rais Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed kuamuru kukabiliana vilivyo na wapiganaji wa kundi la al-Shabab.
Africa
Somalia: Rocky Road to Peace
Meron Tesfa Michael, March 25, 2003
Somali faction leaders Hussein Mohamed Aidid, Musa Sudi Yalhow and the Prime Minister of Transitional National Government Hassan Abshiir in Eldoret 31 October 2002.(Photo: AFP).
Peace talks involving hundreds of warlords are taking place for the 14th time since the collapse of the Somali state in 1991. The talks in Nairobi, Kenya, aimed at re-establishing a central government in the factionalized nation, have been dragging on for five months with little progress to date. Yet the current attempt at peace has generated more hope for a settlement than any of its predecessors, because of one significant factor: With Somalia now labeled as one of the world’s most likely havens for terrorists, the United States is taking an active interest.
The talks, which began in October 2002, have been troubled from the start. At the outset, hundreds showed up without invitations, and hotels threatened to evict delegates over unpaid bills. The talks themselves have been characterized as chaotic, with delegates criticized for turning the forum into a talking shop. Changing the venue from the Kenyan resort area of Eldoret to a college compound outside Nairobi didn’t help matters, as shouting matches, fistfights, and walkouts continued. While notorious Mogadishu warlords such as Musa Sudi Yalahow and Mohamed Qanyare Afrah boycotted the talks, others, frustrated by the conference’s slow progress, returned to Somalia. Meanwhile, interim agreements to cease hostilities have been violated repeatedly.
“The talks have been characterized by...the delegates' inability to agree on almost everything,” commented Adan Mohamed of Nairobi’s independent Daily Nation (March 7). Such a lack of cooperation cast a poor light on delegates’ commitment, wrote Mohamed. “There must be a lot of reasons why there is no progress, the obvious one being that there is actually no talking, just accusations, demands, stonewalling, and unwillingness on the part of most factions.”
The chaotic nature of the talks reflects conditions on the ground in Somalia. For the last 12 years, the country has had no national government, and has been controlled by heavily armed warlords. Observers say that all vestiges of the rule of government have disappeared amid constant fighting. Violence and discrimination against clans, minorities, and women are widespread. A fifth of the population has fled to refugee camps in neighboring countries and elsewhere around the world. Those who have stayed in Somalia have little access to healthcare or education.
The TNG is also feeling pressure to make the Kenya peace talks yield results, but it can do little other than hope for the best. In an interview with the U.N.’s Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), TNG foreign minister Yusuf Hassan Ibrahim said, “There are tremendous difficulties facing Somalia… factions, the spread of weapons, militia, armaments. All these are tremendous, formidable difficulties.” In such a climate, peace seems an elusive goal—however, Ibrahim concluded, “If this conference doesn't succeed and there is no other alternative, then Somalia will be doomed.”
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