Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Mogadishu (Agenzia Fides) – Dozens have been killed and wounded following clashes between African peacekeeping forces in Somalia (AMISOM) and the rebel group “Harakat Al-shabab Mujahideen” and “Hizbul Islam” who attacked the area surrounding the Presidential Palace in the Somalian capital of Mogadishu yesterday, May 24.
According to several commentators, the assault was a show of force on the part of the rebels. Meanwhile, the President of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), Sheik Sharif Ahmed, is in Istanbul (Turkey) for the international conference on Somalia. The meeting, organized by the United Nations, is being attended by 55 countries and 12 international organizations, including the organization of the Islamic conference. On May 22, the participants signed the Istanbul Declaration reaffirming support for the TFG, established in early 2009, and highlighted the importance of continuing the Djibouti peace process begun in 2008.
The clashes involved the use of heavy weaponry, which have claimed the lives of civilians. The population is fleeing the area of the fighting, moving towards parts of southern Somalia.
The clashes have also led to political tensions within the government. The Defense Minister of the Transitional Federal Government has, in fact, accused Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharma’arke of having denied government troops the supplies necessary to respond to the rebel attack. Only thanks to intervention from Ugandan and Burundian troops of AMISOM were they able to push back the rebel assault. In spite of its support from the European Union and the United States, the army of the Transitional Federal Government in Somalia is very week and is plagued with corruption. The soldiers do not receive salaries or they receive them with great delays and pay cuts. Many soldiers have deserted or sold their arms and munition to militiamen called to arms. The presence of the AMISOM troops has until now allowed the transitional government to remain in Mogadishu, however its control over the country is practically non-existent. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 24/5/2010)
