Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Mogadishu (Agenzia Fides) – The forces of the Transitional Government (TNG) of Somalia have gone on the offensive, capturing the town of Belet Hawo, on the border with Kenya. The locality has been subject to the control of the Shabab Islamist militia men of Barre Hiiraale, a former Somali army colonel, who has become a local "warlord" and who is also a member of the transitional parliament.
The TNG, whose army is supported by the international community, remains weak and plagued by corruption and is supported by some local militias of Islamist orientation, engaged in land disputes with the Shabab. This strategy seems to bear some fruit, but it is undermined by rivalry emerging between some of the militias who support the government. Last week, the Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa, an Islamist militia considered "moderate" and which some Western countries hope to use to counter the Shabab, invaded the city of Adado, in central Somalia, on the border with Ethiopia. The town was administered by a Somali-American who had managed to preserve it from the instability of the rest of the country, creating even some health and economic structures for the entire population. There had been previous disputes between the administration of Adado and the militia of Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa, accentuated by the fact that the two parties are from different clans.
This episode demonstrates that, despite the appeal of Islamist ideology to part of the Somali people, the traditional struggles between the Somali clans and subclans persist and are still an essential component of the political and military dynamics in the country. Even between the two Islamic components that oppose the TNG, there were bloody clashes. In Mogadishu on October 18, at least five people died in clashes between the Shabab and men of Hizbul Islam.
The Shabab have prohibited the transfer of money through the phone in the territories they control. In the end, the measure could alienate the support they receive from the Somalis, who are now using this system with greater frequency. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 19/10/2010)
