Troops control former U.S. Embassy in Mogadishu

Reuters

December 29, 2006


Somali government troops
Somalia’s Prime Minister Gedi is welcomed by a huge crowd in Afgoye to celebrate the liberation of the city from the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) fighters. Somali government forces backed by Ethiopian soldiers rolled into the capital Mogadishu after a retreat by Islamist leaders but amid fears that Islamist forces were regrouping as clan militia to fight back. (AFP)


MOGADISHU (Reuters) – Somali government troops and their Ethiopian allies took over the former U.S. embassy in Mogadishu on Friday, expanding their control of key locations in the capital a day after Islamist rivals fled, witnesses said.



“Ethiopian troops and government soldiers have settled in the compound of the former U.S. embassy. I can see more than 30 Russian-made military trucks,” said Abdi Hassan, one of hundreds of local residents gathered outside the former U.S. mission.

The embassy compound, in a western neighborhood of the coastal city, was abandoned more than a decade ago after U.S. forces made a humiliating retreat from Somalia following an ill-fated mission depicted in the film “Black Hawk Down.”

Government forces took effective control of Mogadishu on Thursday after a 10-day offensive with its Ethiopian allies to reclaim much of the territory seized by the Somalia Islamic Courts Council (SICC) since June.

The flight of the Islamists was a dramatic turn-around in the Horn of Africa nation after they had spread across the south imposing strict sharia rule and confining the interim government to its base in the provincial city of Baidoa until less than two weeks ago.

Ethiopian-backed troops enter Mogadishu

MOGADISHU (Reuters) – Triumphant Somali government forces and their Ethiopian allies marched into Mogadishu on Thursday after Islamist rivals abandoned the war-scarred city they held for six months.

The flight of the Islamists was a dramatic turn-around in the volatile Horn of Africa nation after they took Mogadishu in June and spread across the south imposing sharia rule.

Terrified of yet more violence in a city that has become a byword for chaos, some Mogadishu residents greeted the arriving government troops, while others hid.

“People are cheering as they wave flowers to the troops,” said resident Abdikadar Abdulle, adding scores of government military vehicles had passed the Somalia National University west of the city center.

Parts of Mogadishu shook with the sound of gunfire and there were outbreaks of looting after leaders of the Somalia Islamic Courts Council (SICC) fled its base early in the morning. Some fighters ditched their uniforms to avoid reprisals.

“We have been defeated. I have removed my uniform. Most of my comrades have also changed into civilian clothes,” one former SICC fighter told Reuters. “Most of our leaders have fled.”

The fall of Mogadishu came about 10 days after the Islamists sought to march on the government base of Baidoa. That prompted Ethiopia to come openly into the war, proving the decisive factor in saving the government and pushing back the Islamists.

The SICC had brought a semblance of stability to Mogadishu after chasing U.S.-backed warlords from the city in June. Islamists and residents said order had collapsed with their departure.

“Mogadishu is now in chaos,” Islamist leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed told Al Jazeera television.


WARLORD FEAR

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi vowed to pursue the Islamist leaders. “We will not let Mogadishu burn,” he added.

More than a week of mortar and rocket duels between the Islamists and the Ethiopian-backed government spiraled into open war 10 days ago. With Eritrea accused of backing the Islamists, many had feared the conflict would engulf the Horn.

Ethiopia, like the United States, says the Islamists are supported by Al Qaeda. It says it has taken foreign prisoners and killed radicals from abroad, including some with British passports.

The SICC has depicted the conflict with Christian-led Ethiopia, which has one of Africa’s most effective armies, as a holy war against “crusaders,” tapping into decades of rivalry between the two neighbors.

Government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari said government forces had secured the main routes into Mogadishu. “We are taking control of the city and I will confirm when we have established complete control,” he said.

He said the Islamists had fled to the southern port city of Kismayu and the administration controlled 95 percent of the Horn of Africa country.

Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi flew to a town near the capital on Thursday afternoon.

The government declared a state of emergency “to control security and stability.”

SICC leader Ahmed said his side’s hasty withdrawal was a tactical move. Many had predicted the Islamists would wage a guerrilla war if dealt a resounding blow in the first round of war.

Islamist defense lines were routed by a joint force of Ethiopian armor and government fighters.

YEARS OF CHAOS

Ahmed said the Islamists were united and determined to push out Ethiopian forces, but retreated to avoid more bloodshed.

By fleeing, the Islamists appeared to have averted the risk of becoming embroiled in the fierce street fighting that forced the U.S. military from Mogadishu more than a decade ago in a humiliating episode captured in the film “Black Hawk Down.”

Dinari said President Abdullahi Yusuf remained in the government’s south-central base Baidoa. But Prime Minister Gedi landed at Afgoye in an Ethiopian military helicopter, some 30 km (19 miles) west of Mogadishu, where he was met by cheering crowds and clan leaders from the city.

“Our forces are controlling the situation,” he said.

The return of the government to the capital would be a massive step in achieving greater legitimacy in the 14th attempt to restore central rule since the 1991 ouster of a dictator.

Pro-government militias enter Mogadishu


MOGADISHU, Dec 28 (Reuters) – Militias allied to the Somali government captured several key buildings including the former presidential palace in Mogadishu on Thursday, a spokesman for the Somali National Alliance faction said.
“We have taken over Villa Somalia,” alliance spokesman Abukar Osman Sheikh told Reuters. “Now the Islamists have left Mogadishu, we rightfully took over all the places we used to control including the presidential palace.”



Earlier, an interim government spokesman said the Islamists had fled to the southern port city of Kismayu and the administration now controlled 95 percent of the Horn of Africa country.

“Our forces already effectively control Mogadishu because we have taken over the two control points on the main roads outside the city,” government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told Reuters. “Within two to three hours we will capture the whole city.”

Later he told Al Jazeera television the government had declared a state of emergency “to control security and stability”.

The SICC chairman said his side’s hasty withdrawal was a tactical move in a war that began last week against Ethiopian troops defending Somalia’s weak, Western-backed government.

A joint force of Ethiopian armour and government fighters has pushed to within a few kilometres of the capital, routing Islamist defence lines before them.

The SICC had brought a semblance of stability to Mogadishu by imposing sharia law. Islamists and residents said order in the city had collapsed with their departure.

“We have withdrawn all the leaders and members who worked in the capital,” Islamist leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed told Al Jazeera. “Mogadishu is now in chaos.”

Pro-government militias who once held sway in the capital said they had captured several key buildings early on Thursday, including the former presidential palace.

Witnesses reported looting late on Wednesday and the sound of gunfire in a sign that one of the world’s most dangerous cities may be sliding back to the rule of the gun.

“Uncertainty hangs in the air,” said Mogadishu resident Muktar Abdi

CHAOS, GUNFIRE AND LOOTING

Ahmed said the Islamists were united and determined to push out Ethiopian forces, but retreated to avoid more bloodshed.

By fleeing, the Islamists appeared to have averted the risk of becoming embroiled in the fierce street fighting that forced the U.S. military from Mogadishu more than a decade ago in a humiliating episode captured in the film “Black Hawk Down”.

“We will not negotiate with Ethiopia while its forces are inside Somalia,” Ahmed said, blaming Addis Ababa for the “fighting and chaos” in the capital.

Dinari said President Abdullahi Yusuf and Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi remained in the government’s south-central base Baidoa and would move to Mogadishu at the earliest opportunity.

The government has long viewed Mogadishu as too dangerous to move to, but its return is a key step in achieving greater legitimacy as the 14th attempt to restore central rule since the 1991 ouster of a dictator.

The government maintained an amnesty offer to all Islamist fighters who laid down their arms, Dinari said, adding that the Islamists had opened their weapon stores before fleeing Mogadishu. “They want to create chaos,” he said.

More than a week of mortar and rocket duels between the Islamists and the Ethiopian-backed government spiralled into open war that threatens to engulf the entire Horn of Africa.

Ethiopia says the Islamists are supported by Al Qaeda and its arch foe Eritrea, and says it has taken foreign prisoners.

Ethiopia has swept aside Islamist fighters driven by religious fervour but lacking its fighter jets and long experience as one of Africa’s most effective armies.

The SICC has depicted the conflict with Christian-led Ethiopia as a holy war against “crusaders”, tapping into decades of rivalry between the two neighbours.

The U.N. Security Council failed for a second day to agree to call for a quick end to the war after Qatar — the sole Arab member of the Council — again insisted it also urge Ethiopian troops to leave.

State of Emergency

BAIDOA – The Ethiopia-backed Somali government on Thursday declared a state of emergency in the country, a spokesperson said.

“The government’s national security committee has declared a state of emergency in Somalia,” government spokesperson Abdirahman Dinari said.

“Under this state, the government will ensure that peace is restored in the country, especially Mogadishu and everybody is disarmed,” he said.

Residents said the Ethiopia-backed government forces jad captured the town of Afgoye 20km west of Mogadishu, effectively surrounding the Islamist-held city.

Dinari appealed for calm in Mogadishu, saying pro-government forces will enter into the city in the “coming hours.”

Gunfire and looting meanwhile was reported north of Mogadishu.

“We have been told that looting and gunfire has broken out in northern Mogadishu,” an aid official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. – BBC


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