Garowe — A clan elder in the Somali capital was detained by police on Sunday after authorities raided his home.

Ahmed Dirie, spokesman for the Hawiye clan elders' council, was arrested by police at his home near the Bakara market, officials said.

Soldiers forcefully entered Dirie's home, arrested him and several armed guards and then searched the home.

Somali government forces found a cache of weapons and explosives material inside Dirie's home, Garowe Online has learned from confidential government sources.

The sources said Dirie was transported to one of Mogadishu's jails, but would not name an exact location for security-related reasons.

Mohamed Hassan Haad, chairman of the Hawiye council, condemned Dirie's arrest and accused the government of intending to silence opposition voices. Dirie was arrested because of his "personal beliefs," according to Haad.

The Hawiye clan is the most dominant community in the Mogadishu area and clan support is divided between the government and Mogadishu's former Islamic Courts rulers.

Clan elders Dirie and Haad lead a group of Hawiye elder s closely associated with the Islamists and opposed to the Ethiopian troops backing the transitional government as it attempts to assert control across Somalia after 17 years of civil war.

Dirie came to fame this year when street fights erupted in Mogadishu between Ethiopian-backed government troops and Islamist-led rebels.

He is seen as the public voice of the masked insurgents waging guerrilla war against the government and its allies.