Shabelle Media Network (Mogadishu)
31 January 2008
The spokesman of Union Islamic of Courts [UIC], Shaikh Mahmud Shaykh Ibrahim Suulay, has said that it makes no difference if Ethiopian troops move from one area of Mogadishu to another.
The spokesman of UIC, Shaykh Mahmud Shaykh Ibrahim Suulay, who was speaking to Shabeelle Radio last night over the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from some parts of Mogadishu, said the move is the start of a victory. He said that if the Ethiopian troops move from one base in Mogadishu to another within the city, it makes no difference [they will still be attacked]. He stated that they would continue their fight against the Ethiopian troops in Somalia.
[Suulay] Today, we [UIC] are not surprised to see them withdrawing. They have not fully withdrawn, but we are sure that all of them will move out.
Many people believed that the Ethiopian troops would not withdraw whenever they saw their tanks, but we are sure that they will pull out by Allah's will. We interpret this [withdrawal of Ethiopian troops] as a start of the victory. There are still a lot of works to be done, because it makes no difference to us, if they move from one point to another. The Ethiopians have invaded the country [Somalia] and they are involved in fighting. They only deserve bullets.
On the other hand, Shaykh Mahmud said they would only welcome the Ethiopian move, if they completely withdrew from the country as a whole. However, if they stay, the fighting [against them] will continue, he said. He stated that Ethiopian troops withdrew from their bases, after the UIC over came them [rest of sentence indistinct].
[Suulay] We thank Allah if they withdraw from across the country, we also thank Allah if they withdraw from one part of the country. The struggle and the holy war would not stop at this point, until the Book of Allah is high above and the fighting will continue until they [Ethiopian troops] are punished for the atrocities they have committed. It is upon them, if they understand and stop it. The Ethiopian troops are between the frying pan and the fire, because if they withdraw, it is a defeat against them, and if they stay, they would be killed.
The spokesman also said that they do not accept the presence of AMISOM [African Union Mission in Somalia] troops in the country, since they do not have the blessings of the two sides fighting in Mogadishu, saying that they only had the permission of one side. He cautioned AMISOM troops against their continued stay in the country, saying their presence would create reactions from the Somali people.
[Suulay] In the first instance, AMISOM troops did not come at the behest of the two warring sides in Somalia. They came to support one side. And where is their peace mission, since the public are being massacred and destroyed as they watch.
I think they have been deployed to fight against peace. They are not peacekeepers and they cannot secure peace for us [Somalis]. They are a burden to us. Therefore, we are informing them that we are fighting against the Ethiopian troops. And the AMISOM troops are supporting the Ethiopians troops because they say that Ethiopian troops alone cannot handle [the situation] and are saying: Let us support them [Ethiopian troops].
AMISOM troops are, therefore, not neutral on the matter and they cannot be neutral. We are advising them not to create animosity. As for the Ethiopians troops, never the less, they will leave [Somalia] defeated. AMISOM troops should make their stand clear and take care of their lives. The African troops are being misled by the United States to make them die in a country that does not belong to them and create hatred against them.
The fighting [presumably against the foreign troops] is acceptable for the people. They will fail in all what they are doing and they will suffer loss.
[Ismail] What ever the case, his statement comes at a time when some Ethiopian troops have pulled out from their bases in Mogadishu that include, the former Defence Ministry building, although some are still there. Many people in Mogadishu have welcomed the move. People came out in parts of Mogadishu last night to celebrate the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from their bases in Mogadishu.
Political analyst/journalist M. Prud'homme in Washington says Somalia needs enormously thought reconciliation not fighting.
"What Somalis need is peace, they don't want a war" Homme said.
Somalia had no functioning government from 1991 after warlords ousted the regime of former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.
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