Mogadishu - Somalia's Islamic Courts said on Saturday that it had poured thousands of fighters and heavy equipment into frontline positions as they braced for clashes with the weak government and its Ethiopian allies.
| "Aye, lads! If 'tis war they want, 'tis war we'll give 'em!" |
The courts said it had reinforced areas outside the government seat of Baidoa, about 250km northwest of Mogadishu, anticipating imminent attack and accusing neighbouring Ethiopia of sending air power.
| "Hrarrr. They're sittin' there, an' they're watchin', me lads! Once let down yer guard an' they'll be all over us! They'll be goosin' yer wimmin and you'll be dead!" |
"We are completely ready here in the frontlines and keeping inside our trenches," court military chief Sheikh Muktar Robow told AFP.
| "Yarrr! We're ready for anything!" |
"We are facing Ethiopian invaders. The only thing we expect is the start of battle. The Ethiopians have brought warplanes, including helicopters, and even heavy tanks to Baidoa and they are intending to wage an attack against us and we are ready for that."
| "We ain't skeert o' nothin'! Nothin', I tells yez!" |
The courts and the Ethiopian-backed government have been girding for all-out war near Baidoa for weeks, since the collapse of peace talks earlier this month. Both have stepped up preparations in recent days.
"You men over there! Step up your preparations!"
"Yes, your Enormity!" |
Camps 20km apart
The courts have declared holy war on Ethiopian troops in Somalia protecting the transitional government. Robow said his fighters had full confidence in winning the battle against the "forces of the devil".
| "We know they're aided by demons and jinns and efrits and stuff! But we got Allen on our side!" |
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi told the Somali parliament on Thursday that Addis Ababa had taken the necessary preparations for war with the courts, which he accused of posing a "clear and present danger" to his country.
| "Those people are crazy!" |
Fighters from all sides are encamped at positions less than 20km apart, near the court-held towns of Mode Mode and Burhakaba areas.
| How y'gonna keep 'em down on the farm once they've been to Mode Mode? |
Residents said they had seen an unprecedented number of gunmen in the area and have expressed fear for their lives. "I have never seen such a huge number of fighters around Burhakaba," said resident Osman Ibarahim Rafiyo. "I saw more than 56 armed vehicles and thousands of Islamic militias pouring into the battlefield. I think this fighting will take more lives than expected."
| "Hrarrr, lads! There'll be rivers of blood to wade through! But we'll prevail in the end, those of us who ain't martyrs! There'll be comely Ethiopian wenches for all, an' the wealth of Adis Ababa as loot!" |
Ethiopia has watched the rise of the Islamic Courts, which seized Mogadishu in June and now control most of southern and central Somalia, with concern.
They're filling the balloon now. |