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Africa Horn
Insecurity and killing escalate in Mogadishu
2007-01-08
(Sh.M.Network) - Armed militias that have set up a roadblock in north Mogadishu were apprehended by government forces after they were seen taking extortion money from buses. Bus drivers that work around Sinay and Bakara market at the center of Mogadishu town said they were pleased that road blockers were finally jailed for forcefully taking illegal money from them. Local clan elders and intellects, who are related to the militias, have taken a role in jailing them.
It's the old free-lance toll collector routine. It worked pretty good until the Islamic Courts showed up and ran the hard boyz out of town. There's a chance, I suppose, that since they've now had their pants pulled down and been knocked over backward in the schoolyard that they've lost enough face that the local citizenry will greet them with flung fruit and bad names rather than cash. We can always hope.
Illegal checkpoints set up by local militias have increased in different locations in the capital Mogadishu following the fall of the Union of Islamic Courts. Insecurity has also loomed in the capital as gunshots could be heard at nights and people feel afraid to walk at nights and even early in the evening. The civilian population in Mogadishu is concerned about the massive return of warlords to the capital and militias setting up checkpoints to take extortion money from people and passenger buses. Many of the warlords who spoke to the people through local radios promised they would not rearm themselves or recruit tribal militias. So far the promise seems to be fake as some of the warlords have begun buying arms from MogadishuÂ’s biggest arms sale, known as Ir-Tookte.
Posted by:Fred

#8   that they've lost enough face that the local citizenry will greet them with flung fruit and bad names rather than cash.

Far better they greet them with gunfire, flung fruit and bad names will only get you shot.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2007-01-08 19:29  

#7  Well, I see the Washington Post is already in full Quagmire mode...

Somalis Rail at Ethiopian Forces

By Stephanie McCrummen
Washington Post Foreign Service
Sunday, January 7, 2007; Page A16

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Jan. 6 -- Hundreds of angry and fed-up Somalis demanded that Ethiopian troops leave the city Saturday, smashing cars, burning tires, and hurling stones and threats as a prevailing sense of insecurity deepened in the patched-together neighborhoods of Mogadishu.

A volatile mix of grievances fueled the clashes between demonstrators and Ethiopian troops, leaving at least two people dead

Tensions are rising over the presence of the Ethiopian troops, who are perceived here as having U.S. backing and last week pushed out an Islamic movement widely credited with bringing security to the capital.

The Islamic Courts movement, which took power in June, included moderate leaders as well as some suspected of having ties to al-Qaeda and of sheltering three suspects in the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. The Islamic Courts leaders have denied those charges, and analysts say the connection between the movement and al-Qaeda has been exaggerated.

The Islamic movement's fundamentalist brand of Islam was foreign to most Somalis, who adhere to a more moderate interpretation but seemed willing, at least at first, to tolerate the social restrictions in exchange for security.
Posted by: tu3031   2007-01-08 16:06  

#6  yeah, thats more or less what I was driving at.
Posted by: liberalhawk   2007-01-08 15:41  

#5  Yes they did bury the lede, LH; but you were not supposed to notice that. This is a prime example of slanting news - the real news in the article is that the new government is arresting these thugs and breaking up the roadblocks. Before the ICU took over and made everyone's life more of a hell in Mog, these roadblocks were pretty common. The ICU broke them up to show how they were pro-law enforcement and the Western media fell for it. Now that the non-Islamofascist government has taken over, the roadblocks are still not being tolerated. But now the media is reporting much more on them because it fits the template of "Islamofascists bring security, fighting them brings insecurity" that the media is applying everywhere that people resist the spread of fundie Islam.
Posted by: Shieldwolf   2007-01-08 15:29  

#4  "Armed militias that have set up a roadblock in north Mogadishu,were apprehended by government forces

Geez, louise, am I the only one who thinks they buried the lead?
Posted by: liberalhawk   2007-01-08 13:07  

#3  Frankly: So what? If these people cannot govern themselves it is only our problem in so far as they harbor our sworn enemies. If someone feels generous they could email copies of the Federalist Papers as a "how to" but that is about it.
Posted by: Excalibur   2007-01-08 12:53  

#2  All these intellects coming out of the woodwork- things are lookin'up for Somalia.
Posted by: Grunter   2007-01-08 12:08  

#1  I'm glad to hear things are getting back to normal in Mog.
Posted by: bigjim-ky   2007-01-08 07:53  

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