(SomaliNet) Nairobi based Daily Standard newspaper reported on Wednesday that Somalia Prime Minister Ali Mohamed said his government wants Sheik Sharrif and his supporters to participate in the ongoing reconciliation talks. Premier Gedi made the statement before flying from Nairobi and returning to Mogadishu. "We want all UIC officials and supporters including Sheikh Sharrif to come to Mogadishu for talks in Somalia," he was quoted as saying. Gedi added that none of them would be persecuted in Mogadishu since his government's aim is to restore peace and order rather than revenge. The prime minister addressed several diplomats at a Nairobi hotel to highlight on what his government has done.
He made the address hours after the Kenyan government admitted that it was holding the UIC leader who surrendered on Sunday. Kenyan government spokesman Alfred Mutua said the police are still interrogating Sharrif without disclosing his whereabouts. The Somali government wants Kenya to hand over the top official of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), Sheikh Sharrif Ahmed, according to the paper.