 Peace is no small feat in Somalia, and if the reaction to the accord struck on Monday night is any gauge, peace may still be a long way off.
| Chances are somewhere between minuscule and "no way in Hell." |
On | “The so-called deal is rubbish and inconsequential,” Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, a strident Islamist leader, told The Associated Press. “It will not in any way result in peace.” |
Tuesday, militant Islamist leaders immediately rejected the deal, which had been signed by moderate Islamists and the beleaguered transitional government of Somalia. “The so-called deal is rubbish and inconsequential,” Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, a strident Islamist leader, told The Associated Press. “It will not in any way result in peace.” Instead, he said, the deal will bring more bloodshed.
| Usually I make a point of not agreeing with Sheikh Aweys, but I'll make an exception in this case. |
He was among the key Islamist figures who boycotted the peace talks, which had been organized by the United Nations to end the combat between SomaliaÂ’s transitional government and a determined insurgency.
Moderate Islamist leaders, under the banner of the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, have agreed to a cease-fire in return for Ethiopian troops’ being replaced by United Nations peacekeepers, though it is not clear when — or even if — that will happen. The deal was signed on Monday night in Djibouti, Somalia’s small, peaceful neighbor, which is considered neutral ground.
People on the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia’s battered capital, seemed doubtful and hopeful. “There could be fighting from the hard-liners, but it won’t be the same as it used to,” said Hassan Gabre, a retired engineer. Peace is important, but Somalis desperately need government, too, he said. |