Somali rebels and govt sign pact

2010-03-15 22:19

Addis Ababa - Somalia's government and a moderate Islamist group on Monday signed an agreement to integrate their forces in the fight against extremist insurgents.

Somalia's weak government, propped up by AU peacekeepers, has been struggling to contain an insurgency that exploded in early 2007, and is mainly confined to small pockets of the capital Mogadishu.

Moderate Islamist group Ahlu Sunna Waljama'a has opposed main insurgent group al-Shebab, which has links to al-Qaeda, and its allies Hezb al- Islam, but had yet to sign a formal agreement with the government.

"This agreement is designed to safeguard the people of Somalia and the reputation of the faith of Islam," Sheikh Mahmoud Sheikh Hassan, the group's spiritual leader, said in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa after signing the deal.

Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke, prime minister of Somalia's transitional federal government, and Jean Ping, chair of the AU's commission, both hailed the pact.

The agreement comes as the weak Western-backed government plans to launch a major offensive and regain control of Mogadishu.

Fighting has intensified in advance of the expected surge, and more than 30 000 people have fled the capital since early February to avoid being caught in the crossfire.

Somalia has been embroiled in chaos since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

More than 20 000 people have died in the current insurgency, which kicked off in early 2007 after Ethiopian forces invaded to oust an Islamist regime that ruled for six months in 2006.

The insurgents control much of south and central Somalia.

- SAPA