Somali opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, head of the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS), smiles during an interview with Reuters in Mogadishu, May 14, 2009. Aweys accused Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, U.N. special envoy to Somalia, on Thursday of “destroying” the Horn of Africa nation, and dismissed talks with the interim government.
* U.N. envoy “destroying” Somalia, Aweys says
* Presence of foreign militants exaggerated
* No talks with interim government
MOGADISHU, May 14 (Reuters) - Hardline opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys accused the U.N. special envoy to Somalia on Thursday of “destroying” the Horn of Africa nation, and dismissed talks with the interim government.
Aweys is seen as an influential figure among insurgents in Somalia where he has headed numerous Islamist groups since the 1990s including the Islamic Courts Union that controlled Mogadishu and much of the south in 2006 before being ousted by Ethiopian soldiers later that year.
The 62-year-old cleric told Reuters in an interview that U.N. envoy Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah was harming Somalis by only supporting the weak transitional government.
“It is a surprise to see Ould-Abdallah destroying Somalia when he, as a Muslim, has an obligation of being honest of what he has to do for Somalis,” Aweys said.
“He consistently defends the government policies as if he is the president of this country, and he is not playing his role of engaging every side of the conflict.”
The world body was not immediately available for comment.
Since the weekend, some of the fiercest clashes in Somalia for months between opposition and pro-government forces have killed at least 139 people and wounded more than 400 others.
Aweys along with President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed led the ICU, which briefly ushered in a time of stability in Somalia before being ousted in December 2006.
“This war is between Somalis who tasted the sweetness of being free and stability and aides of foreign enemies against their interest ... It is a political war,” he said.
Somalia`s 18 years of civil conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced millions and created one of the world`s worst humanitarian crises.
FOREIGN FIGHTERS
Aweys -- whom the United States accuses of links to al Qaeda -- said reports that foreign militants had flocked to Somalia to aid insurgents were embellished.
“It is possible that young, excited Muslim men had arrived in Somalia individually, but it is unfortunate to exaggerate this as a hideout for foreign fighters,” he said.
“As Somalis, we reach our own decisions, and we had not requested any organisation or governments to come and fight along with us.”
Western security agencies have long feared that Somalia with its porous borders and lack of central rule could become a haven for terrorist organisations and could breed extremism.
Aweys has denied rumours that he has links to terrorists.
He reiterated that he would not enter into talks with the government until African Union peacekeepers leave. The presence of foreign soldiers has been a sticking point for opposition figures since Ethiopia`s 2006 invasion.
“The troops who came to keep Muslim leaders away from the leadership have to leave the country. (Then) we are granting every Somali that there will be no fighting. We will sit together and solve everything through dialogue,” he said.
© 2009 Reuters Limited
FACTBOXFacts about Somali opposition leader AweysMay 14, 2009
May 14 (Reuters) - Hardline opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys accused the U.N. special envoy to Somalia on Thursday of “destroying” the Horn of Africa nation, and dismissed talks with the interim government.
Aweys is seen as an influential figure among insurgents in Somalia where he has headed numerous Islamist groups since the 1990s. Here are key facts about Aweys:
* The 62-year-old bespectacled cleric was born on the outskirts of Dhusamareb town in the Galguduud region of central Somalia. He is part of the Ayr wing of the Habr Gedir, a major sub-clan of the Hawiye.
* Aweys went to secondary school in Mogadishu. In 1972, he joined dictator Mohamed Siad Barre`s army and graduated from General Daud military academy. Aweys rose to the rank of colonel and was decorated with a silver medal for bravery in a war against Ethiopia in 1977.
* In the 1990s, the hennaed-bearded Aweys was vice chairman and military commander for al-Ittihad al-Islami, which at the time was Somalia`s largest militant Islamist group. He was soundly defeated back then in battles against Ethiopia and Somali warlords backed by Addis Ababa.
* Aweys is among individuals or entities the United States “linked to terrorism” shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks. The United Nations has him on a list of people “belonging to or associated with” al Qaeda. Washington has ruled out contact with Aweys, who denies al Qaeda links.
* President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, who led the Islamic Courts Union with Aweys before Ethiopian troops expelled them from Mogadishu in late 2006, wants him off those lists. Aweys founded the al Shabaab, a militant Islamist group and the armed-wing of the sharia courts movement.
* Aweys is a close friend of Sheikh Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki, who, intelligence sources say, leads the Somali wing of the al-Takfir wal-Hijra -- an international Islamist group linked to extremism. Aweys also mentored the former head of the al Shabaab, Aden Hashi Ayro, who was killed in a U.S. air strike in May 2008 and was also accused of al Qaeda links.
* Following Ethiopia`s invasion of Somalia, Aweys went underground and kept a low profile until publicly re-surfacing in Eritrea at a Somali opposition conference in September 2007. Initially, he was not part of the leadership of the Asmara-based Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS), but took over after the former head, Ahmed, broke away and became the interim government`s president. Aweys returned to Somalia in his first known trip back to the Horn of Africa nation in April.
SOURCES: Aweys, Reuters, experts. (Writing by Jack Kimball)
© 2009 Reuters Limited
Somalia: Opposition Leader Aweys Criticizes Newly Elected PresidentAl-Hayah OnlineTuesday, February 3, 2009
Report from Nairobi by Al-Hayah correspondent Muhammad al-Khadr Muhammad on an interview by telephone with Shaykh Hasan Dahir Aweys, leader of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia, who spoke from his headquarters in the Eritrean capital, Asmara; date not given: “ Aweys attacked his former colleague in the [Islamic] Courts and said his election is a `loss` to the Islamists. He told Al-Hayah: ` Sharif Ahmad is a continuation of the Ethiopian and US policy in fighting Islam.`”
Prominent Somali Islamist Shaykh Hasan Dahir Aweys rejected new Somali President Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmad`scall to the armed Islamic groups in his country to hold a dialogue and join the national reconciliation process. He said moderate Shaykh Ahmad`s administration does not mean a change in the “anti-Islam policy”, which the former government adopted. Rather, he added, it is “a continuation of an Ethiopian-American policy the aim of which is to fight the Islamists” and exclude them from the country`s administration.
Speaking from his headquarters in the Eritrean Capital, Asmara, in an interview by telephone, Aweys, leader of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia, said: The election of Ahmad as a successor to Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, who resigned at the end of December following a severe disagreement with his Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, is a “loss” to the Somali people. He added that Ahmad may be “more dangerous” than his predecessor with regard to the fight against Islamists.
Aweys`s stand is in line with the stands that were previously taken by the powerful Youth Movement, which is opposed to the peace process in Somalia.
In a telephone conversation with Al-Hayah, Shaykh Mukhtar Robow, spokesman for the” Mujahidin Youths”, refused to say whether his group will accept Ahmad`s invitation to dialogue or not. He only said: “We will announce our stand in due course.”
It is recalled that supporters of the Youths Movement organized demonstrations in several Somali cities, in which they denounced Ahmad and promised to continue fighting his government.
After his election in Djibouti`s capital on Saturday morning, Ahmad said he will do all he can to reach a solution to the problems that face his country, which has suffered from wars for 18 years. He appealed to the armed faction members to lay down their arms and participate in restoring peace to Somalia. Addressing them, he said: “You are welcome. We are your brothers and we extend our hands to you.”
However, Aweys, former president of the Islamic Courts Council in Somalia, noted that Ahmad does not truly mean what he said. He added: “In my opinion, the election of Shaykh Sharif is a loss. Neither he, nor we gain any benefit from his election, because his goal is to confront the Islamic resistance and cause a clash within the same nation.”
Aweys, who admits that some of his forces are in the capital, Mogadishu, said Ethiopia and America`s goal is to “make the Islamists clash with each other, so that they may shake each other, exactly as the Somali saying goes `An elephant`s bones break each other.`”
He pointed out that his disagreement with Ahmad is not caused by a personal grudge against him. Rather, he added, it is a disagreement based on principles because the policy of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia “rejects dialogue with a government of criminals and those who reconcile with it.”
Aweys said that former Somali President Yusuf previously invited his group to a dialogue but he rejected the call because the former president “worked to achieve Ethiopia`s goals.” He added: “There is no difference between Abdullahi Yusuf and Shaykh Sharif.” He asked: “Is the difference tribal?” He laughingly asked: “Shall we tell Abdullahi Yusuf: You don`t belong to our tribe?”
Both Aweys and Ahmad belong to the Hawiya Tribe the majority of which resides in the capital and central provinces in Somalia.
Aweys does not hide his fear of Ahmad because the latter knows the Islamists and their areas of weakness. He said: “Shaykh Sharif may be more dangerous than Abdullahi Yusuf who failed to achieve the goals with which he was entrusted.”
* U.N. envoy “destroying” Somalia, Aweys says
* Presence of foreign militants exaggerated
* No talks with interim government
MOGADISHU, May 14 (Reuters) - Hardline opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys accused the U.N. special envoy to Somalia on Thursday of “destroying” the Horn of Africa nation, and dismissed talks with the interim government.
Aweys is seen as an influential figure among insurgents in Somalia where he has headed numerous Islamist groups since the 1990s including the Islamic Courts Union that controlled Mogadishu and much of the south in 2006 before being ousted by Ethiopian soldiers later that year.
The 62-year-old cleric told Reuters in an interview that U.N. envoy Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah was harming Somalis by only supporting the weak transitional government.
“It is a surprise to see Ould-Abdallah destroying Somalia when he, as a Muslim, has an obligation of being honest of what he has to do for Somalis,” Aweys said.
“He consistently defends the government policies as if he is the president of this country, and he is not playing his role of engaging every side of the conflict.”
The world body was not immediately available for comment.
Since the weekend, some of the fiercest clashes in Somalia for months between opposition and pro-government forces have killed at least 139 people and wounded more than 400 others.
Aweys along with President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed led the ICU, which briefly ushered in a time of stability in Somalia before being ousted in December 2006.
“This war is between Somalis who tasted the sweetness of being free and stability and aides of foreign enemies against their interest ... It is a political war,” he said.
Somalia`s 18 years of civil conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced millions and created one of the world`s worst humanitarian crises.
FOREIGN FIGHTERS
Aweys -- whom the United States accuses of links to al Qaeda -- said reports that foreign militants had flocked to Somalia to aid insurgents were embellished.
“It is possible that young, excited Muslim men had arrived in Somalia individually, but it is unfortunate to exaggerate this as a hideout for foreign fighters,” he said.
“As Somalis, we reach our own decisions, and we had not requested any organisation or governments to come and fight along with us.”
Western security agencies have long feared that Somalia with its porous borders and lack of central rule could become a haven for terrorist organisations and could breed extremism.
Aweys has denied rumours that he has links to terrorists.
He reiterated that he would not enter into talks with the government until African Union peacekeepers leave. The presence of foreign soldiers has been a sticking point for opposition figures since Ethiopia`s 2006 invasion.
“The troops who came to keep Muslim leaders away from the leadership have to leave the country. (Then) we are granting every Somali that there will be no fighting. We will sit together and solve everything through dialogue,” he said.
© 2009 Reuters Limited
FACTBOXFacts about Somali opposition leader AweysMay 14, 2009
May 14 (Reuters) - Hardline opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys accused the U.N. special envoy to Somalia on Thursday of “destroying” the Horn of Africa nation, and dismissed talks with the interim government.
Aweys is seen as an influential figure among insurgents in Somalia where he has headed numerous Islamist groups since the 1990s. Here are key facts about Aweys:
* The 62-year-old bespectacled cleric was born on the outskirts of Dhusamareb town in the Galguduud region of central Somalia. He is part of the Ayr wing of the Habr Gedir, a major sub-clan of the Hawiye.
* Aweys went to secondary school in Mogadishu. In 1972, he joined dictator Mohamed Siad Barre`s army and graduated from General Daud military academy. Aweys rose to the rank of colonel and was decorated with a silver medal for bravery in a war against Ethiopia in 1977.
* In the 1990s, the hennaed-bearded Aweys was vice chairman and military commander for al-Ittihad al-Islami, which at the time was Somalia`s largest militant Islamist group. He was soundly defeated back then in battles against Ethiopia and Somali warlords backed by Addis Ababa.
* Aweys is among individuals or entities the United States “linked to terrorism” shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks. The United Nations has him on a list of people “belonging to or associated with” al Qaeda. Washington has ruled out contact with Aweys, who denies al Qaeda links.
* President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, who led the Islamic Courts Union with Aweys before Ethiopian troops expelled them from Mogadishu in late 2006, wants him off those lists. Aweys founded the al Shabaab, a militant Islamist group and the armed-wing of the sharia courts movement.
* Aweys is a close friend of Sheikh Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki, who, intelligence sources say, leads the Somali wing of the al-Takfir wal-Hijra -- an international Islamist group linked to extremism. Aweys also mentored the former head of the al Shabaab, Aden Hashi Ayro, who was killed in a U.S. air strike in May 2008 and was also accused of al Qaeda links.
* Following Ethiopia`s invasion of Somalia, Aweys went underground and kept a low profile until publicly re-surfacing in Eritrea at a Somali opposition conference in September 2007. Initially, he was not part of the leadership of the Asmara-based Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS), but took over after the former head, Ahmed, broke away and became the interim government`s president. Aweys returned to Somalia in his first known trip back to the Horn of Africa nation in April.
SOURCES: Aweys, Reuters, experts. (Writing by Jack Kimball)
© 2009 Reuters Limited
Somalia: Opposition Leader Aweys Criticizes Newly Elected PresidentAl-Hayah OnlineTuesday, February 3, 2009
Report from Nairobi by Al-Hayah correspondent Muhammad al-Khadr Muhammad on an interview by telephone with Shaykh Hasan Dahir Aweys, leader of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia, who spoke from his headquarters in the Eritrean capital, Asmara; date not given: “ Aweys attacked his former colleague in the [Islamic] Courts and said his election is a `loss` to the Islamists. He told Al-Hayah: ` Sharif Ahmad is a continuation of the Ethiopian and US policy in fighting Islam.`”
Prominent Somali Islamist Shaykh Hasan Dahir Aweys rejected new Somali President Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmad`scall to the armed Islamic groups in his country to hold a dialogue and join the national reconciliation process. He said moderate Shaykh Ahmad`s administration does not mean a change in the “anti-Islam policy”, which the former government adopted. Rather, he added, it is “a continuation of an Ethiopian-American policy the aim of which is to fight the Islamists” and exclude them from the country`s administration.
Speaking from his headquarters in the Eritrean Capital, Asmara, in an interview by telephone, Aweys, leader of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia, said: The election of Ahmad as a successor to Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, who resigned at the end of December following a severe disagreement with his Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, is a “loss” to the Somali people. He added that Ahmad may be “more dangerous” than his predecessor with regard to the fight against Islamists.
Aweys`s stand is in line with the stands that were previously taken by the powerful Youth Movement, which is opposed to the peace process in Somalia.
In a telephone conversation with Al-Hayah, Shaykh Mukhtar Robow, spokesman for the” Mujahidin Youths”, refused to say whether his group will accept Ahmad`s invitation to dialogue or not. He only said: “We will announce our stand in due course.”
It is recalled that supporters of the Youths Movement organized demonstrations in several Somali cities, in which they denounced Ahmad and promised to continue fighting his government.
After his election in Djibouti`s capital on Saturday morning, Ahmad said he will do all he can to reach a solution to the problems that face his country, which has suffered from wars for 18 years. He appealed to the armed faction members to lay down their arms and participate in restoring peace to Somalia. Addressing them, he said: “You are welcome. We are your brothers and we extend our hands to you.”
However, Aweys, former president of the Islamic Courts Council in Somalia, noted that Ahmad does not truly mean what he said. He added: “In my opinion, the election of Shaykh Sharif is a loss. Neither he, nor we gain any benefit from his election, because his goal is to confront the Islamic resistance and cause a clash within the same nation.”
Aweys, who admits that some of his forces are in the capital, Mogadishu, said Ethiopia and America`s goal is to “make the Islamists clash with each other, so that they may shake each other, exactly as the Somali saying goes `An elephant`s bones break each other.`”
He pointed out that his disagreement with Ahmad is not caused by a personal grudge against him. Rather, he added, it is a disagreement based on principles because the policy of the Coalition for the Re-liberation of Somalia “rejects dialogue with a government of criminals and those who reconcile with it.”
Aweys said that former Somali President Yusuf previously invited his group to a dialogue but he rejected the call because the former president “worked to achieve Ethiopia`s goals.” He added: “There is no difference between Abdullahi Yusuf and Shaykh Sharif.” He asked: “Is the difference tribal?” He laughingly asked: “Shall we tell Abdullahi Yusuf: You don`t belong to our tribe?”
Both Aweys and Ahmad belong to the Hawiya Tribe the majority of which resides in the capital and central provinces in Somalia.
Aweys does not hide his fear of Ahmad because the latter knows the Islamists and their areas of weakness. He said: “Shaykh Sharif may be more dangerous than Abdullahi Yusuf who failed to achieve the goals with which he was entrusted.”
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