Thursday, May 14, 2009

US blames Eritrea for violence in Somalia

The United States on Thursday accused Eritrea of "fanning the flames of violence" in Somalia and demanded it immediately end support for Islamist extremists trying to topple the transitional Somali government.

The State Department said Eritrea had been "instrumental" in helping the insurgents carry out a recent wave of attacks in Mogadishu that has killed at least 113 civilians since Saturday and prompted 27,200 people to flee their homes. Eleven people were killed in violence on Thursday, according to a human rights group.

"Eritrea has been instrumental in facilitating support of the extremists to commit these attacks," department spokesman Ian Kelly said in a statement. "This support must cease immediately.

He said the extremists are "in pursuit of a radical agenda that can only promote further acts of terrorism and lead to greater regional instability" and warned that "Eritrea's support for anti-government forces in Somalia is a serious obstacle to the possibility of a more normal relationship with the United States."

The Bush administration had considered placing Eritrea on its blacklist of state sponsors of terrorism for its alleged backing of radical Islamists in Somalia _ some of whom U.S. officials accuse of links with al-Qaida _ who are trying to oust an internationally backed but largely powerless interim government.

But last year, the administration stopped short of that step and instead found that Eritrea was not cooperating in counterterrorism efforts. Eritrea has repeatedly denied charges it is supporting the extremists, although U.N. experts have reported large shipments of weapons in Mogadishu that originated in Eritrea.

Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991, when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre before turning on one another. Somalia's transitional government was formed in 2004, but has failed to assert control over the country although it has recently begun to reach out to opposition groups to forge national reconciliation.

The U.N.'s political chief, B. Lynn Pascoe, told the Security Council on Wednesday that the government's successes in this area had threatened radicals in the opposition who have responded with force and are attempting to overthrow the government.

The insurgents have been trying to topple the government since late 2006, and the lawlessness has allowed piracy to flourish off Somalia's coast.

Source: AP

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