Somali peace activist shot dead (and yes we can connect that to Al-Qaida)

[Monkie]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4671813.stm

"A prominent Somali peace activist has been shot dead by unknown gunmen at his home in the capital, Mogadishu.

Through his Centre for Research and Dialogue, Abdulkadir Yahya Ali tried to resolve Somalia's 14-year civil war.

Witnesses said about five attackers handcuffed his security guards, cut off the phone lines and shot him in front of his wife.
~snip~
In the rubble-strewn streets of the ruined capital of this state without a government... al-Qaeda operatives, jihadi extremists, Ethiopian security services and Western-backed counter-terrorism networks are engaged in a shadowy and complex contest waged by intimidation, abduction and assassination," the ICG said.""

not even a story about a dead peace activist can escape the Al-Qaida treatment.

[allemand]

1. Al-Qaeda-linked extremist groups getting a foothold in Somalia: ICG

NAIROBI (AFP) - A new group of Al-Qaeda-linked extremists has got a foothold in Somalia, a Horn of Africa nation that has been wracked by anarchy since 1991, the International Crisis Group (ICG) said.

The New Jihad that is run from the bullet-charred capital Mogadishu and consists of a militia leader trained in Afghanistan, is blamed for the kidnapping of foreign aid workers and threatens to push the country deeper into anarchy, the ICG said in a new report released here.

"The threat of jihadi terrorism in and from Somalia is real," the report said. "Since 2003, Somalia has witnessed the rise of a new, ruthless independent jihadi network with links to Al-Qaeda," the report said."

"Ultimately, the threat of jihadi terrorism from Somalia can only be addressed through the restoration of stable, legitimate and functional government," the report added, describing that group as a "a new, ruthless and independent network with links to Al-Qaeda."
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/050710/323/fn1u1.html

Counter-Terrorism in Somalia: Losing Hearts and Minds?
Africa Report Nº95
11 July 2005
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Nearly four years after 9/11, hardly a day passes without the "war on terrorism" making headlines, with Iraq, Afghanistan, Indonesia and now London holding centre stage. But away from the spotlight, a quiet, dirty conflict is being waged in Somalia: in the rubble-strewn streets of the ruined capital of this state without a government, Mogadishu, al-Qaeda operatives, jihadi extremists, Ethiopian security services and Western-backed counter-terrorism networks are engaged in a shadowy and complex contest waged by intimidation, abduction and assassination. The U.S. has had some success but now risks evoking a backlash. Ultimately a successful counter-terrorism strategy requires more attention to helping Somalia with the twin tasks of reconciliation and state building.

During the 1990s, jihadism in Somalia was synonymous with al-Itihaad al-Islaami, a band of Wahhabi militants determined to establish an Islamic emirate in the country. Al-Qaeda also developed a toehold, contributing to attacks on U.S. and UN peacekeepers in the early part of the decade and using the country as a transit zone for terrorism in neighbouring Kenya; some leading members of al-Qaeda's East African network continue to hide in Somalia.

Since 2003, Somalia has witnessed the rise of a new, ruthless, independent jihadi network with links to al-Qaeda. Based in lawless Mogadishu and led by a young militia leader trained in Afghanistan, the group announced its existence by murdering four foreign aid workers in the relatively secure territory of Somaliland between October 2003 and April 2004. Western governments, led by the U.S., responded to the threat of terrorism in and from Somalia by building up Somali counter-terrorist networks headed by faction leaders and former military or police officers, and by cooperating with the security services in Somaliland and neighbouring Puntland. The strategy has netted at least one key al-Qaeda figure, and as many as a dozen members of the new jihadi group are either dead or behind bars.

Despite these successes, counter-terrorism efforts are producing growing unease within the broader public. Few Somalis believe there are terrorists in their country, and many regard the American-led war on terrorism as an assault on Islam. Unidentified surveillance flights, the abduction of innocent people for weeks at a time on suspicion of terrorist links, and cooperation with unpopular faction leaders all add to public cynicism and resentment. Without public support, even the most sophisticated counter-terrorism effort is doomed to failure. (...)

Nairobi/Brussels, 11 July 2005

More:
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?l=1&id=3555

Link to PDF file (full report, 29 pages):
COUNTER-TERRORISM IN SOMALIA: LOSING HEARTS AND MINDS?
Africa Report N°95 – 11 July 2005
http://www.crisisgroup.org/library/documents/africa/horn_of_africa/095_counter_terrorism_in_somalia.pdf