 Somalia’s powerful Islamists on Monday declared holy war against Horn of Africa rival Ethiopia, which they accused of invading Somalia to help the government briefly seize a town controlled by pro-Islamist fighters. “Starting from today, we have declared jihad against Ethiopia,” Islamist leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed told a news conference, while wearing combat fatigues and clutching an AK-47 assault rifle.
| They do look ferocious when they put on their combat fatigues and wave the old AK and grimace... |
| ... but can they do gun sex ... |
Both sides confirmed the takeover of Buur Hakaba, the first military counter-strike by President Abdullahi Yusuf’s interim government since the Islamists took Mogadishu in June and went on to seize much of Somalia’s south. Ahmed, usually viewed as a more moderate voice among the Islamists, appeared angry as he addressed reporters. “Heavily armed Ethiopian troops have invaded Somalia. They have captured Buur Hakaba. History shows that Somalis always win when they are attacked from outside,” he said.
The Islamists and residents of Buur Hakaba, seen as a potential flashpoint because it had put the Islamists within 30 km (20 miles) of the interim governmentÂ’s base in Baidoa, said Ethiopian troops accompanied government fighters who took over the town early on Monday. A government militia commander in Buur Hakaba denied that, and Addis Ababa has consistently said it has not sent any soldiers except for military advisers.
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