 MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - The leader of the Islamic group that controls much of southern Somalia has revived the idea of a "Greater Somalia" that would incorporate regions of Kenya and Ethiopia - a move that could further stoke tensions with the neighboring countries.
Sheik Hassan Dahir Aweys, chairman of the Council of Islamic Courts, told Shabelle Radio in an interview late Friday that his group would work to unite ethnic Somali peoples, but he did not say how it proposed to achieve a "Greater Somalia."
This is the first time that Aweys has spoken about expanding the influence of the Islamic courts outside Somalia since his group seized control of the capital, Mogadishu, in June and then consolidated its control over most of southern Somalia. "We will leave no stone unturned to integrate our Somali brothers in Kenya and Ethiopia and restore their freedom to live with their ancestors in Somalia," he said.
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After present-day Somalia was formed in 1960 from Italian and British colonies, the country's leaders began pushing for the unity of all Somali-speaking peoples. Somalis live in Djibouti, northeastern Kenya and eastern Ethiopia. Somalia launched an invasion of Ethiopia in 1977, which was quickly repelled. Since then, Somali nationalists and Islamic fundamentalists have continued to advocate the idea of a "Greater Somalia," and a minor ethnic-Somali insurgency continues in eastern Ethiopia. |