Somalia accuses Eritrea of assisting Al Shabaab

“The Eritrean government could not stop encouraging and assisting the terrorist groups operating in Somalia even after the sanction imposed by the UNSC,” Ambassador Seid Yosouf Noor said.

The Ambassador said that without the assistance of the Eritrean government, the terrorist groups in Somalia will not have enough military and financial capability to fight the TFG.

“We have credible evidence that the regime [in Eritrea] is the main peace spoiler by directing terrorist groups,” said the Ambassador who accused the Eritrean military officers of training Al Shabaab troops and harboring its leaders.

He called on the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU), and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to tighten their coercive measures to prevent the Eritrean government from assisting terrorist groups.

The Ambassador also welcomed the news on the death of Osama bin Laden, leader of Al Qaeda, and congratulated the American military forces for the operation.

“Al Shabaab has openly self declared its alignment with Al-Qaeda to execute its terrorist objectives in the region,” he told WIC. “The death of the Al Qaeda leader will have significant outcome in weakening its wing in the region”.

According to Ambassador Seid, the TFG, currently, controls over 90 percent of Mogadishu, capital of Somalia, for which he expressed gratitude for the cooperation of the nations in the horn.

“Ethiopia and Uganda, in particular, have been playing a great role in assisting the TFG and the people of Somalia,” Ambassador Seid said.

The Ugandan government has recently approved a decision to send 4,000 additional troops to Somalia on a peacekeeping mission while Ethiopia hosts thousands of Somali refugees who fled persecutions.

The Ambassador, finally, called on the international community and humanitarian organizations to assist the over three million Somalis who are in need of urgent food assistance. He also called on the international community to put pressure on the extremists to enable humanitarian assistance to women and children stranded by the fighting.