Somalia President Dismisses Prime Minister
By VOA News
14 December 2008
The president of Somalia says he has dismissed the government of Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein.
Abdullahi Yusuf said at a press conference Sunday that he will nominate a new prime minister within days. Mr. Yusuf said he had dismissed the prime minister because his transitional government was unable to perform its duties.
Prime Minister Hussein says his dismissal is "illegal."
The president and the prime minister have been trying for weeks to form a new cabinet. But Mr. Yusuf has rejected all the candidates for ministry posts suggested by the prime minister.
A presidential adviser said the ministerial candidates failed to meet the president's standards.
Last month, the president said insurgents were in control of most of the country and warned that the government was close to collapse. His remarks followed the capture of several key towns by Islamist militant groups.
Somalia's government has been unable to assert control since its formation in 2004. Islamists took over much of the country in 2006 but were ousted by Ethiopian forces acting in support of the Somali government.
The Islamists began an insurgency in early 2007, sparking almost daily clashes with Ethiopian and government forces. The fighting has killed thousands of Somalis and displaced hundreds of thousands of others, aggravating the country's humanitarian crisis.
Somalia has not had a stable central government since 1991.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP.
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