Somali Insurgents Say They Will Close UN Agencies
By VOA News
20 July 2009
Somalia's al-Shabab insurgents say they will shut down the local operations of three United Nations agencies.
The militant Islamist group says in a statement that as of Monday, the agencies will be completely closed down and considered "enemies of Islam and Muslims."
The targeted groups are the U.N. Development Program, the U.N. Department of Safety and Security, and the U.N. Political Office for Somalia.
Al-Shabab says the groups are working against the benefit of Somali Muslims and against the establishment of an Islamic state.
There has been no immediate reaction from U.N. officials.
The U.N. supports Somalia's transitional government, which al-Shabab and allied group Hizbul Islam are trying to overthrow.
The group has taken other measures aimed at seizing authority, such as calling on government forces to surrender their weapons. The government dismissed that threat.
Al-Shabab controls much of southern Somalia and parts of the capital, Mogadishu, after more than two years of fighting.
The group is known for imposing a harsh form of Islamic law in the areas it controls.
Earlier this month, it beheaded seven people accused of being Christian or spying for the government.
Somalia has endured nearly two decades of war and conflict, since the fall of the country's last stable government in 1991.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.
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