Somali Islamists Take Over Mogadishu Bases Vacated By Ethiopian Troops

Mogadishu, Somalia (AHN) - Rival Islamist groups in Somalia have taken over military bases in Mogadishu that were vacated by Ethiopian troops who pulled out of the country on Thursday.
Residents in the capital city on Friday said International Courts Union (ICU) militia and fighters of al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab moved in on the bases less than 24 hours after the pullout of the Ethiopians in their bid to retake control of the country from the United Nations-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG).
However, two military bases in Mogadishu remain under government troops while some 3,000 African Union peacekeepers continue to guard the presidential palace, an airport and a seaport in the southern part of the capital.
"The city is almost under Islamist rule," said a local journalist who declined to be identified, according to CNN. "You can hear different names of the Islamist groups taking control in many parts of the city."
Residents told Voice of America that the ICU took over six bases used by Ethiopian forces since 2006 to defend the TFG.Article © AHN - All Rights Reserved