African Peacekeepers Ready to Defend If Attacked

Mogadishu — The AU peace keepers in Mogadishu known as AMISOM are ready to defend from any attackers, AMISOM spokesman Maj. Barigye Bahoko ..Al-Shabaab insurgents attacked African Union peacekeepers for the first time since Ethiopian troops pulled out from Mogadishu on Saturday evening."We have never been the first ones to fire our bullets to anyone and we will never be, but we have a right to defend our selves, those who are making threats have to understand the problem of Somalia is not AMISOM. It is the lack of peace and security, Maj. Barigye ."The self defense we have always done is the one we want to continue. It simply means that we will respond the attackers. We do not fire everyone, we fire to the positions where we have been shot," he added.Mr. Bahoko welcomed the voices of the Somali clerics and traditional elders who supported the peace process.He also welcomed the withdrawal of the Ethiopian troops and said Ethiopia complied the peace agreement of Djibouti which was signed in Djibouti between the transitional government and the Alliance for icu...
Somali capital of Mogadishu fell to the forces of the Hawiye dominated USC in January 1991. Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre fled Mogadishu ...When the civil war erupted, the USC (Hawiye rebel group) went on a quest of onslaught against innocenent Darod civilians in mogadishu . estimated 15,000 unarmed darod civilians were killed,mostly women and children On January 26, 1991, the USC stormed the presidential palace in Mogadishu, ...... were burned to the ground, and tens of thousands of people were massacred, hawiye's are finally paying for what they did in 1991. killing thousands of darood,Only armed cars were on the streets. In areas that the Hawiye already controlled, gunmen were going door to door rounding up Darod men, woman, children.strategic points in the city. The sprawling suburbs of. west and northwest Mogadishu became strongholds of. Hawiye-based resistance ,Mogadishu by now had become a city of torture and murder, ... Fighting eventually broke out between the competing factions within the Hawiye ...Mogadishu has become so dangerous since Islamists were ousted in 2006 that the majority .... The Hawiye backed the warlords who first controlled the city, ...abgaal and habar gidir, 2 subclans of hawiye, have destroyed the city ,As the city descended into complete anarchy, looting became a way of life ,Mogadishu , the capital of Somalia, is a city living a clandestine nightmare ... In that year Hawiye militia burned, raped and killed any person of Darood ...Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, is a city living a clandestine ... every one of these belongs to only one Somali tribe (hawiye)
AU not worried by Somali extremist group's threats
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia: The African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia is not worried by threats to make it a target following the pullout of Ethiopian troops from the Somali capital, the force's commander said on Saturday.
The AU force in Mogadishu has a restricted mandate guarding key government installations and has not been involved in a lot of the violence in the capital, but hardline groups have viewed it as an occupying force.
This week, the extremist Islamist group al-Shabab threatened to focus its attacks on AU troops now that the Ethiopians are leaving Somalia.
"As a security officer, I am not worried but I take into consideration such threats," said Maj. Gen. Francis Okello, the AU peacekeeping force commander, speaking indirectly about the al-Shabab threat.MORE..http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/01/17/africa/AF-AU-Somalia.php