INTERVIEW-Somali president calls for help vs militants

NAIROBI, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Somali President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed asked for more international help on Friday to battle hardline insurgents after holding what he called a historic meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Clinton pledged strong support for Ahmed's fragile administration after meeting him in Nairobi on Thursday, and she warned that Washington would take action against Eritrea if it did not stop supporting Somalia's rebels.Ahmed told Reuters the discussions showed the United States' commitment to restoring peace in Somalia. But he said his government, which controls only parts of the capital Mogadishu, needed more help from overseas to beat the militants. "The Somali government alone can not bring a solution to the mayhem these groups are causing," Ahmed said in an interview.
"If we don't confront them with the assistance of the world, the situation may turn into an uncontainable security threat." Western security agencies say the Horn of Africa nation is a haven for extremists planning attacks in the region and beyond. Australian police said this week they had uncovered a plot to attack a Sydney army base by men they said had links to al Shabaab, which Washington says is al Qaeda's proxy in Somalia. In the latest fighting, 10 civilians including a child were killed as insurgents and African Union(AU) peacekeepers exchanged mortar barrages in Mogadishu, residents said. Ahmed said African nations wanted to help, but needed money from the West. He praised Burundi for sending a battalion of 850 soldiers last week, bringing the strength of the AU peacekeeping force in the capital to more than 5,000. And he said foreign militants in al Shabaab's ranks had imported a hardline version of Islam that most Somalis rejected.
"NEW-STYLE GANGSTERS"
"They are using religion as political tool, which we will not allow. Islam is a religion of peace and harmony. I cannot set a deadline for the liberation of Mogadishu, but we will free our people from these new-style gangsters," he said. "We are working on reforming the security forces and using other civil structures that reject these foreign ideas, and I hope the (whole) capital will be under government control soon." He appealed for Asmara to stop supporting the rebels: "Eritrea can change its approach and play a peaceful role instead of becoming a destabilising force in the region." Eritrea denies funding or arming Somalia's militants...more..http://alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L7042454.htm
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