Somalia rebels intensify tomb raiding

Members of Al-Shabaab destroy the grave of Sheikh Biyamalow, a revered Sufi Muslim sheikh in Mogadishu, Thursday, March 25, 2010. Witnesses say Somalia's al-Qaida-linked militant group is exhuming the remains of a revered moderate cleric in the capital to stop people from worshipping him. Al-Shabab official Ali Mohamed Hussein says Tuesday his group dug up Sheik Mohyadin Eli's grave in Mogadishu because people seeking blessings and visiting the tomb for spiritual purposes. Witness Hassan Da'ud says the cleric's 30-year-old remains were stuffed into sacks. Al-Shabab has prohibited adoring tombs and destroyed idolized tombs in areas under its control over the last couple of years. The group espouses a strict interpretation of Islam. Many Somalis observe a relatively moderate form of Islam that allows the veneration of respected saints.
Photograph by: Mohamed Sheikh
On Tuesday, heavily-armed Shebab militia exhumed and took away the remains of a Sufi cleric buried in Mogadishu 30 years ago.
“The raids are continuing for the third day and we have excavated around seven graves so far,” said Sheik Said Karatay, the Shebab official in charge of the tomb raids.
“We take their remains and re-bury them in unidentified places in order to avoid them being recognised by people who continue worshiping them,” he told reporters in Mogadishu.
“The operations will go on until we eradicate the culture of worshiping graves.”
Witnesses said the Shebab militia chanted “God is great” as they dug up the and destroyed the graves using hammers and hoes.Sufism, which is dominant in Somalia, emphasises the mystical dimension of Islam and includes practices considered as idolatry and innovations in the conservative Wahhabi current of Islam adopted by the Shebab.The Shebab, who control much of the lawless Horn of Africa country, have set up a unit to destroy all tombs respected by Sufi Muslims.