Islamists order Mogadishu radios to stop playing music

MOGADISHU — A hardline Somali Islamist group issued a 10-day ultimatum Saturday to Mogadishu-based radio stations to stop playing all kinds of music or face unspecified penalties, an Islamist leader said.
The Hezb al-Islam group, which controls patches of the war-riven Somali capital, said playing music on radio stations was evil.
"We call on the local radio stations to stop broadcasting the songs and all music as well. We give them a 10-day deadline and any radio station found not complying with the orders... will face sharia action," said Moalim Hashi Mohamed Farah, a senior Hezb al-Islam official, referring to Islamic law.
"We also issue orders banning the local media from using the word 'foreigners' to refer to our Muslim brothers coming from outside the country to help us fight against the enemy of Allah," he told reporters.
Farah said the only foreign fighters in the war-racked Horn of Africa country were the African Union peacekeeping force made up of Burundian and Ugandan troops.
The hardline militia official has repeatedly called on foreign jihadists to come to Somalia and help them fight the country's Western-backed transitional government and the AU forces.
"Every Muslim fighter can come to Somalia to fight the enemy of Allah and we would also invite Osama bin Laden to the country if the we get the opportunity," Farah said.
The Hezb al-Islam and the Al Qaida-inspired Shebab fighters have vowed to oust the country's government and have carried out relentless attacks against their foe since May last year.
The Shebab, which control around 80 percent of Somalia, have also imposed strict Islamic law in those regions.
 AFP