Ismail Khalif Abdulle, 18, is one of them.His right hand and left leg were amputated by members of extremist Islamist group al-Shabab, which has admitted carrying out bombings in Uganda on July 11 this year, killing 76. Al-Shabab, which controls most of the capital Mogadishu, imposes a hard-line interpretation of Sharia law in its territory in Somalia, where a majority of people are Sunni Muslims.It prohibits people from watching movies as well as listening to music and repeatedly conducts public executions.A number of foreign Islamists have tried to slip into the lawless country to join jihad. Al-Shabab announced earlier this year that it is aligned with al-Qaida.In Mogadishu, there is a minimal level of peace only in the fraction of the capital where the African Union has deployed peacekeepers.''I had my right hand amputated and fell unconscious. When I woke up, my left leg was gone,'' Abdulle said in a quivering voice, speaking at a hotel built in an area ruled by the interim government.In May last year, when Abdulle returned to his home in the west of the capital in an area controlled by the rebel group, he was snatched and held captive for more than 20 days with three other young men.He was then taken to an al-Shabab court and told he was guilty of stealing a mobile phone, a crime he says he knew nothing about.Three days after the ruling, the four men, including Abdulle, were taken to a square and had their right hands and left legs amputated in front of residents.A few days later, Abdulle was asked by an al-Shabab member whether he was ready to become a suicide bomber. After he refused, Abdul was left untreated. About two weeks later, a leader of the group came and further amputated his left leg by about five more centimeters.The four men were again pressured by the group to become suicide bombers. After they agreed, they were given enough food and were able to receive treatment, according to Abdulle.About two months later, the four escaped from the group. Abdulle is now under the protection of the interim government, but fears being caught again by al-Shabab.''One reason why young people in Somalia join al-Shabab is fear,'' Abdulle said. ''I want them to stop abusing ordinary people and abandon guns.''According to Minister for Information Dahir Mohamud Guele, the national conflict is no longer a rebellion against the government or an armed fight among warlords but a ''religious war.''''We are expecting anytime to have an institutional government that is based on law and order... Our government is committed to taking military operations against insurgents,'' he said in a building of the interim government surrounded by barricades.''This is religious war. That means that we can win the war against the radicals,'' Guele said. ''We need to isolate them and exclude them as extremist groups.''Guele said that the interim government's army is preparing to engage in a large-scale operation to sweep up the rebels. ''Our army needs to fix some logistical gaps, but it seems to be the last stage,'' he said.
But prospects remain uncertain as the interim government remains powerless, with about 1.4 million of 9 million Somali people being internally displaced amid continued insecurity.Nuurta Ali, 30, a woman at a refugee camp in Mogadishu, said she has five children from 1 to 11 years old, and her children need education.''Education is important for children to not to become radicalized,'' she said. ''I hope Somalia will be a peaceful country soon. People are tired of war.''With the helpless interim government, people are searching for ways to survive without depending on the government.Infrastructure such as electricity and water services are operated by private companies, while people rely on goods shipped to the country such as grain and machinery. The capital is flooded with Japanese used cars.Money transfers from Somalis living abroad are the backbone of Somalia's economy, with the amount of money sent to the country totaling $200 million annually, according to Abu Abikar, secretary general of the Ministry of Planning and International Affairs.
Houssein Ahued Imam, 35, an employee at money transfer firm Qaran Express, said there are 220 company offices worldwide and that the firm is preparing to set up one in Japan.
Abdisalam Yusuf Guled, former spokesman of the interim government's prime minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, organized a demonstration with dozens of people in May.''Twenty years of violence, killing and anarchy. It doesn't lead anywhere...We are on the edge of hope and we want to change the channel,'' he said.''We hope people will change. It may not be tomorrow or two days later. But we are very optimistic,'' he added.Source: Kyodo News
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