President Sharif, Islamists angry, U.S. happy

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President Sharif, Islamists angry, U.S. happy

 

 

03/02/2009 10:42:00 PM GMT Comments (0) Add a comment Print E-mail to friend

 

 

 

(Reuters) Sheikh Sharif's election won plaudits from the U.S. and ally Ethiopia.

 

 

 

DJIBOUTI — Leader of the Islamic Courts Union Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed was sworn in as Somalia's president on Saturday, January 31, to the anger of Islamist groups and the welcome of the United States and Ethiopia.

"My government will bring an adequate plan to overcome the difficulties the nation is facing," Sheikh Sharif said after taking the oath on the Qur'an during a special ceremony in Djibouti, reported Agence France Presse (AFP).

 

"As for the international concerns of piracy and the misinterpretation of Islam we will take concrete action."

 

Sheikh Sharif, the candidate of the opposition Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS), was elected president by parliament on Saturday.

 

He vowed to reconcile all warring parties and bring about peace and stability to the war-torn country.

 

"I am extending a hand to all Somali armed groups who are still opposed to this process and inviting them to join us," he said.

 

"I will have cordial relations with IGAD (Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, regional grouping) states and Somalia will be an active member of the organization."

 

Sheikh Sharif was expected to travel to Addis Ababa to represent his country at the African Union's 12th annual summit, which starts on Sunday.

 

A former geography teacher educated in Sudan and Libya, Sheikh Sharif is from the town of Jowhar and belongs to the ****** branch of the ****** clan, which is one of Somalia's two largest and prominent in central Somalia and Mogadishu.

 

He set up the ICU in 2002 to oust the warlords, who had ruled Somalia for years.

 

After Ethiopian invaded Somalia, Sheikh Sharif went into exile in Djibouti, where he led the Somali resistance against the Ethiopian troops.

 

Last November, he returned to his stronghold of Jowhar, located some 90 kilometers (55 miles) north of Mogadishu, for the first time in two years and after Ethiopian troops pulled out of the town.

 

"Very soon, I will form a government which represents the people of Somalia," said Sheikh Sharif.

 

"We will live peacefully with east African countries and we want to cooperate with them."

 

Somalia has been without effective government since the ouster of former president Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

 

Islamists Angry

 

Sheikh Sharif's election drew immediate fire from the Shebab group and Eritrea-based opposition.

 

"Sheikh Sharif and the election in Djibouti is not something to be supported," Sheikh Hassan Yacqub, Shebab spokesman in the southern city of Kismayu, told Reuters.

 

The Shebab, once an off-shot of the Islamic Courts, has been gaining grounds across Somalia.

 

Its fighters had relentlessly fought the Ethiopian troops and government forces, carrying out an Iraq-style guerrilla war, including ambushes and roadside bombs.

 

The Eritrea-based opposition also described Sheikh Sharif's election as 'worthless'.

 

"This presidency is not grounded on solid bases," Sheikh Hassan Aweys, leader of the ARS Asmara wing, told the Doha-based Al-Jazeera television.

 

Aweys accused Sheikh Sharif of abandoning his principles for the presidential post.

 

"It is not about votes, but it is about principles."

 

U.S. happy

But Sheikh Sharif's election won plaudits from the U.S. and ally Ethiopia.

 

"President Sharif has been a strong proponent of the Djibouti process and has worked diligently on reconciliation efforts in Somalia," the U.S. embassy in Kenya said in a statement.

 

"We urge President Sharif to reach out to the broad spectrum of Somalis who reject violence and extremism in forming a new government."

 

Washington also offered help to the new Somali president to bring about peace to the war-scarred country.

 

"The United States looks forward to cooperating with President Sharif and his broad-based government on these efforts to establish democracy and achieve peace in Somalia."

 

Somalia's neighbor Ethiopia, traditionally seen by Somalis as a Christian rival, also welcomed Sheikh Sharif's election.

 

"We are very happy with the fact that Sheikh Sharif has been elected," Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said.

 

"Following the path that he has been taking for the past six, nine months that will be very helpful for Somalia and the region as a whole. It could be one step forward."