On Sunday, the remote pirate stronghold of Hobyo in the Galmudug region of central Somalia fell to Islamist militants. The growing strength of Islamist groups in the coastal area may be tied to local anger over piracy and deepening poverty. A pirate...
By Alisha Ryu Nairobi 28 June 2007 The foreign affairs secretary for Somalia's ousted Islamic Courts Union has confirmed to VOA that he has received an invitation from the country's western-backed transitional government to attend peace talks next mo...
By Alisha Ryu Nairobi 21 March 2007 Somali analysts are warning the country's interim government that excluding political opponents from a crucial reconciliation conference next month could strengthen the position of radical Islamists. VOA Correspond...
By Cathy Majtenyi Nairobi 12 December 2006 The Islamic Courts Union is threatening to attack what it says are 35,000 Ethiopian troops stationed in Somalia, unless the troops leave the country within a week. Cathy Majtenyi reports for VOA from Nairob...
By Cathy Majtenyi Nairobi 26 October 2006 The Islamic Courts Union has taken control of another town in Somalia, raising fears that scheduled peace talks between it and the transitional Somali government may not take place. The town of Sakow, 170 ki...
By Alisha Ryu Nairobi 12 October 2006 A high-ranking member of the Islamist group that controls Somalia's capital, says it is not planning an attack on neighboring Ethiopia. Fears of such an attack were raised when a leader of the Islamist group dec...
By Alisha Ryu Mogadishu 04 August 2006 Street scene in Mogadishu The recent ousting of unpopular factional warlords by Islamists in the Somali capital Mogadishu has raised hope among residents that peace will finally prevail after more than 15 years...
By Alisha Ryu Mogadishu 01 August 2006 The rise of hardliners in Somalia's Islamist group is fueling regional and western concerns that a Taleban-style regime will be established and the country will become a breeding ground for terrorists. The grou...