Somalia Storms UN Compound, Kidnaps UN Official
The government of Somalia has displayed its respect for world opinion and the UN today. It sent armed men to storm the UN compound in Mogadishu and has kidnapped the UN official in charge of food relief for that sad little country.
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The head of U.N. food agency operations in the violence-wracked Somali capital was taken away Wednesday by 50 to 60 heavily armed government security officers who had stormed the U.N. compound in Mogadishu, the agency said.
The World Food Program suspended aid distribution in Mogadishu in response to the detention of the official, Irdris Osman.
Interior Minister Mohamed Mohamoud Guled denied government officers carried out any operation at the U.N. compound. But he added that the WFP last month distributed food aid without consulting the government, a reason that the government has in recent months used to block distributions to areas perceived to be against the government.
The detention followed some of the heaviest fighting in weeks in the capital. Overnight, at least eight civilians and one policeman died during a battle between Islamic insurgents and policemen, said residents and the police on Wednesday.
Osman was being held in a cell at the National Security Service headquarters and the WFP has not received any explanation for the action, the agency said, adding his detention violated international law.
"In the light of Mr. Osman's detention and in view of WFP's duty to safeguard its staff, WFP is forced immediately to suspend these distributions and the loading of WFP food from our warehouses in the Somali capital," the agency's statement said.
No shots were fired when the officers stormed the U.N. compound in Mogadishu, the statement said.
Even the most thuggish of governments has nothing whatsoever to fear from the United Nations. They know it, that's why they do these sorts of things.
World news | Gaius Wednesday, 17 October , 2007
By Lars Walker, Wednesday, 17 October , 2007 @ 11:30 am
Something must be done! Send in the UN peacekeepers!
By mockinbrd, Wednesday, 17 October , 2007 @ 12:47 pm
I’m starting to see a pattern here-UNcompetence.