Somalia president expected to resign

[spindrifter]

By Edmund Sanders
5:28 PM PST, December 24, 2008
Reporting from Nairobi, Kenya -- Somalia's aging president is expected to resign in the coming days, aides said Wednesday, succumbing to threats of impeachment and international sanctions over his refusal to support a national reconciliation plan.

Abdullahi Yusuf, a warlord-turned-statesman, was once widely viewed as the linchpin of Somalia's transitional government. But in recent months, Yusuf, 74, has repeatedly clashed with the prime minister and has come to be regarded as an obstacle to peace.


Yusuf's departure would mark a turning point for the Horn of Africa nation. It could reignite clan warfare, but it also could clear the way for a new power-sharing government that includes a key Islamist opposition faction.

"Yusuf was always a liability to Somalia and to the peace process," said Ali Said Omar Ibrahim, head of the Center for Peace and Democracy, a Somali peace advocacy group. "This is going to help bring in a new era for Somalia by helping different stakeholders come together to decide the country's future."

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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-somalia-president25-2008dec25,0,3872450.story

[On the Road]

1. Who Knew Somalia Had a President?

I thought since Siad Barre it was all a clusterfuck of warlords fighting each other. Thank you for the update.

[spindrifter]

2. You are right--the country has many problems that

hve interfered with any ability to form a cohesive government--clan rivalry, poor leadership from the "recognized" political figures, the effects of drought and warfare, the tsunami. The list seems to go on and on.

[Alamuti Lotus]

3. his last leg was the Ethiopians

and the occupyer is allegedly leaving at the end of this month. The main powers at the moment in South/Central Somalia (the northern areas are de facto independent already) are all various factions that came out of the Islamic Courts Union government that reigned in late 2006. The Islamic resistance movement al-Shabaab has put enough pressure on the occupyer and the puppet regime to now force its departure. (already the alleged government rules in name only, from the Ethiopian army base in Baidoa and a few isolated neighborhoods of Muqdishu)

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

4. Somalia has a president?

Who knew?

[davidinalameda]

5. divide the place up and call it a day

let the groups have what they want so more people won't be killed

[IMPERIUM V]

6. Who do you think should do the dividing?

[davidinalameda]

8. honestly, I don't care at this point

let the UN come in and broker something or the EU or the Organization of African States or some other international group

[liberati]

7. Yeah, let Kenya and Ethiopia divide it up.

What the hell, let Djibouti have a chunk of it too!