SCAIRO — Several Arab heavyweights have changed hearts after an initial support for Ethiopian presence in Somalia and are diplomatically and financially supporting the Somali resistance, according to European diplomatic sources.
"European intelligence services have reported an indirect Arab diplomatic support for the Alliance for the Liberation of Somalia (ALS)," the political arm of the resistance, a European diplomat told IslamOnline.net in Cairo.
He said Qatar has opened a liaison office for the nascent alliance in the capital Doha.
After the powerful Ethiopian army ousted the Islamic Courts in December of last year at a request from the weak transitional government, most Arab countries said they "understood" the Ethiopian intervention.
"Heavyweight Egypt, for instance, was among the first Arab countries to display this understanding, but has since backtracked and started feeling the heat from a prolonged Ethiopian presence in Somalia because Addis Ababa controls the Nile River tributaries," said the European diplomat.
"Other Arab countries have also realized that a prolonged Ethiopian presence could endanger their strategic interests in the Horn of Africa."
He said Cairo considers ALS, launched in September 2007 as an umbrella for resisting Ethiopian occupation forces, a moderate voice unlike the Islamic Courts "which were run by hardliners."
A Somali government source told IOL they were disappointed at what he called the negative diplomatic role played by some Arab countries.
"They are trying to undermine the government and oppose the Ethiopian presence in the country," he said, declining to name any country.
The Alliance is led by Islamic Courts Executive Chairman Sharif Sheikh Ahmad and comprises politicians from a wide spectrum including liberals and nationalists, including former parliament speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden and former deputy premier Hussein Mohamed Farrah.
The Courts ruled for six months after routing an alliance of US-supported warlords.
Fundraising
The European diplomat spoke of fundraising campaigns at the grassroots level in Gulf countries for the Alliance.
"Millions of dollars have been raised in Gulf countries and channeled to the Somali resistance this year in addition to donations from Somali expatriates," he said.
But the European diplomat added there was no hard evidence regarding any Arab military support for the Somali resistance, citing European intelligence reports.
"There is an abundant supply of weapons in Somalia sufficient for decades of conflicts," he noted.
"Weapons are pouring onto the country through its many porous harbors or in the shape of spoils from attacks on Ethiopian military bases."
One year on, Somalia has proved to be a quagmire for Ethiopian troops.
"They are paying dearly for their presence and the government has turned into a bunch of employees receiving their salaries from the UN Development Program and they are terrified by the resistance forces," said the diplomat.
Since ousting the Courts, Ethiopian and government forces have been coming under almost daily attacks.
The European diplomat said the status quo plays well into the hands of the Islamic Courts.
Islamic Courts fighters have grown more powerful in recent months, reportedly regaining control of at least one-third of Somalia.
By Abdel Qadir Mohammad, IOL Correspondent