Monday, August 9, 2010

Reuters-Somali Rebels Expel Foreign Aid Groups

Al Shabaab Rebels in /Somali:textually.org
(Story reported by Ibrahim Mohamed for Reuters News)

(Reuters) - Somalia's al Shabaab insurgents said on Monday they had ordered several aid agencies to close their operations, accusing them of spreading Christian propaganda.

The hardline Islamists, which are linked to al Qaeda, control most of southern and central Somalia along with another rebel group, Hizbul Islam. Fighting between the rebels and African Union-backed government troops in the capital Mogadishu has worsened one of the world's most acute humanitarian crises.

Al Shabaab said it had barred World Vision, which was founded in the United States in 1950, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) and Diakonia from working in the anarchic Horn of Africa nation.

"Acting as missionaries under the guise of humanitarian work, the organizations have been spreading their corrupted ideologies in order to taint the pure creed of the Muslims in Somalia," al Shabaab said in a statement. "Along with their missionary work, the proliferation of corruption and indecency has become prevalent as a result of their presence."

(click here to read the full story on the Reuters News website)

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