SOMALIA - SPORADIC FIGHTING CONTINUES NEAR TFG

UNCLAS NAIROBI 001394 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S CARSON E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV MOPS PINR MARR PTER SO SUBJECT: SOMALIA - SPORADIC FIGHTING CONTINUES NEAR TFG HEADQUARTERS ON JULY 6 ¶1. (SBU) Our contacts tell us sporadic fighting continued on July 6 in the Karaan and Shibis districts of Mogadishu. According to Somali Ambassador to Kenya Mohammed Nur, TFG forces held their ground. Intelligence Chief Mohammed Sheikh stated the TFG had plans to counter-attack, perhaps with help from AMISOM. ¶2. (SBU) Al-Shabaab forces still occupied recently captured areas between Behaani and the Global Hotel, parts of Leedo near the old seaport and Marino. Importantly, these areas' citizens are predominantly President Sheikh Sharif's Hawiye/Abgal clansmen. Al-Shabaab's continued presence in these areas suggests the President's own clan is unwilling or powerless to evict al-Shabaab. Other contacts tell us TFG commanders Musa Sude "Gamadhule," Indha Adde, and Police Commissioner "Qeybdiid" were leading the fighting, but were hampered by distrust of one another and poor coordination. Qeybdiid denied there were tensions between the commanders, but complained AMISOM was rationing ammunition too strictly to the TFG. ¶3. (SBU) AMISOM forwarded to us reports that on July 7, 14 al-Shabaab were killed in fighting at the Sana'a junction, southwest of Ba'aad Market. AMISOM also reported their sources tell of low morale among both the al-Shabaab and TFG forces, due to persistent fighting and problems re-supplying. On two recent occasions TFG patrols interdicted al-Shabaab movements of weapons, according to AMISOM. In one case 11 AK-47 rifles and 10 boxes of ammunition were found hidden under relief aid bound for IDPs in Galgaduud. TFG officials confiscated the weapons and ammunition, arrested two Abgal businessmen associated with the shipment, then sent the relief supplies on to their destination. The TFG continues to investigate the incident. ¶4. (SBU) Separately, the TFG released pictures of the faces of two purported foreign fighters killed in fighting July 1. The photos give the fighters' identities as a Pakistani "general" possibly involved in the murder of a nun in Mogadishu in 2008, and an Eritrean "colonel." A third photograph is of the corpse of Khalid bin Walid brigade commander Abu Khalid, who comes from "Northeast Somalia" according to the TFG. RANNEBERGER