Somali Militias Decry Terrorists

Letter to U.S. Pledges Nation Won't Be Haven

NAIROBI, June 15 -- The leader of Somalia's increasingly powerful Islamic militias sent a letter to the United States this week asserting that they would assist international efforts to prevent the fractured, chaotic country from becoming "a transit route or hiding ground" for terrorists.

The letter, dated Wednesday and sent to the State Department and the embassies of several other countries, gives a direct though conciliatory response to concerns by U.S. officials that the Islamic militias harbor terrorists linked to attacks across East Africa, including the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

In the three-page letter, Sharif Ahmed, chairman of the loosely organized confederation of Islamic militias that took control of Mogadishu, the Somali capital, last week, compared international terrorists such as al-Qaeda to the brutal warlords who had ruled the city since 1991.

"Our communities have been subjected to terrorism longer than any community anywhere else in the world," he said in the letter. "Some of our leaders' families had the unfortunate experiences of loved ones being kidnapped, tortured and murdered at the hands of the warlords and criminal gangs during the last decade. We feel the pain of all people who had to face tyranny of terrorists and organized criminals. Our commitment in this regard is steadfast."

Meanwhile in New York, the United States met with key African and European governments to forge a new international strategy on Somalia. The meeting of the so-called International Contact Group on Somalia marked a renewed effort by the State Department to engage on Somalia.

The group, which included representatives from the United States, Italy, Norway, Sweden and the European Union, issued a communique after the meeting that urged all Somali parties to begin negotiations with the country's U.N.-backed but largely powerless transitional government. It also vowed to step up support for the government and press for greater access for aid workers.

Diplomats said Sweden would host another meeting next month.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazier said after the meeting that the group would strive "to increase the profile of Somalia as a destination for more assistance, more support."

Frazier sounded upbeat about the willingness of Somalia's Islamic militias to accommodate the international community. "They have clearly signaled to us that they are someone that we can work with," she said.

Frazier defended U.S. dealings with the secular warlords, who portrayed themselves as part of an anti-terrorism alliance and enjoyed U.S. support.

"We've never supported anyone to fight anyone else," Frazier said. "We have supported trying to get information from whoever we can get information, about particular terrorists like Harun Fazul, who was indicted for attacking our embassies. And we will continue to seek informtion from any and every party to try to get these guys turned over."

The issue of terrorism in Somalia has loomed over the political and military developments there in recent weeks. As residents of Mogadishu have signaled support for their new rulers, Western countries have expressed fears that the militias are a reincarnation of the Taliban, the former leaders of Afghanistan who practiced a severe form of Islam and allowed Osama bin Laden to set up a base.