Islam scholars denounce al-Shabaab

BBC News reports that it is the first time religious leaders have announced a fatwa. At a conference on the phenomenon of extremism in Mogadishu, the scholars said it condemned al-Shabaab's use of violence, according to the report. Al-Shabaab, or 'The Youth', is fighting to create an Islamic state in Somalia. The report says one of the aims of the conference was to issue Islamic opinion on whether the group had legitimacy or not, with the final fatwa concluding that it is not an Islamic movement. Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud opened the government-organised conference which drew Somali scholars, elders and imams from both within the country and abroad, the report notes. Full BBC News report

Meanwhile, an American who became one of Somalia's most visible Islamic rebels was killed on Thursday by al-Shabaab which is quashing dissenting voices, militants said. A report on the News24 site noted the killing of Oscar Hammami, who was on the FBI's Most Wanted list, may discourage other would-be jihadis from travelling to Somali, say terrorism experts. Hammami, a native of Daphne, Alabama, who was known as Abu Mansoor Al-Amriki, or 'the American', was killed in southern Somalia following months on the run after falling-out with al-Shabaab's top leader, according to the report. It says reports of Hammami's death have cropped up every few months in Somalia, only for him to resurface a short while later. JM Berger, a US terrorism expert says he thinks the current death reports are accurate, according to the report which notes the rebels did not immediately present proof of Hammami's death. Hammami over the past year was highly critical of al-Shabaab's leadership and freely shared his views in Internet videos and on Twitter, the report states. Full report on the News24 site

In other developments, Amnesty International has denounced the forcible eviction of tens of thousands of homeless people from makeshift camps in the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The human rights group says the process has led to 'large-scale human rights abuses' including the deaths of two people. BBC News reports that about 370 000 people have been living in the camps, having fled drought, famine and fighting. However, states the report, their presence is hampering the government's drive to rebuild the city. The Amnesty report says the 'relocation plan could have been a positive development if it had respected the security, fundamental rights and basic needs of the displaced'. It added that the government plan was 'inherently flawed' and had resulted in forced evictions. Full BBC News report