US says Islamists want peace in Somalia

ISLAMIC militia that seized Somalia’s capital this week began talks with the country’s largely powerless UN-backed government yesterday, the latest sign of their growing influence there.

The Islamic militia, accused by the United States of harbouring al-Qaida terrorists, captured Mogadishu and its evirons, despite US support for its secular rivals.

However, the Islamic Courts Union behind the militia still faces fierce opposition from a section of northern Mogadishu that has been under the control of the Agbal clan for more than a decade.