A renowned Somali cleric Sheikh Omar Faruk has strongly condemned insurgent attacks against African Union peacekeepers and Somali government forces saying that war against them is illegal in Islamic principles.

In a telephone interview from the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday, the highly-respected cleric described the war against AMISOM un-Islamic.

"No matter whether they are infidels or not, but what we know is that the AU peacekeepers have come to Somalia under international agreement signed by the United Nations and the African Union and with the allowance of the Somali government, so fighting against them is illegal in accordance with the Sharia," the cleric said.

"The AU forces were called and hosted by the legitimate Somali government and we know that since their arrival they have been helping the Somali people. They are working to pacify the war-ravaged country so they must be supported," he added.

He called on the Al Qaeda-linked Al Shabab militants and Hezbal Islam to lay down their arms and negotiate with the Somali government and its people.

"Somalis are war-weary and they don’t need prolonged fighting and instead they want peace and stability," the cleric stated.

"I am one of the great Somali clerics and I don’t support the continuation of the war in the country. The rebels must stop violence and the people must work with the Islamic government in Somalia which is working to implement Islamic law in the country," he added.

The call from the cleric comes as the leader of Hezbal Islam rebels Sheikh Hassan Dahri Aweys this week declared a long time war against AU peacekeepers in Somalia (AMISOM) and the country’s internationally-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG).

The militants have been fighting the TFG and AMISOM for the past three years and as a result, at least 22,000 Somali civilians were killed in the restive capital Mogadishu alone, where more than 1.5 million others have fled from their homes in the city.

Source:Sunatimes.com

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