Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki has dismissed accusations that he supports the al-Qaeda-affiliated group which has been waging an insurgency in Somalia.
|||Kampala - Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki, accused by the West of supporting Somalia's Islamist rebellion, denied on Thursday that his country backed the al-Qaeda-affiliated group which has been waging a four-year insurgency in Somalia.
The diplomatically isolated president, speaking in the Ugandan capital at the end of a three-day trip, denied accusations contained in a U.N. report that said Eritrea was bankrolling al-Shabaab.
His visit to Uganda has raised eyebrows among regional observers, especially because the al-Shabaab rebels his government is accused of financing killed 79 people in twin bombings in Kampala last year.
“These accusations are built on assumptions, innuendos, guesses about this matter.,” Isaias said in a joint news conference with his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni, when asked about his country's support for al-Shabaab.
“Shabaab is serving the interests of those who want to maintain the disintegration of Somalia and give al-Shabaab an opportunity to flourish and broaden its influence in Somalia,” said Isaias, who was on his first visit to the region in four years.
Uganda provides the bulk of African Union peacekeepers for the Somali capital Mogadishu, which has witnessed daily battles for the last four years before al-Shabaab withdrew earlier this month. A famine declared in parts of the country has also exacerbated the country's anarchic, desperate situation.
Museveni, who observers say hosted Isaias to showcase his role in the fight against militancy and as a peace-seeking politician, voiced support for the isolated Eritrean leader.
“The bombing here was done by al-Shabaab but the issue here is that al-Shabaab is not supported by Eritrea, that's what Isaias told me and I accept it because he's an honourable comrade, he's not somebody who has walked out of the slums.” - Reuters
Source: http://www.iol.co.za/afewerki-denies-backing-militants-1.1120894
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