Somali Prime Minister resigns after Kampala accord

[News_Editor]

Somali Prime Minister resigns after Kampala accord

2011-06-20 00:54:59 GMT+7 (ICT)

MOGADISHU (BNO NEWS) -- Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed resigned on Sunday in line with the Kampala accord, the Daily Nation newspaper reported.

Mohamed had earlier refused to step down after many Somalis protested the accord, which aims to end the country's transitional administration. He said he was respecting the wish of Somalis who wanted him to stay in office rather than implementing the accord.

Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Speaker of Parliament Sheikh Aden signed the agreement on June 9 in the Ugandan capital, extending their terms for a year. The accord, witnessed by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and United Nations officials, provided for the resignation of the prime minister within 30 days and for his successor to be named by Ahmed and approved by Parliament within 14 days.

The accord further stipulates that elections will have to take place before August 2012. Last month, the United Nations Security Council called on Somalia's feuding political figures to agree on an election schedule by August when the transitional period expires.

Somalia has had a transitional government since 2004. Meanwhile, Somalis continue to flee violence and poverty in their homeland.

An estimated 1.5 million Somalis are internally displaced due to the violence in the southern and central regions. In Mogadishu, fighting, terrorist attacks and indiscriminate shelling are causing death and destruction, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee the city.

In addition, an approximate 678,000 Somalis live as refugees in neighboring countries. In 2011, more than 200,000 people have been displaced in Somalia while another 70,000 have fled to neighboring countries.

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