Somali Opposition Chief Admits Divisions within Alliance

The Chairman of an Eritrean-based alliance bringing together exiled Somali leaders has admitted that there are divisions within the grouping. Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, chairman of the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS), Monday confirmed a rift that first surfaced when the spiritual leader of the Islamic Courts Union, Sheikh Aweys, denounced the UN-sponsored talks in Djibouti, which the ARS chairman supports. Sheikh Sharif says he supports the talks between the Somali interim government and the opposition exiles because he believes they had the capacity to bring peace to Somalia. [P.E]