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Introducing Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the new President of Somalia.  Well, not really, Ahmed has been involved in Somali politics for quite some time.  Only now he is backed by the UN.  Ahmed was the leader of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), a group of Islamists that seized control of Mogadishu and southern Somalia in the summer of 2006 from the former UN-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG).  Today Ahmed is the leader of the present day TFG, which will be operating from outside Somalia in Dijbouti because today much of the country is controlled by a more radical version of the ICU, called Al-Shabaab.  

The international community is hoping that Ahmed will be able to restore order to the country, which hasn’t had any semblance of order since Ahmed took over from June to December of 2006.  In December, sanctioned by the UN, Ethiopia invaded Somalia to take down the Islamist rule.  Ethiopia, a predominately Christian nation, has always had constrained relations with Somalia, so when Ethiopian troops entered the country, the people were outraged.  Humanitarian organizations have complained of abuse by the Ethiopians.  So much so that many Somalis have supported the radical line of Al-Shabaab, who have risen to power based on the mantra of getting rid of the Ethiopians.  They would not exist if it wasn’t for the Ethiopian invasion.  Al-Shabaab is known for instilling strict Islamist law, similiar to the Taliban.  They have recently been listed on the United States terrorist watch, and have even recruited members from Somali communities in the States.  

So what made the UN change their mind about Ahmed?  Desperation?  Somali has basically been running without a government for some time now, and the people are unemployed and tired of decades of war and internal conflict.  This reality has given rise to the Somali pirates, mostly former fishermen who could no longer compete with huge international fishing boats who were taking advantage of the lack of Somali rule.  So the local fishermen took matters into their own hands, eventually leading to the present day situation where they have been pulling in millions from ransoming all sorts of cargo ships, cruise lines, anything that sails past their waters.  Some of the money is thought to be funding Al-Shabaab.  The international community has formed a coalition of maritime forces to stop the pirates.  Another way to stop the pirates is to help the country return to normalcy; restore a government to Somalia, support it, and end the Ethiopian occupation for good.    

So now Ahmed is given another chance to help Somalia.  What can this man do now that he has the support of the world?  The people of Somalia will ultimately make that decision.  It depends on if they will support Al-Shabaab, a group, as radical as they may be, who came when the people needed a strong arm, or if they will throw their support back with Ahmed.   

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