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 BAIDOA, Somalia (AP) - Peace talks with Somalia's Islamic movement are no longer an option, the president said Friday, warning that the group is allowing al-Qaida terrorists to "set up shop" in the Horn of Africa.
"This is a new chapter and part of the terror group's plan to wage war against the West," Abdullahi Yusuf told The Associated Press during a rare interview at his heavily guarded office in western Somalia.
Tension has mounted in recent weeks between Somalia's government, which has international recognition but little authority, and the Council of Islamic Courts, which controls most of southern Somalia. The United States has said the Islamic movement has links to al-Qaida; Islamic leaders have repeatedly denied it.
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