Islamic Sharia prescribed in Somalia

"Sheikhs" from the Islamic sects in Mogadishu announced on Thursday that they had prescribed Islamic Sharia in certain Somali districts in order to withstand the increasing wave of crimes and tribal conflicts.

The sheikhs added, following a meeting which included hundreds of Muslims in one of the capital's hotels, that a new supreme court, supported by private militias and investigators, will be established in the northern part of the capital and in other parts of the country where members of Abghal tribes live.

The Sheikhs added that Sheikh Hamoud Ahmad Sayyar was appointed as the chairman of the Islamic court, which is composed of 114 members and is in charge of carrying out the Islamic Sharia jurisprudence.

Somalia has lacked a central government and national establishments since 1991. Somalia, moreover, is witnessing an escalation of acts of violence which claim the lives of many persons, including UN humanitarian workers.