November 18, 2005: Peace in Somalia is stalled because the warlords cannot agree on who will have what power in the new government. Most warlords were reluctant to give up any power. Since the warlords usually base their power on clan or tribe support, any peacekeeping operation would face civil war from the various tribal militias. There may, however, be some foreign intervention along the coast, because of the increasing number of pirate attacks along the coast. Some believe that the growing power of the Islamic Courts militias might bring peace. But the Islamic Courts are not unified. They are all led by different groups of religious leaders, and don't agree with each other.
November 17, 2005: In Somaliland, a vehicle hit a mine, leaving three dead. It is believed that the mine was left over from the civil war of the 1980s.
November 14, 2005: In breakaway Somaliland, courts eight to death, and seven to prison, for the murder of relief workers in 2003 and 2004. The only functioning courts in Somalia are in the two breakaway regions in the north (the other being Puntland). However, the two breakaway areas are not recognized by any foreign nations.
November 13, 2005: In Mogadishu, Islamic Courts militias attempted to close video stores and improvised cinemas, but fighting broke out when the warlords, who got a cut of the income from these operations, resisted. At least a dozen died, and at least twice as many were wounded. The Islamic Courts consider video to be immoral and un-Islamic.
November 11, 2005: The UN broadcast appeals to Somali factions to stop fighting, so that relief organizations can serve starving and sick Somalis. That's as far as the UN is willing to go, there being no enthusiasm of sending in a peacekeeper force.
