Somalia Rebels
Extorts Farmers
Somali’s
Minister of Agriculture, says Somali insurgent group al Shabaab
is extorting money from farmers, causing a fall in production.
Extortion
The Minister, Mohamed Ibrahim Habsade said members of al Shabaab
were asking farmers for one hundred and fifty dollars per
hectare of crop harvested in the fertile lower Shabelle region.
Habsade said Somalia's crop harvest has dropped because of al
Shabaab's strict orders to farmers, who were already
experiencing hard conditions.
Al Shabaab, viewed by The United States as al Qaeda's proxy in
the region, is intent on imposing a strict version of Islamic
law in the country.
Food shortages worsened after al Shabaab ordered U.N. food
agency World Food Programme to leave Somalia earlier this year.
REUTERS/Williams/Cokey
