By - Mar 11, 2011 11:40 AM GMT
The council made the request yesterday during a debate on the Horn of Africa nation, according to a UN statement. Forces loyal to the transitional government and African Union peacekeepers recently expanded their control of territory in the capital, Mogadishu, and in the southeast of the country.
The government led by Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed is fighting insurgents including the al-Shabaab movement, which the U.S. accuses of having links to al-Qaeda. Somalia has been without a functioning central administration since 1991, when ruler Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted.
“If we reinforce the military gains, provide humanitarian relief and achieve political progress, we can set Somalia on course for greater stability and peace,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a speech at the start of the debate.
The UN authorized an increase in the number of African Union peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi to 12,000 from 8,000 in December. Extra funds are needed bolster the force, the statement said. The 53-member African bloc wants the four-year- old operation to expand to 20,000 peacekeepers.
The UN criticized the “unilateral actions” of Somalia’s transitional parliament that Feb. 3 extended its mandate for three years beyond August without enacting a constitution or scheduling elections.
Extra humanitarian aid is also required, according to the UN. The international community has contributed only a quarter of the $529 million needed to support 2.4 million civilians threatened by drought, the UN said.
“If we fail, we risk a growing humanitarian crisis, a deteriorating security situation, and a worsening threat to regional peace and stability,” Ban said, according to the statement.
To contact the reporter on this story: William Davison in Addis Ababa via Johannesburg at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net.
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