Somali insurgents loot UN compounds

Gunmen from Somalia's al Shabaab group looted two United Nations compounds yesterday after the al Qaeda-linked militants said they would shut down three UN agencies operating in the Horn of Africa nation.

Al Shabaab controls much of southern Somalia and parts of the capital Mogadishu. The group is fighting government troops and African Union peacekeepers to impose its own harsh version of sharia law throughout Somalia.

It said UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), UNDSS (United Nations Department of Safety and Security) and UNPOS (United Nations Political Office for Somalia) were working against Somali Muslims and the establishment of an Islamic state.

A UN official said expatriate staff in Baidoa were being evacuated to neighbouring Kenya. The official said operations in Wajid would continue as minimum security conditions had not been affected and security staff were still present.

Al Shabaab said other non-governmental organisations and foreign agencies operating in Somalia should contact the administration in their area and they would be informed of the conditions and restrictions on their work.