By MOHAMED OLAD HASSAN
MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somali insurgent group Al-Shabab seized the seat of the Somali parliament and said Tuesday that it will establish sharia law in the city.
Al-Shabab took over Baidoa late Monday, a day after Ethiopian Woyanne troops who had been propping up the government ended their unpopular, two-year presence. Al-Shabab, which means “The Youth,” has been gaining ground as Somalia’s Western-backed government crumbles.
“We will establish an Islamic administration for the town, and appeal to residents to remain calm,” al-Shabab spokesman Sheik Muktar Robow said.
The takeover came as Somalia’s parliament meets this week in neighboring Djibouti to elect a new president. It appears unlikely the lawmakers will be able to return to Baidoa, 155 miles (250 kilometers) southwest of the capital.
There was a brief firefight between the Islamists and government-allied militias, who soon fled, witnesses said.
A nurse at the city’s main hospital, Ahmed Yarow, said two people were wounded during the clashes.