BAIDOA (Somalia), Dec 24: A Somali lawmaker whose appointment as prime minister was rejected by parliament announced he was standing aside on Wednesday in a bid to end a political crisis in the war-torn nation.

Mohamoud Mohamed Guled told reporters that he had written a resignation letter to President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, saying he did not want to become an “obstacle” to dialogue between political rivals.

Guled was named premier on Tuesday of last week, two days after Yusuf sacked incumbent Nur Hassan Hussein and his entire cabinet in a move condemned both by parliament and neigbouring countries.

“After looking into the situation in the country I decided to resign as the prime minister of Somalia and I have given my resignation letter to his excellency the president of Somalia,” Guled said.

“I am paving the way for the continuation of dialogue between Somali leaders and I don’t want to become an obstacle.” Hussein applauded Guled’s resignation, saying he had taken “the right step.” “The decision of Guled is a milestone to the ongoing peace talks to pacify Somalia and I congratulate him,” added Hussein, who received an overwhelming vote of confidence from parliament in the aftermath of his sacking.

Yusuf and Hussein have frequently been at loggerheads in recent months, notably over attempts to reach a reconciliation deal with the Islamist-dominated Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS).

Under the United Nations-led negotiations in Djibouti, the government and the ARS have agreed on a power-sharing and ceasefire deal, but the implementation has been hobbled by the power wrangles.

The agreement has also been rejected by radical Islamists, including the Shebab militia which has been leading an insurgency in Somalia.

Years of conflict and power struggles in the Horn of Africa country have scuppered numerous efforts to restore stability.

A withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from the country by the end of the year has also sparked security fears, with the embattled government unable to exert authority and a small group of African Union peacekeepers also overwhelmed.

In a newly-published report, the Brussels-based International Crisis Group warned that the transitional government was on the brink of collapse and called for the inclusion of the hardline Islamists in peace efforts.

“There is reason to believe that despite radical posturing, a significant majority in the Islamist insurgency would engage in a political dialogue that does not seek to criminalise it and offers them a role in future government,” the group said.

Although the Ethiopian pull-out “opens a new period of uncertainty and risk, (it) also provides a chance to launch an all inclusive political process.” Ethiopia deployed troops to Somalia in late 2006 and helped the embattled interim government topple an Islamist movement that had gained control of much of the country’s central and southern regions.

But since being ousted, remnant elements have waged a relentless war against their rivals, with civilians bearing the worst brunt of the battles that have centred on the capital Mogadishu.

Somalia has been ravaged by internecine conflicts that erupted with the 1991 downfall of strongman Mohamed Siad Barre.—AFP