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| The Islamist al-Shabab group oppose activities they deem to be "Western", including certain sports |
Somalia -
Failed State
One of two
Somali athletes competing at the Olympic Games in London has denied that they
are seeking asylum in the UK.
Mohamed
Hassan Mohamed, a 1,500m runner, told the BBC Somali Service they both intended
to return home.
Earlier his
compatriot Zamzam Mohamed Farah, who ran in the first heat of the women's 400m,
spoke of the threats she has faced since competing.
Somalia has
been devastated by two decades of conflict and an al-Qaeda group controls many
areas.
Its last
functioning national government was ousted in 1991 and the resulting vacuum has
enabled both pirates and lawlessness to flourish.
'Worried'
Mr
Mohammed, 20, told the BBC that he and Ms Farah were going back to the capital,
Mogadishu, this coming Tuesday.
He admitted
that they were worried about the threats they had received but they did not
intend to stay in the UK and apply for asylum as some reports had suggested.
The
Islamist al-Shabab, which joined al-Qaeda in February and controls much of
rural southern and central Somalia, oppose activities they deem to be
"Western", including certain sports.
Ms Farah
told London-based Universal TV that she had been singled out for carrying the
national flag at the opening ceremony and "exposing herself" during
her race.
An
observant Muslim, the 21-year-old took to the track in a headscarf and with her
arms and legs covered. She also ran while fasting, in accordance with the holy
month of Ramadan, the television reported.
"There
are a lot of threats coming through both Facebook and on the telephone. My
parents have also been called and were informed that what I did was not a good
thing and that once I return, I will be dealt with."
She added
that Mohamed had been told that "there is a cross on his head and that if he
returns to Mogadishu, his head will be no more".
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| Mo Farah left Somalia as a child and now competes for Team GB |
In April,
the president of Somalia's Olympic Committee, Aden Yabarow Wiish, and the
Somali Football Federation chief, Said Mohamed Nur, were killed in a suicide
attack in Mogadishu.
In 2010,
al-Shabab said it carried out twin bombings in Uganda which killed more than 70
people who had gathered to watch the World Cup final on TV.
But for
several months, the group has come under pressure on several military fronts
and the capital is now mainly under the control of African Union peacekeepers.
Correspondents
say despite continued insecurity and assassinations in the city this has led to
a construction boom and hopes that the UN-backed process under way to elect a
new government and president this month will bring more stability to the
country.
Speaking
before the games, Ms Farah, who shares the name of the two-time Olympic gold
winner Mo Farah - a Somali-born British athlete, said medals were not a
priority for her: "I am not going for pride... I will be representing my
flag, my soil and its people."
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