SOMALIA:People turned willingly to the sharia courts, impressed by the law and order they imposed on areas of Mogadishu, writes Rob Crilly
Somalia's Islamic courts offered peace, security and certainty to a people tired after 15 years of inter-clan fighting.
Having taken control of Mogadishu in June, they reopened the airport, removed checkpoints and sent out teams to repair the crumbling streets.
Within weeks, their forces occupied swaths of territory that a weak interim government had been unable to control.
But their emergence caused nightmares elsewhere, notably in Washington - which accuses the courts of harbouring al-Qaeda terrorists - and Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.
The US moved first in an attempt to prevent the sharia courts winning control of Mogadishu as fighting raged in the city during February and March.
Millions of dollars were secretly channelled to a loose coalition of warlords who had styled themselves as the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism.
But they were hated in Mogadishu. Residents blamed the military strongmen for keeping their city in a near constant state of anarchy.
When word of US involvement spread around the city people turned willingly to the sharia courts, impressed by the law and order imposed on corners of Mogadishu already under their control. Six months later, it is Ethiopian forces who are trying to roll back that progress.
Somalis have long claimed a chunk of eastern Ethiopia as part of their own and the Islamists were fond of talking about reviving the idea of a Greater Somalia.
Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia's prime minister, is also a sworn enemy of Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, leader of the courts. So it was not surprising that reports began to circulate during the summer of columns of Ethiopian troops moving into the Somali government stronghold of Baidoa to prop up the faltering administration.
At the same time, Eritrea spotted a chance of giving an old foe a bloody nose. Ships and aircraft laden with arms and ammunition began arriving in Mogadishu from Eritrea as regional analysts warned that Somalia's crisis risked plunging the entire Horn of Africa into war.
With the two opposing forces deadlocked, European diplomats in Nairobi tried to persuade the US that it was time to engage the moderates within the sharia courts.
However, that strategy appeared to unravel two weeks ago when Jendayi Frazer, US assistant secretary of state, told reporters: "The Council of Islamic Courts is now controlled by al-Qaeda cell individuals."
Matt Bryden, a consultant to the International Crisis Group, said Ms Frazer's description of the courts had emboldened Addis Ababa to launch strikes. "Frazer's statement that the courts are controlled by al-Qaeda - although apparently disputed by other US officials - really was a political signal to Ethiopia that it could expect American support and diplomatic cover," he said.