Worse Than Darfur?

Worse than Darfur. That was the assessment two weeks ago of the United Nations' top refugee official in Somalia, who called the country Africa's worst humanitarian crisis. Somalia has been without a functioning central government for 17 years and has effectively splintered into three separate states: Somaliland in the north, Puntland in the center and chaotic southern Somalia. In December 2006, U.S.-supported Ethiopian troops invaded the country to oust an Islamist government that briefly controlled Mogadishu and the south, triggering a civil war. Islamist and clan-based militias have battled Ethiopian troops and supporters of the U.S.-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG). A small force of African Union peacekeepers has been powerless to halt the violence. The war has forced 1 million people from their homes.

The transitional government's Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, who took office three months ago, faces the challenges of reconciling Somalia's warring clans, keeping Islamic terrorists out and squelching a boom in piracy along the coast. And he must survive, of course—when he made the symbolically important step of moving the TFG back to Mogadishu last month, insurgents promptly shelled Somalia's presidential palace. Hussein, previously the chairman of Somalia's Red Crescent society, the Islamic equivalent of the Red Cross, recently spoke with NEWSWEEK's Jason McLure about the humanitarian crisis, his relationship with the Central Intelligence Agency and Somalia's tourism industry. Excerpts:

NEWSWEEK: A few U.N. officials have said that Somalia is Africa's worst humanitarian crisis. Is it really that bad?
Nur Hassan Hussein: I would not say the worst, but definitely we have to admit that up to a certain degree there is a humanitarian crisis, which cannot be denied. You can imagine that if the security situation is so bad, the access for humanitarian operations is hampered. But right now we are witnessing a visible improvement. We will try our best so that the relief operations intended to reach the vulnerable people are not hampered.

What kind of support has the United States offered your government? How much direct assistance has the transitional federal government received from the United States?
First of all, the main support is the political support.

Isn't the United States the largest financial supporter of the TFG?
I think the United States plays the leading role.

How important is your relationship with the Ethiopian government? The TFG came back to Somalia with the help of Ethiopian troops, but is the presence of Ethiopian troops there harmful to the legitimacy of your government?
Not at all, not at all. The Ethiopian government came to our aid at a moment when this aid was badly needed. Since then it has continued to support us in relation to the security restoration.