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Delivering humanitarian aid in Somalia: Islamic identity doesn’t automatically unlock access to areas controlled by Al-Shabaab – new report
News – 26 February 2015
Being a Muslim humanitarian organisation doesn’t instantly open doors when trying to provide aid in conflict zones controlled by Islamic extremist groups such as Al-Shabaab in Somalia, finds leading UK think tank the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) in a report launched today.

The report debunks the commonly-held belief that Islamic extremist groups automatically grant access to Muslim humanitarian organisations, and reveals how Islamic and Somali NGOs coordinated by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) gained access into Al-Shabaab held territory during the 2011 famine because they had the necessary existing local networks, rather than due to their Islamic identity or the links with the OIC…