Somalia's hardline al Shabaab insurgents have closed down five humanitarian organisations in Somali southern border town of Balad Hawa, a rebel leader said.

The organisations, most of them women groups were ordered to shut down their offices to allow women to stay home and take care of children.

“We have taken this step in accordance with Islamic law. Islam does not allow women to go to offices. We recognised the fact that Muslim women need to stay in their homes and take care of their children,” said Maalim Daaud Mohmed, the Al-Shabaab chairman of Balad Hawa.

He announced the organisations closed as Halgan Businesswomen's Organisation, the Sed Huro Human Rights Organisation and Farhan Woman for Peace and two other groups that support rural and urban women in Balad Hawa.  

Several humanitarian organisations both local and international, which used to operate from Balad Hawo town near the border between Somalia and Kenya have been forced to stop their operations due to intimidation from Islamic militant group, which accuse them of spying for western countries. 

This is the first move by Al-Shabaab to close down five humanitarian organisations that are involved in community work in the town at once.

The group, which want to impose its own version of Islamic law across the Horn of African nation, have previously banned international aid agencies such as CARE, MSF and MercyCorps from operating in areas under its controls over espionage charges.

GAROWE ONLINE