A group of militia leaders in Somalia has criticised the decision by the new interim administration to re-open the port in the capital, Mogadishu.
In a statement, six militia leaders said the move was confrontational because consent had not been obtained from all groups beforehand.
They are all opposed to the current drive to establish order in Somalia after almost a decade without a central government.
The statement accused President Abdiqassim and his supporters of taking steps that could lead to the renewal of bloody fighting in the capital.
Warlords' worries
In the first such formal announcement since the installation of the new government in Mogadishu a week ago, the militia leaders raised a number of concerns.
The leaders, who include Hussein Aidid, Mohamed Qanyareh, Osman Ali Atto and Muse Sudi Yalahow, are unhappy about the interim government's official re-opening of the main seaport which has remained closed since 1995 after the withdrawal of the Unosom multinational forces. On Monday a high-powered ministerial delegation toured the port and the prime minister's press secretary, Iddiris Hassan Diriyeh, told the media that not only was the port open now but also that the gunmen holding it had turned it over to the new administration. These same gunmen however later disputed this claim. In their statement, the faction leaders said the government did not have the jurisdiction to re-open the port. The statement said "the seaport would not have remained closed for so long if only one group could open it." Money concerns The faction leaders also accused the administration of benefiting from the $3m-worth of fake Somali bank notes which have flooded the economy recently, brought in by businessman said to support President Abdiqassim. They said they would not allow this to continue. The statement added that these notes have caused inflation which seriously affected the poor who could no longer afford to buy food. It warned the administration to take care if it wanted to avoid another horrendous civil war, adding that the leaders would welcome any peace attempt and did not want to fight again in Mogadishu unless forced to do so.