Culture of Somalia Islamic jurisprudence, although some are also adherents of the Shia Muslim denomination. Sufism, the mystical dimension of Islam, is also well-established, with many local "jama'a" ("zawiya") or congregations of the various "tariiqa" or Sufi orders. The constitution of Somalia likewise defines Islam as the religion of the Somali Republic, and Islamic Sharia as the basic source for national legislation. Islam entered the region very early on, as a group of persecuted Muslims had, at Prophet Muhummad's urging, sought refuge across the Red Sea in the Horn of Africa. Islam may thus have been introduced into Somalia well before the faith
2009 timeline of the War in Somalia a four-party Islamist group called Hizbul Ismal leaving only Al Shabaab and foreign Mujahedeen as the enemies of the Transitional Government. From today, the government of Somalia will be run by Sharia law. In Somaliland an Islamic cleric aged 80 was killed in the capital of the semi-separatist region. Fighting in north-eastern province of Puntland resulted in the deaths of two militiamen and two civilians after two different clan militias fought it out in a small village. An Iman in the southern city of Gelkcayo was shot and killed by Al Shabaab gunmen. Al Shabaab militants attacked Au peacekeepers in