Somalia's powerful Islamist movement on Wednesday rejected as 'lies' a report by UN experts alleging they have received arms and military support from seven nations and Hizbullah.
Abdurahim Ali Muddey, the spokesman for the Supreme Islamic Council of Somalia, said claims the group is backed by Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Syria as well as Lebanon's Hizbullah were false.
"The report was compiled by people who have no regard for truth, Islam or Somalia," he told AFP. "The idea seems to be to try to internationalise the Somalia crisis.
"We have not received any weapons from Syria, Iran or Lebanon or any of the others," Muddey said. "That is totally untrue. The report is entirely full of lies and fabrication of events."
The report about alleged violations of a 1992 UN arms embargo on Somalia paints a bleak picture of a highly militarised situation that risks exploding into war that could engulf the entire Horn of Africa region.
To be presented to the UN Security Council this week, it says conflict is looming between the Islamists and Somalia's weak transitional government, both of which are now girding for war.
The report claims the Islamists, some of whom are accused of terrorism ties, entered into a reciprocal aid agreement with Hizbullah in which they sent militia to Lebanon to fight against Israel in exchange for supplies from Iran and Syria.
But Muddey categorically denied that any Somali Islamist forces had left the country to fight abroad since they seized Mogadishu in June from US-backed warlords.
"No Somali fighters were sent by the Islamic courts anywhere outside our country," he said. "We only fought against the warlords who opposed peace for the past 16 years."