Somalis hold demonstrations over maritime row with Kenya

Dozens of Mogadishu residents on Wednesday held demonstrations in Mogadishu streets in support of Somalia's ongoing maritime case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Residents said the demonstrations organized by the local government aim at building solidarity with the country's legal team in The Hague. The protesters carried banners with messages supporting Somalia and denouncing Kenya's case.

Kenya and Somalia are currently presenting their oral submissions at the UN court following a petition by Kenya challenging the jurisdiction of the Court.

"We will not give up an inch of our sea and we will stick to our rights," Mogadishu mayor Yusuf Hussein Jima'ale told the crowds.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said on Monday that his country was determined to win the case, noting that his country had resolved to seek the court's intervention after failure to reach a solution with Kenya.

"We are confident this case will work for us. Somali government is determined to get back the right of our territorial water," President Mohamud said.

Mogadishu has sued Nairobi, asking the court to determine the line of sea boundary between the two countries, and argues diplomatic negotiations had failed to resolve the matter.

Kenya's Attorney-General Professor Githu Muigai had told the court on Monday that it had no jurisdiction to hear the case because both countries had signed an agreement to resolve the matter through negotiations. Endit