From Middle East Online

"The Islamists are unpredictable as they have no proper command structure," the government official said on condition of anonymity in Baidoa. "We have to expect that anything can happen."

In Burhakaba, Islamists began to block fuel shipments from the port of Mogadishu to Baidoa in a move that could cripple the town, officials and witnesses said.

"We are searching all vehicles going to Baidoa for military items, including fuel, that could be used to fight us," said Ahmed Idris, an Islamist leader in the town on the road between the capital and the government seat.

"It is not an embargo, it is a matter of security," he said.

Abdullahi Nur Daud, an oil transporter, said three of his vehicles had been stopped in Burhakaba. "There is no official decree but the Islamists will not allow us to take fuel to Baidoa, even one barrel of 200 liters," he said.

There was apparent confusion in the Islamist ranks as a top commander (Sheikh Hasan Abdullahi Turki) said he would soon attack Baidoa while the movement's supreme leader (Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys) ruled out the possibility.