NAIROBI (Reuters) - The U.S. government said on Friday it was worried about possible links between extremist groups in Somalia and al Qaeda but was gathering more information, not mapping offensives.
There has been widespread speculation the U.S. is planning a military campaign on Somalia as a second phase in its war on terror, but U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Walter Kansteiner said talk of imminent strikes was premature.
Somalia descended into chaos after the fall of dictator Mohammed Siad Barre in 1991 and has since disintegrated into fiefdoms controlled by rival clan warlords.
A transitional government sits in Mogadishu but controls only parts of the capital. Washington fears that could make Somalia a perfect haven for extremist groups like al Qaeda.
One focus of U.S. concerns in Somalia is al-Itihad al-Islamiya, a Somali group it placed on a list of ``terrorist'' organizations after the September 11 attacks due to suspected links to al Qaeda.