The
Islamic Courts Union (
ICU; ;
Ittihad al-mahakim al-islamiyya) was a group of
Sharia courts that united themselves to form a rival administration to the
Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of
Somalia, with
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed as their head. They were also known as the
Joint Islamic Courts,
Union of Islamic Courts (
UIC),
Supreme Islamic Courts Council (
SICC) or the
Supreme Council of Islamic Courts (
SCIC). Western media often refer to the group as
Somali Islamists.