The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) has announced an International investigation into the shooting of Shabelle Medai Network director Hassan Osman Abdi Fantastic by the end of January in 2012.
Omar Faruq Osman, the current secretary of NUSOJ said in an interview with Shabelle Media station in Somali capital, Mogadishu on Saturday that there are undergoing wide range probe over the senseless assassination of Shabelle director by Somali government and broadcast agencies, to take appropriate action against those behind the murder.
Hassan Osman Abdi well-known ‘Fantastic’ became the latest managing director of the leading and independent Shabelle Media Nework in Mogadishu to be assassinated by unidentified Somali gunmen, since 2008. Mr.Abdi, 30 year-old and was a father of three.
News and Information about the Horn of Africa.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
AU Somalia force to take command of Kenyan troops
The African Union's peacekeeping force in Somalia will soon take command of Kenyan troops in the war-torn Horn of Africa nation, a Kenyan military official said Saturday.
Col. Cyrus Oguna, who is in charge of Kenyan troops in Somalia, said the African Union will take over the 4,664 Kenyans as of March 30. He said the U.N. will provide major equipment such as road vehicles and planes.
Oguna said Kenya's inclusion in the force will bring the total number of troops to nearly 18,000 under the AU peacekeeping force.
Burundi, Djibouti and Uganda also contribute to the force.
Oguna said 850 troops from Sierra Leone will join the AU force by June, at which point Kenya will send home an equal number of troops.
He said troops would be based in strategic locations around the country.
Oguna did not say what role Ethiopian troops, who are in Somalia independently, would have in the AU plan. Ethiopian troops recently entered Somalia in the country's west.
Kenya sent hundreds of troops to Somalia in October to pursue al-Qaida-linked Somali militants it blamed for a series of cross-border attacks. AU peacekeepers had been propping up Somalia's weak U.N.-backed government against al-Shabab militants.
Al-Shabab has said it will carry out suicide bombings in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, in retaliation for Kenya's military incursion. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the July 2010 suicide attacks in Kampala, Uganda which killed 76 people watching the World Cup final.
Separately, residents in the southern Somali town of Jilib said fighter jets from an unknown military bombed an al-Shabab base on Saturday.
"We heard roaring planes first, then bangs of explosions in an Al-Shabab base in Dhaytubako village," Mohamed Sadaq, a resident in Jilib town nearly 70 miles north of the al-Shabab stronghold, Kismayo.
Al-Shabab described the latest air raid as "brutal" and said the jets targeted animal herders.
The group claimed in a statement on their website said that the Kenyan jets were responsible for the bombings which they said wounded five children and killed 20 animals.
Kenya's military spokesman Maj. Emmanuel Chirchir could not immediately say whether the Kenyan jets were involved in the bombing.
Somalia has been mired in conflict since the 1991, when long-term dictator Siad Barre was overthrown by warlords who then turned on each other. Al-Shabab has had a grip on much of south-central Somalia for the last several years.
AP
Col. Cyrus Oguna, who is in charge of Kenyan troops in Somalia, said the African Union will take over the 4,664 Kenyans as of March 30. He said the U.N. will provide major equipment such as road vehicles and planes.
Oguna said Kenya's inclusion in the force will bring the total number of troops to nearly 18,000 under the AU peacekeeping force.
Burundi, Djibouti and Uganda also contribute to the force.
Oguna said 850 troops from Sierra Leone will join the AU force by June, at which point Kenya will send home an equal number of troops.
He said troops would be based in strategic locations around the country.
Oguna did not say what role Ethiopian troops, who are in Somalia independently, would have in the AU plan. Ethiopian troops recently entered Somalia in the country's west.
Kenya sent hundreds of troops to Somalia in October to pursue al-Qaida-linked Somali militants it blamed for a series of cross-border attacks. AU peacekeepers had been propping up Somalia's weak U.N.-backed government against al-Shabab militants.
Al-Shabab has said it will carry out suicide bombings in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, in retaliation for Kenya's military incursion. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the July 2010 suicide attacks in Kampala, Uganda which killed 76 people watching the World Cup final.
Separately, residents in the southern Somali town of Jilib said fighter jets from an unknown military bombed an al-Shabab base on Saturday.
"We heard roaring planes first, then bangs of explosions in an Al-Shabab base in Dhaytubako village," Mohamed Sadaq, a resident in Jilib town nearly 70 miles north of the al-Shabab stronghold, Kismayo.
Al-Shabab described the latest air raid as "brutal" and said the jets targeted animal herders.
The group claimed in a statement on their website said that the Kenyan jets were responsible for the bombings which they said wounded five children and killed 20 animals.
Kenya's military spokesman Maj. Emmanuel Chirchir could not immediately say whether the Kenyan jets were involved in the bombing.
Somalia has been mired in conflict since the 1991, when long-term dictator Siad Barre was overthrown by warlords who then turned on each other. Al-Shabab has had a grip on much of south-central Somalia for the last several years.
AP
Culture Returns to Mogadishu after 21 years of war
PRESS RELEASE
For the first time in 21 years a play was performed in the Somali National Theatre in Mogadishu. A huge enthusiastic audience watched the historic performance by the famous Waberi Band last night in the presence of almost all the leaders of the Transitional Federal Government.
Among them were the President of the Republic H.E. Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the Prime Minister H.E. Abdiwali Mohamed Ali and the Minister of Information H.E. Abdulqadir Hussein Mohamed (Jaahweyn) as well as many other Ministers and other high ranking officials from the government, the Armed services and civil society.
This historic performance was transmitted life by almost all the Somali TV and radio channels and was listened to or watched by millions of happy Somalis inside the country and abroad. Many other international broadcasters also gave it a comprehensive coverage.
However, the happiness and the enthusiasm was in stark contrast to the debilitated condition of the National Theatre brought about by over 20 years of civil war.
Famous Somali singers in the Diaspora gave a nostalgic and moving interviews to broadcasters, remembering what the National Theatre was like in the days before the calamity of the civil war. They were all unanimous in saying that the condition of the National Theatre reflects that of our fractured nation.
Similarly, the entire Somali Diaspora was glued to their TV sets watching this memorable and historic performance by the Waaberi band, of Radio Mogadishu; arguably the most important institution created by Somalis for Somalis.
The Prime Minister in a brief address to those present said, “ today we are holding this memorable event in Mogadishu but tomorrow this play will be performed in Baladwene, then in Baydhaba and Kismayo after that, and then in the rest of the country as it is liberated.”
The Minister of Information, Posts and Telecommunications said last night to SONNA, the Somali National News Agency, “ For a large audience of a thousand people, in the centre of Mogadishu, to listen to the sound of music and poetry instead of the thunder of artillery and mortar is an unparalleled achievement that the TFG and Somali people all over the country have worked very hard for inthe past few or so years.”
“And for the Home of Somali Music and culture, in the best part of nearly half a century, to be in such a condition, as you can see, is a silent testimony to the suffering of our land and of our people.” The Minister continued.
“ But, if any one was in doubt that a turning point has not been reached in the fortunes of our country, this performance was milestone that marked the beginning of a new era in which the road ahead can only lead to peace, prosperity and reconciliation.” The Information Minister concluded.
The President of the Republic who also addressed the audience promised to the Waberi Artists and the Somali public that the National Theatre will from now on continue to function as it is being rebuilt and refurbished.
END
For the first time in 21 years a play was performed in the Somali National Theatre in Mogadishu. A huge enthusiastic audience watched the historic performance by the famous Waberi Band last night in the presence of almost all the leaders of the Transitional Federal Government.
Among them were the President of the Republic H.E. Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the Prime Minister H.E. Abdiwali Mohamed Ali and the Minister of Information H.E. Abdulqadir Hussein Mohamed (Jaahweyn) as well as many other Ministers and other high ranking officials from the government, the Armed services and civil society.
This historic performance was transmitted life by almost all the Somali TV and radio channels and was listened to or watched by millions of happy Somalis inside the country and abroad. Many other international broadcasters also gave it a comprehensive coverage.
However, the happiness and the enthusiasm was in stark contrast to the debilitated condition of the National Theatre brought about by over 20 years of civil war.
Famous Somali singers in the Diaspora gave a nostalgic and moving interviews to broadcasters, remembering what the National Theatre was like in the days before the calamity of the civil war. They were all unanimous in saying that the condition of the National Theatre reflects that of our fractured nation.
Similarly, the entire Somali Diaspora was glued to their TV sets watching this memorable and historic performance by the Waaberi band, of Radio Mogadishu; arguably the most important institution created by Somalis for Somalis.
The Prime Minister in a brief address to those present said, “ today we are holding this memorable event in Mogadishu but tomorrow this play will be performed in Baladwene, then in Baydhaba and Kismayo after that, and then in the rest of the country as it is liberated.”
The Minister of Information, Posts and Telecommunications said last night to SONNA, the Somali National News Agency, “ For a large audience of a thousand people, in the centre of Mogadishu, to listen to the sound of music and poetry instead of the thunder of artillery and mortar is an unparalleled achievement that the TFG and Somali people all over the country have worked very hard for inthe past few or so years.”
“And for the Home of Somali Music and culture, in the best part of nearly half a century, to be in such a condition, as you can see, is a silent testimony to the suffering of our land and of our people.” The Minister continued.
“ But, if any one was in doubt that a turning point has not been reached in the fortunes of our country, this performance was milestone that marked the beginning of a new era in which the road ahead can only lead to peace, prosperity and reconciliation.” The Information Minister concluded.
The President of the Republic who also addressed the audience promised to the Waberi Artists and the Somali public that the National Theatre will from now on continue to function as it is being rebuilt and refurbished.
END
Al-Shabaab Forced Out; Hours After Take Over of Dhusamareb
Reports from the capital of Galgudud region in central Somalia say that Ahlu-Suna forces have recaptured Dhusamareb from Al-Qaeda linked group of Al-Shabab today after heavy battle between the two sides.
Early Tuesday morning the rebel fighters from Al-Shabaab launched their surprise attacks on the town of Dhusamareb in central Somalia, the provincial capital of Galgaduud, which was a largely controlled Ahlu SunnahWaljama fighter (ASWJ).
Al-Shabaab fighters took over the town following fierce battles with local Ahlu Sunna forces who were forced out of the town hours later, forcing residents to flee to the save neighborhoods in fear of fierce counter-offensive by ASWJ fighters.
Forces of Ahlu-Suna have strongly removed extremists of Al-Shabab out of the city in the afternoon as Al-Shabab got into the city of Dhusamareb late Tuesday morning looted vehicles and stores as a resident named Ali Aden Mohammed told Horn of Africa News
Mr. Mohammed said that he saw 6 dead bodies including civilians adding that he could not know the exact number of injuries.
Some reports suggested that the militant fighters of Al-Shabaab broke business centers and then looted and plundered a lot of money and properties.
Early Tuesday morning the rebel fighters from Al-Shabaab launched their surprise attacks on the town of Dhusamareb in central Somalia, the provincial capital of Galgaduud, which was a largely controlled Ahlu SunnahWaljama fighter (ASWJ).
Al-Shabaab fighters took over the town following fierce battles with local Ahlu Sunna forces who were forced out of the town hours later, forcing residents to flee to the save neighborhoods in fear of fierce counter-offensive by ASWJ fighters.
Forces of Ahlu-Suna have strongly removed extremists of Al-Shabab out of the city in the afternoon as Al-Shabab got into the city of Dhusamareb late Tuesday morning looted vehicles and stores as a resident named Ali Aden Mohammed told Horn of Africa News
Mr. Mohammed said that he saw 6 dead bodies including civilians adding that he could not know the exact number of injuries.
Some reports suggested that the militant fighters of Al-Shabaab broke business centers and then looted and plundered a lot of money and properties.
NATO extends anti-piracy mission off Somalia until 2014
NATO agreed Monday to extend its anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia until the end of 2014, stressing that foreign navies are helping to reduce the number of hijackings.
Operation Ocean Shield, which currently has four warships at sea, has patrolled the Horn of Africa, acted to disrupt armed robberies on the high seas and escorted UN ships bringing aid to Mogadishu since 2008.
The international efforts are “making a difference, with the number of successful pirate hijacking down significantly in 2012,” NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen wrote on Twitter.
“Our message to the pirates is clear, your ability to threaten shipping is diminishing and NATO resolve is not going away,” he said, announcing that NATO’s decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, extended the mission.
The European Union, which has deployed its own counter-piracy operation, will consider this week whether to allow its warships to fire at trucks, supplies, boats and fuel stocked by pirates on the beaches.
NATO, however, has decided to continue limiting its mission to sea operations.
AFP
Operation Ocean Shield, which currently has four warships at sea, has patrolled the Horn of Africa, acted to disrupt armed robberies on the high seas and escorted UN ships bringing aid to Mogadishu since 2008.
The international efforts are “making a difference, with the number of successful pirate hijacking down significantly in 2012,” NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen wrote on Twitter.
“Our message to the pirates is clear, your ability to threaten shipping is diminishing and NATO resolve is not going away,” he said, announcing that NATO’s decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, extended the mission.
The European Union, which has deployed its own counter-piracy operation, will consider this week whether to allow its warships to fire at trucks, supplies, boats and fuel stocked by pirates on the beaches.
NATO, however, has decided to continue limiting its mission to sea operations.
AFP
Somali rebels resume barrage on presidential palace
Islamist militants launched mortars at Somalia’s presidential palace for a second night running, drawing retaliatory fire from African Union peacekeepers in some of the heaviest fighting to rock the capital in months, residents said on Tuesday.
“The rebels targeted the palace but the shells landed just outside. There were no casualties,” the AU’s AMISOM force spokesman, Paddy Ankunda, told Reuters.
Some people living near Mogadishu’s presidential compound said they would flee the city, alarmed by the fiercest heavy weapons fire in the downtown area since the al Shabaab rebel group withdrew most of its forces to outlying areas.
The al Qaeda-linked insurgents said on Monday they would keep hitting the presidential compound, which also houses key government ministries, with mortars and suicide bombings.
A salvo of mortars on Sunday night killed at least five refugees from a single family , and came less than a week after a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the gate of Villa Somalia, as the presidential palace is known.
Publicly AMISOM says it is not clear where the short-range mortars aimed at Villa Somalia being fired from. However, the heavily protected complex is normally considered beyond the range of mortars launched from outside the Somali capital.
Safia Ahmed said she would flee Mogadishu and return to Lafole, a rebel stronghold 17 km (11 miles) to the south which she left in February amid rumours Ugandan and Burundian soldiers would fight al Shabaab for control of the town.
“I don’t like al Shabaab but there is no shelling there,” the mother of four said. “Al Shabaab told us that those who fled to the capital would return, but we turned a deaf ear. Now it has become true.”
AMISOM said the militants also briefly attacked government troop positions in Mogadishu’s southern suburbs, near a roadblock known as Ex-control set up on one of the main roads into the city centre. The peacekeepers reported no casualties.
Reuters
“The rebels targeted the palace but the shells landed just outside. There were no casualties,” the AU’s AMISOM force spokesman, Paddy Ankunda, told Reuters.
Some people living near Mogadishu’s presidential compound said they would flee the city, alarmed by the fiercest heavy weapons fire in the downtown area since the al Shabaab rebel group withdrew most of its forces to outlying areas.
The al Qaeda-linked insurgents said on Monday they would keep hitting the presidential compound, which also houses key government ministries, with mortars and suicide bombings.
A salvo of mortars on Sunday night killed at least five refugees from a single family , and came less than a week after a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the gate of Villa Somalia, as the presidential palace is known.
Publicly AMISOM says it is not clear where the short-range mortars aimed at Villa Somalia being fired from. However, the heavily protected complex is normally considered beyond the range of mortars launched from outside the Somali capital.
Safia Ahmed said she would flee Mogadishu and return to Lafole, a rebel stronghold 17 km (11 miles) to the south which she left in February amid rumours Ugandan and Burundian soldiers would fight al Shabaab for control of the town.
“I don’t like al Shabaab but there is no shelling there,” the mother of four said. “Al Shabaab told us that those who fled to the capital would return, but we turned a deaf ear. Now it has become true.”
AMISOM said the militants also briefly attacked government troop positions in Mogadishu’s southern suburbs, near a roadblock known as Ex-control set up on one of the main roads into the city centre. The peacekeepers reported no casualties.
Reuters
Ethiopia and Eritrea: At it Again…And No One Seems to Care
By Hayes BrownDespite a normally watchful eye on the events of the African continent, the UN Security Council has been silent in recent days on a recent flare-up in tensions on the Horn. One of the few conflicts to earn the title “intractable”, Ethiopia and Eritrea have been mortal enemies since the latter gained its independence from the former in 1993. Following the split, the two fought a lengthy border war, which only ended with the Algiers Accords’ signature in 2000. Since then, the relative peace between the two has for the most part held with periodic upticks in aggressive rhetoric and increased border presence on either side.
That changed on Thursday, as Ethiopian forces launched an expedition across the disputed border. According to Addis Ababa, the ground incursion, 18 kilometers across the border, was in reprisal for Eritrea’s providing training and material support to groups that have attacked civilians in Ethiopia. A follow-up attack was launched on Saturday. It seems that Asmara isn’t buying Ethiopia’s reasoning, countering that the attacks on Eritrean military bases were in relation to the unresolved border issues the two face, not any internal issues Ethiopia may or may not be having.
No matter the reasoning, the idea of a renewed shooting war between the two should be enough to raise a greater level of concern than is currently being expressed by the international community. Such an outbreak in violence would have ripple effects across the region, threatening what little progress has been made in pushing back al-Shabab in Somalia since Kenyan and Ethiopian forces invaded in October. While the Ethiopian troops have pulled back from aiding the newly upgraded AMISOM mission, an influx of fighters rushing to back Eritrea would likely come through Somalia, leaving a trail of new weapons behind.
Eritrea has expressed its outrage at Ethiopia’s actions, and the seeming impunity it has been given by the world, demanding the Security Council condemn the Ethiopian attack. At Turtle Bay, the Eritrean Ambassador submitted a letter calling for action to the Security Council, distributed by United Kingdom’s Permanent Representative, Mark Lyall Grant, in his role as Council President for March. Inner City Press obtained a copy of the letter, which shows just how unlikely Eritrea believes Council intervention to be:
The people and Government of Eritrea shall not entertain and will not be entrapped by deceitful ploys that are aimed at derailing and eclipsing the fundamental issues. But how long will the UN Security Council continue to tolerate the flouting of the rule of law and the blatant violation of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of a Member State?
In the event, the Government of Eritrea urges, for the umpteenth time, the UN Security Council to shoulder its legal and moral responsibilities and to take appropriate measures to rectify acts of aggression against Eritrea’s sovereign territories and to ensure justice and the respect of the rule of law.
Despite this outreach, the UN Security Council has been silent on the matter, and is likely to remain so. This is likely for several reasons. First, the Council has found itself spurned by Eritrea in the past. Following the 2000 peace agreement, a UN peacekeeping force called the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) was set up to monitor the situation. After increasingly restrictive conditions from Eritrea, including the cutting of logistical routes, the UN Security Council begrudgingly sunset the mission in 2008. There is no love lost between the two, also, due to Security Council sanctions on Eritrea for supporting al-Shabab despite prevailing arms embargoes.
Second, the issue is unlikely to be pressed by any of the Permanent Members for swift action. In its role as the President, the UK has yet to call for any meetings on the matter, and has stated that its focus this month will be on the Middle East. Once the United States takes up the Presidency in April, it will likely focus the status of Sudan and South Sudan, which are personal projects of Ambassador Susan Rice. Further, the United States is a strong ally of Ethiopia for its role in countering the spread of terrorism in the Horn. That leaves France, which is spending its diplomatic clout on getting a stronger resolution on Syria out of Russia and China.
Of the non-permanent states, while the African Union has called for calm between Ethiopia and Eritrea, South Africa and Togo have yet to echo the call from the Security Council. Barring a strong push by the two sub-Sahara African non-permanent members, it’s unlikely a sense of urgency will permeate the situation.
So how low a priority is this situation to the Security Council? The only consultations, formal or informal, on the agenda for today is a previously scheduled discussion on the Council’s working methods. While the UN observer in me is pleased to see that they recognize a need for an update, it doesn’t lend a sense that a quick resolution is forthcoming. Eritrea has stayed its hand militarily for now; there have been no reprisals as of yet by the Eritrean army or proxies. It is uncertain whether that will remain true should another raid take place.
Al-Shabaab seize key town from pro-government fighters
Residents say Somali Islamist militia designated a terror group by the US seized a key town on Tuesday from Ahlu Sunna Waljama’a (ASWJ), a pro-government militia in central regions of the war-torn country.
New reports indicate that the militants have on Tuesday morning launched their ambush attacks on the town of Dhusamareb in of Galgadud region,central Somalia, from different directions and took over the town following several hours-fierce combat with ASWJ fighters who was a largely controlled the area.
No casualties were reported so far from the battle, but locals fear of a fierce counter-offensive by ASWJ fighters to re capture again the town from Al-shabab.
Analysts believe the capture of this key town by the hard-line Al-Shabab militants consolidates a major gain as its three-year long insurgency seizes ever-greater swathes of territory in south and central regions from the weak UN-backed government led by president Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed.
Shabelle
New reports indicate that the militants have on Tuesday morning launched their ambush attacks on the town of Dhusamareb in of Galgadud region,central Somalia, from different directions and took over the town following several hours-fierce combat with ASWJ fighters who was a largely controlled the area.
No casualties were reported so far from the battle, but locals fear of a fierce counter-offensive by ASWJ fighters to re capture again the town from Al-shabab.
Analysts believe the capture of this key town by the hard-line Al-Shabab militants consolidates a major gain as its three-year long insurgency seizes ever-greater swathes of territory in south and central regions from the weak UN-backed government led by president Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed.
Shabelle
Al-Shabab captures Diif Village without resistance
Al-shabab fighters have on Tuesday again recaptured Diif Village in lower Jubba region from the Raskamboni militia led Sheik Ahmed Modobe, pro-Somalia government without any resistance, witnesses said.
Latest Reports said the Raskamboni militia abandoned the area in the early hours on Tuesday before Al-shabab fighters poured into it to avoid loss since the militans were heavily armed and equipped.
Top Al-shabab commander asked local residents for calm and stay in doors as the search operations by the militants underway to assure their full control of the village.
No comments were available immediately from Raskamboni officials about the seizure, but reports suggest the militias are regrouping again on the outskirts of Diif area in Lower Jubba region of southwestern Somalia, a disordered region close to kenya border.
Shabelle
Latest Reports said the Raskamboni militia abandoned the area in the early hours on Tuesday before Al-shabab fighters poured into it to avoid loss since the militans were heavily armed and equipped.
Top Al-shabab commander asked local residents for calm and stay in doors as the search operations by the militants underway to assure their full control of the village.
No comments were available immediately from Raskamboni officials about the seizure, but reports suggest the militias are regrouping again on the outskirts of Diif area in Lower Jubba region of southwestern Somalia, a disordered region close to kenya border.
Shabelle
Monday, March 19, 2012
The New Mayor of Djibouti Inaugurated
Elected by his peers yesterday the Council of Djibouti by 32 votes to 35, Abdurahman Mohamed Guelleh is now the new chief magistrate of the capital. Yesterday, during a handover ceremony held at City Hall, the new mayor said he would not rest on its laurels and that he intended to keep all his campaign promises.As would be expected, the board of Djibouti elected yesterday by 32 votes to 35, Abdurahman Mohamed Guelleh as mayor of the capital.
Minutes after the vote, the young elected official took office after a handover ceremony held at City Hall attended by Secretary General of Ministry of Interior, Mohamed Dini Bourhan.
The incumbent mayor, Ali Ismail Yabeh said Ali Marekan, wished "good luck" to his successor with whom he had a brief discussion on the sidelines of the handover ceremony.
Board members of Djibouti were all there, throughout the ceremony during which the new mayor made a speech in which he returned to the polls on Jan. 20, on its commitment to the city of Djibouti, on the creation of the movement, against all odds, came the challenge of beating a grand coalition.
He praised the impartiality of the head of state and said the RADD wrote a new page of history. "Time passes, the world is changing and attitudes are changing," said M.Guelleh in a lyrical passage that spoke volumes about the emotion that was in his day he would sit in a chair he knew no duty to free speech and popular with anyone else.
He added that, as he had promised during the election campaign, he would fight a battle without thank you against all evils of the capital and work to provide a better living environment for residents of the capital. "This fight is ours, it is also yours," he concluded.
After the ceremony, the new chief magistrate of the city was received by Interior Minister Hassan Darar Houffaneh who congratulated him and had a discussion with him and the presidents of regional councils two regions of Northern and Dikhil. M.Hassan Darar was then introduced to the four elected head of state, Ismail Omar Guelleh.
Have politicians joined warlords and profiteers in the plunder of Somalia?
By RASNA WARAH
I can usually spot a whistleblower from a mile away. He or she has that furtive look of a hunted animal.
Words and emotions are guarded. Secrecy borders on paranoia as the whistleblower decides who to trust and who not to.
I can tell who is a whistleblower because I have been to that dark place where knowledge is more dangerous than ignorance.
I, too, have experienced the horror of having crossed a boundary I did not even know existed.
C. Fred Alford in his book, Whistleblowers: Broken Lives and Organisational Power, notes that the greatest shock for whistleblowers is learning that what they believed about their organisation is, in fact, not true.
“For many whistleblowers this knowledge is like a mortal illness,” he says. “They live with it, and it with them, every day and night of their lives.”
So when I met Abdirazak Fartaag, I knew what to expect. I could see that he was not quite sure whether to trust me.
I could hear the anger in his voice when he sensed that perhaps I did not believe him. It was only when I assured him I knew where he was coming from that he began opening up.
Fartaag has done what perhaps no Somali has done in the last 20 years. He has uncovered the secretive dealings of the Transitional Federal Government when he was head of Somalia’s Public Finance Management Unit from 2009 to 2011.
During his tenure, he witnessed a series of financial irregularities, including misappropriation of public funds, crooked banking practices, concealment of government expenditure receipts, and cash payments to politicians by foreign governments.
He witnessed politicians accepting cash donations in suitcases from some Arab countries, irregular withdrawals from Somalia’s Central Bank by individuals, and highly personalised payroll systems that undermined the morale of civil servants.
Fartaag, a citizen of Canada, was frustrated by these highly irregular practices and wanted the government to adopt more stringent and accountable financial management systems.
But his audit reports and recommendations were largely ignored by the government, including the Office of the Prime Minister, to which he reported.
He eventually lost his job, but he did not lose his passion for unearthing the TFG’s weak and corrupt financial management practices.
Fartaag’s reports have now been made public, and have received some media coverage, but he is not convinced that things will change.
On the contrary, the TFG has denied the report’s findings, and has shown little interest in investigating his allegations.
“They call me a traitor,” he told me over a cup of coffee in a Nairobi café. “And they send me curses through text messages.”
Most whistleblowers will tell you that they view their act of whistleblowing as a sign of loyalty to the organisation, not betrayal.
When they blow the whistle, they believe they are protecting their organisation. In Fartaag’s case, he thought he was protecting the Somalis.
They have been the victims of not just corrupt governments, but all manner of groups and people who have taken advantage of the chaos and lawlessness in the country and made a killing in the process.
First, the warlords robbed Somalis of a safe environment in which to live. Cities and infrastructure were destroyed as clans fought for supremacy.
The UN and humanitarian aid agencies made the situation worse by colluding with corrupt politicians and profiteers to divert aid, including food.
More recently, Al-Shabaab, which imposes draconian restrictions on the Somali people (including forbidding them watching football and movies) has been depriving Somalis of their basic rights.
But while we can question the intentions of these groups, it is heart-breaking to learn that Somalia’s government has also contributed to the country’s underdevelopment.
According to Fartaag, politicians have not only been robbing state coffers, but the country’s future.
The last thing Somalia needs is a government that joins all these profiteers in looting the country, thus further depriving the Somali people of much-needed infrastructure and services.
If Fartaag’s findings are indeed true, then the TFG has a lot to answer for before it leaves office in August this year.
I can usually spot a whistleblower from a mile away. He or she has that furtive look of a hunted animal.
Words and emotions are guarded. Secrecy borders on paranoia as the whistleblower decides who to trust and who not to.
I can tell who is a whistleblower because I have been to that dark place where knowledge is more dangerous than ignorance.
I, too, have experienced the horror of having crossed a boundary I did not even know existed.
C. Fred Alford in his book, Whistleblowers: Broken Lives and Organisational Power, notes that the greatest shock for whistleblowers is learning that what they believed about their organisation is, in fact, not true.
“For many whistleblowers this knowledge is like a mortal illness,” he says. “They live with it, and it with them, every day and night of their lives.”
So when I met Abdirazak Fartaag, I knew what to expect. I could see that he was not quite sure whether to trust me.
I could hear the anger in his voice when he sensed that perhaps I did not believe him. It was only when I assured him I knew where he was coming from that he began opening up.
Fartaag has done what perhaps no Somali has done in the last 20 years. He has uncovered the secretive dealings of the Transitional Federal Government when he was head of Somalia’s Public Finance Management Unit from 2009 to 2011.
During his tenure, he witnessed a series of financial irregularities, including misappropriation of public funds, crooked banking practices, concealment of government expenditure receipts, and cash payments to politicians by foreign governments.
He witnessed politicians accepting cash donations in suitcases from some Arab countries, irregular withdrawals from Somalia’s Central Bank by individuals, and highly personalised payroll systems that undermined the morale of civil servants.
Fartaag, a citizen of Canada, was frustrated by these highly irregular practices and wanted the government to adopt more stringent and accountable financial management systems.
But his audit reports and recommendations were largely ignored by the government, including the Office of the Prime Minister, to which he reported.
He eventually lost his job, but he did not lose his passion for unearthing the TFG’s weak and corrupt financial management practices.
Fartaag’s reports have now been made public, and have received some media coverage, but he is not convinced that things will change.
On the contrary, the TFG has denied the report’s findings, and has shown little interest in investigating his allegations.
“They call me a traitor,” he told me over a cup of coffee in a Nairobi café. “And they send me curses through text messages.”
Most whistleblowers will tell you that they view their act of whistleblowing as a sign of loyalty to the organisation, not betrayal.
When they blow the whistle, they believe they are protecting their organisation. In Fartaag’s case, he thought he was protecting the Somalis.
They have been the victims of not just corrupt governments, but all manner of groups and people who have taken advantage of the chaos and lawlessness in the country and made a killing in the process.
First, the warlords robbed Somalis of a safe environment in which to live. Cities and infrastructure were destroyed as clans fought for supremacy.
The UN and humanitarian aid agencies made the situation worse by colluding with corrupt politicians and profiteers to divert aid, including food.
More recently, Al-Shabaab, which imposes draconian restrictions on the Somali people (including forbidding them watching football and movies) has been depriving Somalis of their basic rights.
But while we can question the intentions of these groups, it is heart-breaking to learn that Somalia’s government has also contributed to the country’s underdevelopment.
According to Fartaag, politicians have not only been robbing state coffers, but the country’s future.
The last thing Somalia needs is a government that joins all these profiteers in looting the country, thus further depriving the Somali people of much-needed infrastructure and services.
If Fartaag’s findings are indeed true, then the TFG has a lot to answer for before it leaves office in August this year.
The Somalia factor in regional growth prospects
Somalia’s application to join the East African Community was not entirely unexpected, according to observers. The move in early March is considered a bold step in regional integration for a country that has been mired in civil conflict for more than two decades.
The application, which was submitted through President Kibaki’s office, the current chairman of the five-member economic bloc, comes at a time when Somalia is experiencing a period of respite, with business and life returning to near-normal in the capital, Mogadishu.
“It has always been a question in the offing,” Mr Richard Sindiga, director of economic affairs at Kenya’s East African Community ministry, said. “Although Somalia doesn’t have a stable government, the issue of integration has always been expected.”
The question of what Somalia’s membership would mean for the region is debateable. Mr Sindiga says there is no overlooking the potential economic and trade opportunities the country has to offer.
Mr Ali Hassan Ahmed, the country manager for Hass Petroleum, a regional oil marketing company, says this would give businesses a new market to venture into. His company, he said, had sent delegations to both Somaliland and southern Somalia to explore the possibility of market penetration.
“It is a bit premature to give an opinion on this, but if Somalia is admitted, it will be easier to set base in the country, develop partnerships, increase trade, and give the business an edge,” said Mr Ali.
For businesses like Hass, the prospect of oil in Somalia, the first batch expected to be drilled by April in the north-eastern region of Puntland, will be a ground-breaking probability to capitalise on. Oil is expected to be a game-changer in Somalia, with some estimates pointing that off-shore deposits could be more than 100 billion barrels.
This has attracted the attention of the international community, which is now voicing its interest in stabilising Somalia and bringing warring leaders to the negotiation table.
Three of the EAC members are already involved in peace-keeping efforts in Somalia.
Britain held a major conference on Somalia in February and Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan, became the highest foreign dignitary to visit Somalia in August 2010 with a promise to open an embassy and increase trade relations.
Canada’s Africa Oil company became the first to drill oil in Somalia since the war erupted in 1991.
Daily Nation
The application, which was submitted through President Kibaki’s office, the current chairman of the five-member economic bloc, comes at a time when Somalia is experiencing a period of respite, with business and life returning to near-normal in the capital, Mogadishu.
“It has always been a question in the offing,” Mr Richard Sindiga, director of economic affairs at Kenya’s East African Community ministry, said. “Although Somalia doesn’t have a stable government, the issue of integration has always been expected.”
The question of what Somalia’s membership would mean for the region is debateable. Mr Sindiga says there is no overlooking the potential economic and trade opportunities the country has to offer.
Mr Ali Hassan Ahmed, the country manager for Hass Petroleum, a regional oil marketing company, says this would give businesses a new market to venture into. His company, he said, had sent delegations to both Somaliland and southern Somalia to explore the possibility of market penetration.
“It is a bit premature to give an opinion on this, but if Somalia is admitted, it will be easier to set base in the country, develop partnerships, increase trade, and give the business an edge,” said Mr Ali.
For businesses like Hass, the prospect of oil in Somalia, the first batch expected to be drilled by April in the north-eastern region of Puntland, will be a ground-breaking probability to capitalise on. Oil is expected to be a game-changer in Somalia, with some estimates pointing that off-shore deposits could be more than 100 billion barrels.
This has attracted the attention of the international community, which is now voicing its interest in stabilising Somalia and bringing warring leaders to the negotiation table.
Three of the EAC members are already involved in peace-keeping efforts in Somalia.
Britain held a major conference on Somalia in February and Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan, became the highest foreign dignitary to visit Somalia in August 2010 with a promise to open an embassy and increase trade relations.
Canada’s Africa Oil company became the first to drill oil in Somalia since the war erupted in 1991.
Daily Nation
Understanding the Al-Shabaab/Al-Qaeda 'Merger'
ANALYSIS
By Abdi Aynte
Last month, the radical Islamist group al-Shabaab, which controls vast swathes of territory in south and central Somalia, declared it was joining the al-Qaeda Network. The announcement was hardly surprising: the two groups have been courting each other for years.
They've also been collaborating against the weak but internationally recognized Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the African Union peacekeepers, known as AMISOM. Yet the timing of the announcement sheds some light on the intricate relationship between the two jihadist entities.
More than two years earlier, al-Shabaab pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda's slain leader, Osama Bin Laden. In an audio message released in September 2009, al-Shabaab's reclusive leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, who also goes by the nom de guerre Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, said his militia was "at the service of jihad under the stewardship of Bin Laden."
The al-Qaeda leader responded with a vague support for "the cause of jihad" in Somalia, but he stopped short of formally endorsing al-Shabaab's Somali leadership as al-Qaeda's agents in East Africa. It would take more than two years - and the death of Bin Laden - before that happened and al-Shabaab was formally admitted into the global jihad network.
The delay in the merger is emblematic of the complex and often tense relations between the two groups. There were however three factors that eventually helped seal the deal.
Firstly, it was the sudden death of Bin Laden in May 2011. The al-Qaeda leader never trusted Godane, the Shabaab leader, in part because he doubted his global jihad credentials. Still, Godane wanted to become the head of al-Qaeda in East Africa, or AQEA. But Bin Laden was adamantly opposed, as he was known to place a high premium on personal confidence over the people he appointed to senior leadership posts.
Instead, Bin Laden wanted to appoint Fazul Abdullah Mohamed, the top al-Qaeda operative in East Africa, to lead AQEA. Also known as Fadil Harun, the Comoros Islands native was suspected of masterminding the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Together with two other al-Qaeda operatives in East Africa (who were both killed by the U.S. in separate attacks), Harun was hiding in Somalia for more than a decade. He was killed in June 2011 by TFG troops near Mogadishu after he uncharacteristically wandered into a checkpoint. Based on the circumstances he was killed and documents confiscated from his vehicle which I have had access to, it was clear that he was set-up by Godane amidst a bitter fight over the leadership of AQEA.
The death of Harun - and Bin Laden's a month before him - paved the road for the new al-Qeada chief, Ayman al-Zawahiri, to deputize Godane as the head of AQEA.
Secondly, with Harun out of his way, Godane sought to neutralize his main rivals within the al-Shabaab structure, who oppose the global jihadist orientation of the organization and advocate for a nationalist insurgency. This faction is led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, Somalia's best known holy warrior, and Mukhtar Robow Abu Mansour, a powerful commander whose militia constitutes a significant chunk of al-Shabaab's fighting force.
In recent months, Aweys and Robow have been sending signals that suggest, with the right conditions, they are willing to open a dialogue with the TFG and the international community. Their main demands are the withdrawal of AMISOM troops, imposition of Sharia as the law of the land and a comprehensive amnesty scheme that would include the removal of their names from the U.S. and UN terror lists. They've also hinted that they don't oppose replacing AMISOM troops with peacekeepers from Muslim countries. The two men's contacts with the outside world were becoming semi-public and a little uncomfortable for al-Shabaab's leader.
Hence the al-Qaeda banner. Godane is cognizant that he would make it almost impossible for the 'nationalist' faction to maintain the negotiations track. Anyone talking to Aweys and Robow after the merger would almost certainly be facing the wrath of the U.S. government, which is vehemently opposed to negotiating with al-Qaeda.
Still, the joining of al-Qaeda marks a turning point for al-Shabaab. The ripple effect is only now crystalising. In a short video released recently, one of the group's top foreign fighters says he might be killed by a rival faction over differences of opinion "in Sharia and strategy." The subdued tone of Omar Hammami, also known by his nom de guerre Abu Mansour al-Amriki, is by far the clearest evidence of deep cracks within the upper echelon. Although he didn't say which faction is trying to kill him, presumably it would be the 'nationalist' wing as Hammami had advocated for the union with al-Qaeda.
Thirdly, al-Qaeda was having a debilitating space problem. Deprived of its strongholds in Afghanistan, and increasingly under the punitive eye of U.S. drones in Pakistan and Yemen, al-Qaeda operatives were rendered virtually motionless. Somalia was the only country in the world, where half of its territory (which is the size of Texas), is under the total control of a sympathetic radical Islamist movement. Even if al-Zawahiri, like Bin Laden, was reluctant to appoint Godane, an amateur jihadist in the standards of al-Qaeda, to lead AQEA, the real estate under his command was a precious asset for global jihad.
Over the past few years, hundreds of global jihadists from around world, many members of al-Qaeda, flocked into Somalia from where they're operating largely unimpeded. The U.S. has deployed some of its drone assets to the region, and has successfully eliminated several al-Qaeda targets in Somalia. But the country is still the best theatre of operations for al-Qaeda. Nowhere in the world does al-Qaeda have such a large and contiguous area of activity. Recent aerial surveillance footage shows the proliferation of training facilities across south and central Somalia, much of which is run by al-Qaeda operatives.
Taken together, these factors created the conditions for a marriage of convenience between al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab. Each side benefits handsomely from the merger. Still, the so-called nationalist camp has an opportunity to distance itself from the global terror network and negotiate its way of the crisis.
Abdi Aynte is a Somali-American journalist. He works for Al Jazeera.
By Abdi Aynte
Last month, the radical Islamist group al-Shabaab, which controls vast swathes of territory in south and central Somalia, declared it was joining the al-Qaeda Network. The announcement was hardly surprising: the two groups have been courting each other for years.
They've also been collaborating against the weak but internationally recognized Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the African Union peacekeepers, known as AMISOM. Yet the timing of the announcement sheds some light on the intricate relationship between the two jihadist entities.
More than two years earlier, al-Shabaab pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda's slain leader, Osama Bin Laden. In an audio message released in September 2009, al-Shabaab's reclusive leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, who also goes by the nom de guerre Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, said his militia was "at the service of jihad under the stewardship of Bin Laden."
The al-Qaeda leader responded with a vague support for "the cause of jihad" in Somalia, but he stopped short of formally endorsing al-Shabaab's Somali leadership as al-Qaeda's agents in East Africa. It would take more than two years - and the death of Bin Laden - before that happened and al-Shabaab was formally admitted into the global jihad network.
The delay in the merger is emblematic of the complex and often tense relations between the two groups. There were however three factors that eventually helped seal the deal.
Firstly, it was the sudden death of Bin Laden in May 2011. The al-Qaeda leader never trusted Godane, the Shabaab leader, in part because he doubted his global jihad credentials. Still, Godane wanted to become the head of al-Qaeda in East Africa, or AQEA. But Bin Laden was adamantly opposed, as he was known to place a high premium on personal confidence over the people he appointed to senior leadership posts.
Instead, Bin Laden wanted to appoint Fazul Abdullah Mohamed, the top al-Qaeda operative in East Africa, to lead AQEA. Also known as Fadil Harun, the Comoros Islands native was suspected of masterminding the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Together with two other al-Qaeda operatives in East Africa (who were both killed by the U.S. in separate attacks), Harun was hiding in Somalia for more than a decade. He was killed in June 2011 by TFG troops near Mogadishu after he uncharacteristically wandered into a checkpoint. Based on the circumstances he was killed and documents confiscated from his vehicle which I have had access to, it was clear that he was set-up by Godane amidst a bitter fight over the leadership of AQEA.
The death of Harun - and Bin Laden's a month before him - paved the road for the new al-Qeada chief, Ayman al-Zawahiri, to deputize Godane as the head of AQEA.
Secondly, with Harun out of his way, Godane sought to neutralize his main rivals within the al-Shabaab structure, who oppose the global jihadist orientation of the organization and advocate for a nationalist insurgency. This faction is led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, Somalia's best known holy warrior, and Mukhtar Robow Abu Mansour, a powerful commander whose militia constitutes a significant chunk of al-Shabaab's fighting force.
In recent months, Aweys and Robow have been sending signals that suggest, with the right conditions, they are willing to open a dialogue with the TFG and the international community. Their main demands are the withdrawal of AMISOM troops, imposition of Sharia as the law of the land and a comprehensive amnesty scheme that would include the removal of their names from the U.S. and UN terror lists. They've also hinted that they don't oppose replacing AMISOM troops with peacekeepers from Muslim countries. The two men's contacts with the outside world were becoming semi-public and a little uncomfortable for al-Shabaab's leader.
Hence the al-Qaeda banner. Godane is cognizant that he would make it almost impossible for the 'nationalist' faction to maintain the negotiations track. Anyone talking to Aweys and Robow after the merger would almost certainly be facing the wrath of the U.S. government, which is vehemently opposed to negotiating with al-Qaeda.
Still, the joining of al-Qaeda marks a turning point for al-Shabaab. The ripple effect is only now crystalising. In a short video released recently, one of the group's top foreign fighters says he might be killed by a rival faction over differences of opinion "in Sharia and strategy." The subdued tone of Omar Hammami, also known by his nom de guerre Abu Mansour al-Amriki, is by far the clearest evidence of deep cracks within the upper echelon. Although he didn't say which faction is trying to kill him, presumably it would be the 'nationalist' wing as Hammami had advocated for the union with al-Qaeda.
Thirdly, al-Qaeda was having a debilitating space problem. Deprived of its strongholds in Afghanistan, and increasingly under the punitive eye of U.S. drones in Pakistan and Yemen, al-Qaeda operatives were rendered virtually motionless. Somalia was the only country in the world, where half of its territory (which is the size of Texas), is under the total control of a sympathetic radical Islamist movement. Even if al-Zawahiri, like Bin Laden, was reluctant to appoint Godane, an amateur jihadist in the standards of al-Qaeda, to lead AQEA, the real estate under his command was a precious asset for global jihad.
Over the past few years, hundreds of global jihadists from around world, many members of al-Qaeda, flocked into Somalia from where they're operating largely unimpeded. The U.S. has deployed some of its drone assets to the region, and has successfully eliminated several al-Qaeda targets in Somalia. But the country is still the best theatre of operations for al-Qaeda. Nowhere in the world does al-Qaeda have such a large and contiguous area of activity. Recent aerial surveillance footage shows the proliferation of training facilities across south and central Somalia, much of which is run by al-Qaeda operatives.
Taken together, these factors created the conditions for a marriage of convenience between al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab. Each side benefits handsomely from the merger. Still, the so-called nationalist camp has an opportunity to distance itself from the global terror network and negotiate its way of the crisis.
Abdi Aynte is a Somali-American journalist. He works for Al Jazeera.
Terror Group Denies It 'Arrested' American Member
A spokesperson for an al Qaeda-linked terror group is denying that the group "arrested" one of its own -- a high-profile American member -- just days after the American posted an online video in which he said he feared for his life.
Alabama-born Omar Hammami, also known as Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, traveled halfway around the world in 2006 to join the Somalia-based terror group al-Shabaab and has been an outspoken member and recruiter. But according to a video he uploaded Friday, he is on the outs with his fellow terrorists and is afraid they may kill him over their "differences."
"To whomever it may reach from the Muslims, from Abu [Mansoor] al-Amriki, I record this message today because I feel that my life may be endangered by [al-Shabaab] due to some differences that occurred between us regarding matters of the Shariah [Islamic law] and matters of the strategy," Hammami says.
A spokesperson for the terror group said on Twitter after the video surfaced that the group was "surprised" by Hammami's video and said that he was "not endangered... and our brother still enjoys all the privileges of brotherhood."
Then a pair of reports surfaced Monday claiming Hammami had been abducted by members of al-Shabaab -- reports that the spokesperson for the group strongly denied online.
"All reports of [Hammami's] arrest are false and intended purely for propaganda purposes," the spokesperson told ABC News over Twitter. "Beware of such inaccurate reports."
Officials at the U.S. State Department said they are aware of the reported arrest and are looking into the matter.
Hammami is one of the most high-profile Americans to join the terrorist organization and, according to the U.S. government, is "an important al-Shabaab voice on the internet." He is known within the group for producing pro-jihad rap songs in hopes of pulling young fighters to the cause.
According to a U.S. Congressional report from July, the American government estimates Hamammi is one of 40 Americans who have traveled to Somalia to join al-Shabaab -- American passport holders that the government says represent a "direct threat to the U.S. homeland."
ABC
Alabama-born Omar Hammami, also known as Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, traveled halfway around the world in 2006 to join the Somalia-based terror group al-Shabaab and has been an outspoken member and recruiter. But according to a video he uploaded Friday, he is on the outs with his fellow terrorists and is afraid they may kill him over their "differences."
"To whomever it may reach from the Muslims, from Abu [Mansoor] al-Amriki, I record this message today because I feel that my life may be endangered by [al-Shabaab] due to some differences that occurred between us regarding matters of the Shariah [Islamic law] and matters of the strategy," Hammami says.
A spokesperson for the terror group said on Twitter after the video surfaced that the group was "surprised" by Hammami's video and said that he was "not endangered... and our brother still enjoys all the privileges of brotherhood."
Then a pair of reports surfaced Monday claiming Hammami had been abducted by members of al-Shabaab -- reports that the spokesperson for the group strongly denied online.
"All reports of [Hammami's] arrest are false and intended purely for propaganda purposes," the spokesperson told ABC News over Twitter. "Beware of such inaccurate reports."
Officials at the U.S. State Department said they are aware of the reported arrest and are looking into the matter.
Hammami is one of the most high-profile Americans to join the terrorist organization and, according to the U.S. government, is "an important al-Shabaab voice on the internet." He is known within the group for producing pro-jihad rap songs in hopes of pulling young fighters to the cause.
According to a U.S. Congressional report from July, the American government estimates Hamammi is one of 40 Americans who have traveled to Somalia to join al-Shabaab -- American passport holders that the government says represent a "direct threat to the U.S. homeland."
ABC
Yemeni fisherman captures Eritrean soldier
Yemeni fishermen managed on Sunday to capture an Eritrean soldier after Eritrean naval boats attempted to assault some Yemeni fishermen inside international territorial waters.
Security sources confirmed that Eritrean naval boats intercepted three Yemeni boats that belong to fishermen at Taklai area, located in the international territorial water between Sudan and Eritrea and attempted to force them [the fishermen] to accompany them to the Eritrea.
The soldiers started jumping in the boats, however, two boats managed to flee while an Eritrean soldiers was in and reach Yemeni territorial water.
The third boat with three fishermen on board were force to go to Eritrean shores, added the sources.
Eritrean security sources stated that it had released the boat, however, it kept the three Yemeni fishermen as hostages until the Eritrean soldier is released.
Yemeni security source told Yemen Post Eritrea is trying to secure captives swap to press Yemen release the soldier.
Eritrean naval forces invaded the some Yemeni islands after the civil war. But Yemen preferred to resolve the issue peacefully and referred the case to the Security Council which passed a resolution obliging Eritrea to hand over the island to Yemen.
This incident is one of a series of attacks and assaults by Eritreans who keep on targeting Yemeni fishermen, taking an advantage of the weak dysfunctional Yemeni navy.
Fishermen have repeatedly called on their government to shoulder its responsibility and protect its citizens against the frequent attack by Eritrea.
Yemen Post
Security sources confirmed that Eritrean naval boats intercepted three Yemeni boats that belong to fishermen at Taklai area, located in the international territorial water between Sudan and Eritrea and attempted to force them [the fishermen] to accompany them to the Eritrea.
The soldiers started jumping in the boats, however, two boats managed to flee while an Eritrean soldiers was in and reach Yemeni territorial water.
The third boat with three fishermen on board were force to go to Eritrean shores, added the sources.
Eritrean security sources stated that it had released the boat, however, it kept the three Yemeni fishermen as hostages until the Eritrean soldier is released.
Yemeni security source told Yemen Post Eritrea is trying to secure captives swap to press Yemen release the soldier.
Eritrean naval forces invaded the some Yemeni islands after the civil war. But Yemen preferred to resolve the issue peacefully and referred the case to the Security Council which passed a resolution obliging Eritrea to hand over the island to Yemen.
This incident is one of a series of attacks and assaults by Eritreans who keep on targeting Yemeni fishermen, taking an advantage of the weak dysfunctional Yemeni navy.
Fishermen have repeatedly called on their government to shoulder its responsibility and protect its citizens against the frequent attack by Eritrea.
Yemen Post
The World’s Next State?
If a country isn’t recognized, does it make a sound? Here in Somaliland, the semi-autonomous northern part of the failed state of Somalia, I discovered that the answer is an emphatic yes.
The government in Mogadishu has virtually no influence in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, or over the territory’s 3.5 million residents. Since 1991, when the end of Said Barre’s dictatorship plunged Somalia into anarchy, Somaliland has written its own Constitution, held four peaceful elections, established a central bank that prints its own currency, built schools and universities, and created an elaborate security apparatus that has managed to keep at bay terrorist groups like the Shabab, a Wahhabi group that operates with impunity in southern Somalia.
Though Somaliland also borders the tempestuous Gulf of Aden, virtually no pirates haunt its coast. In fact, the maximum-security prison in Hargeisa currently holds some 70 accused pirates. During the drought that thrust the Horn of Africa back into the news last year, Somaliland dodged the worst effects of famine by spending around $10 million — a combination of government, private and diaspora resources — while in the south tons of food given by foreign groups were stolen.
About 50 percent of the $43 million budget (pdf) goes to security and policing. When I left Hargeisa, the government mandated that I travel with an armed guard. Shukri Ismail, the only female on the first National Electoral Commission, told me locals tolerate such arrangements because “if you don’t live in peace, everything else is trivial.”
This has left Somaliland with an ironic disadvantage: comparative stability. Unlike Eritrea, East Timor, Kosovo and South Sudan — recent additions to the community of nations — Somaliland goes about its business mostly free of violence or political infighting. And so it gets passed up for economic opportunities, like the $9 million job-creation grant the World Bank gave South Sudan earlier this month.
Yet it needs them. The state power utility only reaches a fraction of the 1.2 million who live in Hargeisa, and the rest is provided privately at great expense. Piped water is also scarce, and secondary roads are crumbling in many places.
Poor infrastructure is one reason Saad Shire, Somaliland’s minister for planning, is bullish about formal international recognition. He says independence would remove barriers to foreign assistance, foreign loans and foreign investment. For now, “very few people will venture to invest in a country that is not recognized,” Shire told me. The country’s cash comes from a small tax-base and remittances of about $500-600 million annually from Somaliland’s diaspora.
Despite the potential benefits, foreign influence appears to be a pet peeve here. This is partly because of pride at what’s been accomplished without outside help. Ismail, currently the director of Candlelight, a prominent local NGO, said that during the drafting of the Somaliland Constitution in the early 1990s, “We were slaughtering our own goats, our own sheep, spending our own money collected penny by penny from the community.” And as Nicholas Eubank of Stanford has demonstrated, living largely without foreign aid or foreign intervention constrains resources in a way that leads to more inclusive government.
Foreign meddling hasn’t done much good for Somalia proper. More than one person in Somaliland pointed out to me that the ineffectual Transitional Federal Government was born from diplomatic whirlpools such as the 2008 Djibouti Agreement (pdf), which ceased fire between the T.F.G. and armed opposition, and the 2011 Kampala Accord (pdf), which deferred elections and extended the T.F.G.’s mandate. In response to the chaos, Kenyan, Ethiopian and Ugandan troops are fighting a war in southern Somalia, with mounting civilian casualties.
For the near future, Somaliland will be caught between disdaining foreign assistance and requiring it. A communiqué issued after a major summit meeting on Somalia in London last month “welcomed the success in some areas of Somalia in establishing local areas of stability” but made no mention of Somaliland’s campaign for independence. Countries outside of the region are loath to stretch their necks ahead of African governments or what leadership remains in Somalia itself.
This irks young people in Somaliland, who have only known the region as a fledgling state. Suleiha, a 15-year-old student I met at Abaarso Tech, Somaliland’s top-flight boarding school, told me she was disappointed in the London summit. “We went to that meeting as Somalia, and I didn’t agree. We want to be our own country. We have achieved peace. We have our own government.”
The New York Times
The government in Mogadishu has virtually no influence in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, or over the territory’s 3.5 million residents. Since 1991, when the end of Said Barre’s dictatorship plunged Somalia into anarchy, Somaliland has written its own Constitution, held four peaceful elections, established a central bank that prints its own currency, built schools and universities, and created an elaborate security apparatus that has managed to keep at bay terrorist groups like the Shabab, a Wahhabi group that operates with impunity in southern Somalia.
Though Somaliland also borders the tempestuous Gulf of Aden, virtually no pirates haunt its coast. In fact, the maximum-security prison in Hargeisa currently holds some 70 accused pirates. During the drought that thrust the Horn of Africa back into the news last year, Somaliland dodged the worst effects of famine by spending around $10 million — a combination of government, private and diaspora resources — while in the south tons of food given by foreign groups were stolen.
About 50 percent of the $43 million budget (pdf) goes to security and policing. When I left Hargeisa, the government mandated that I travel with an armed guard. Shukri Ismail, the only female on the first National Electoral Commission, told me locals tolerate such arrangements because “if you don’t live in peace, everything else is trivial.”
This has left Somaliland with an ironic disadvantage: comparative stability. Unlike Eritrea, East Timor, Kosovo and South Sudan — recent additions to the community of nations — Somaliland goes about its business mostly free of violence or political infighting. And so it gets passed up for economic opportunities, like the $9 million job-creation grant the World Bank gave South Sudan earlier this month.
Yet it needs them. The state power utility only reaches a fraction of the 1.2 million who live in Hargeisa, and the rest is provided privately at great expense. Piped water is also scarce, and secondary roads are crumbling in many places.
Poor infrastructure is one reason Saad Shire, Somaliland’s minister for planning, is bullish about formal international recognition. He says independence would remove barriers to foreign assistance, foreign loans and foreign investment. For now, “very few people will venture to invest in a country that is not recognized,” Shire told me. The country’s cash comes from a small tax-base and remittances of about $500-600 million annually from Somaliland’s diaspora.
Despite the potential benefits, foreign influence appears to be a pet peeve here. This is partly because of pride at what’s been accomplished without outside help. Ismail, currently the director of Candlelight, a prominent local NGO, said that during the drafting of the Somaliland Constitution in the early 1990s, “We were slaughtering our own goats, our own sheep, spending our own money collected penny by penny from the community.” And as Nicholas Eubank of Stanford has demonstrated, living largely without foreign aid or foreign intervention constrains resources in a way that leads to more inclusive government.
Foreign meddling hasn’t done much good for Somalia proper. More than one person in Somaliland pointed out to me that the ineffectual Transitional Federal Government was born from diplomatic whirlpools such as the 2008 Djibouti Agreement (pdf), which ceased fire between the T.F.G. and armed opposition, and the 2011 Kampala Accord (pdf), which deferred elections and extended the T.F.G.’s mandate. In response to the chaos, Kenyan, Ethiopian and Ugandan troops are fighting a war in southern Somalia, with mounting civilian casualties.
For the near future, Somaliland will be caught between disdaining foreign assistance and requiring it. A communiqué issued after a major summit meeting on Somalia in London last month “welcomed the success in some areas of Somalia in establishing local areas of stability” but made no mention of Somaliland’s campaign for independence. Countries outside of the region are loath to stretch their necks ahead of African governments or what leadership remains in Somalia itself.
This irks young people in Somaliland, who have only known the region as a fledgling state. Suleiha, a 15-year-old student I met at Abaarso Tech, Somaliland’s top-flight boarding school, told me she was disappointed in the London summit. “We went to that meeting as Somalia, and I didn’t agree. We want to be our own country. We have achieved peace. We have our own government.”
The New York Times
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