08 Nov 2011 – Morning headlines

Key Headlines:

Mogadishu residents take to beaches as city reawakens (Source: AMISOM FORCE HQ)
Al Shabaab fails to get supports from Somali clans ( Radio Mogadishu)
Al Shabaab declare war against French government citizens (Radio Voice of Mudug)
Somalis revel on Mogadishu’s safe beaches for first time in three years (Source: Guardian)
Somali govt tightens Mogadishu’s security (Source: Radio Shabelle)
Turkey to set up second hospital in Somalia (Source: Radio Bar-Kulan)
Eid Al Adha festival observed in many parts of Somalia worldwide (Source: Radio Mogadishu)

PRESS RELEASE

Mogadishu residents take to beaches as city reawakens

06 Nov – Source: AMISOM FORCE HQ – 327 words

Hundreds of Mogadishu residents last week took to the beaches for the first time in three years in a dramatic display of a new found sense of security following the forcing out from the city of Al Qaeda-linked terrorists.

The revelers, who included former President, Ali Mahdi Mohamed, converged on the scenic Lido beach on Friday where they enjoyed a game of football and took a dip in the waters. Ever since the Somali National Army, with the support of the African Union Mission in Somalia, forced the extremists’ retreat in August, the capital has been experiencing something of a resurgence. Roads are being repaired, homes rebuilt and markets reopened. Real estate prices along Via Moscow have doubled and there are people out in the streets late into the night, despite the ongoing threat of terrorist attack.

Following a successful operation to secure parts the vast outlying district of Deynile, hundreds of thousands of people in the Afgoye corridor who had previously been prevented by the extremists from returning to their homes in the city are now streaming back.

Traffic at the Aden Abdulleh International Airport has also tripled and the line of ships waiting to dock at the seaport grows ever longer. The city has played host to several high profile visitors, including Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Erdogan, and a number of countries have reopened their embassies.

SOMALI MEDIA

Al Shabaab fails to get supports from Somali clans

07 Nov- Source: Radio Mogadishu, SONNA, Jowhar Oline, Radio Bar-kulan- 141 words

A senior militant leader Hassan Dahir Aweys has revealed that his militia group has failed to get support from several clans in Somalia after series of talks with clan leaders. Addressing hundreds worshippers in Alamada area on the outskirt of Mogadishu, during Eid prayers, Aweys said clan leaders declined to let their sons join the militia group.

Somali govt tightens Mogadishu’s security

07 Nov- Source: Radio Shabelle- 182 words

The ministry of interior and home security on Monday announced increased security measures as residents celebrate the festival of Eid Al Adha.

Al Shabaab declare war against French government, citizens

05 Nov- Source: Radio Voice of Mudug, Radio Kulmiye-89 words

Somalia’s radical militant group, al Shabaab, has “declared war” against the French government after a French Magazine published a cartoon insulting prophet Muhammad. Al Shabaab has said that it will “launch” a war against the French government and its citizens for insulting the prophet.

Clerics, elders arrested in Kismayo, Lower Juba

06 Nov- Source: Radio Bar-kulan- 138 words

Al Shabaab has arrested ten people including clerics and traditional elders for conducting separate Eid prayer, reports say. The clerics were arrested for reportedly defying an order to conduct prayers in one open field.

Three soldiers killed, four others injured in roadside bomb in Mogadishu

06 Nov- Source: Radio Gaalkacyo- 112 words

Three government soldiers were killed and four others when a roadside bomb hit a convoy of government cars in Mogadishu’s Dharkenley district.

Somali government forces plan to sieze Baardheere

05 Nov- Source: Radio Mogadishu, SONNA- 135 words

Somali government forces are planning to capture the town of Baardheere, which is located in Gedo province. Baardheere is a town currently controlled by al Shabaab.

Turkey to set up second hospital in Somalia

06 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 215 words

The Turkish Health Ministry will set up a second field hospital in Somalia near the former parliamentary building. Health Ministry Somalia team’s head, Dr. Akif Saatcioglu said that hospital would be bigger than the one already in existence.

Banadir regional admin tightens Mogadishu security

07 Nov – Source: Mareeg Online, Shabelle – 153 words

The Banadir regional administration on Sunday announced increased security measures around the capital as residents prepare to celebrate Eid Al Adha. In an interview with the media, Abdikafi Hilowle Osman, the secretary of Banadir administration said that government forces have been deployed in Mogadishu’s 16 districts.

http://www.mareeg.com/fidsan.php?sid=21745&tirsan=3

Eid Al Adha festival observed in many parts of Somalia, worldwide

06 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Shabelle – 72 words

As Muslims around worldwide, the first day of Eid Al Adha is celebrated in many parts of Somalia. Somalis in Mogadishu, parts of al Shabaab controlled south-central Somalia, Ahlu Sunna’s central portions, Galmudug, Puntland and Somaliland are observing the Eid Al-Adha festival or Feast of the Sacrifice, commemorating Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son.

Al Shabaab accused of forcing clans into battle

05 Nov – Source: Diirad Online, Shabelle – 88 words

Imam Moallim Abshir, a Somali elder has accused al Shabaab of forcing clans to join the fighting against the Somali government, AMISOM and Kenyan forces in Southern Somali and Mogadishu. Abshir said the group has been trying to sign agreements with Somali clans in parts of the country.

http://www.diirad.com/news-in-english/3756-al-shabaab-accused-of-forcing-clans-into-battle.html

Three killed in fighting between government, al Shabaab in central Somalia

05 Oct- Source: Radio Shabelle, Radio Voice of Mudug, Radio Gaalkacyo- 142 words

At least three people have been killed and five others injured following heavy fighting between pro-government troops and fighters loyal to al Shabaab in Jiracle locality which is 27 km to the east of Beled Weyne town, central Somalia.

Jordanian charity organisation to provide aid to Somalia

04 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 82 words

The Jordan Hashemite Charity organisation (JHCO) and the Al-Urwa Al-Wuthqa association in cooperation with Islamic relief has donated 3150 sacrificial animals to Somali people. JHCO Secretary General, Ahmed Imyan, said the organisation will provide prices of the sheep to the Islamic relief to buy the sacrificial animals and slaughter them before being distributed to the needy in Somalia.

Al Shabaab impose curfew in Hudur town

06 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 177 words

The Shabaab rebel group has imposed a nighttime curfew in Hudur town, Bakol region. The area rebel leader, Adan Yare, said residents are required to remain indoors from dust til dawn. He threatened to take decisive measures against sympathisers of the Somali government once an operation aimed at stamping out government supports starts in the area.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Kenya will defeat al Shabaab, Kibaki reaffirms

07 Nov- Source: Daily Nation- 564 words

President Kibaki on Monday reaffirmed resolve in dealing with the Shabaab militant group that has sought to destabilise not just Kenya but the entire Horn of Africa region. President Kibaki pointed out that the transformation of the African continent will only be achieved through a secure and peaceful environment, adding that Kenya has taken a stand for peace and stability in the region and will not waver in that endeavour.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Kenya+will+defeat+Al+Shabaab++Kibaki+reaffirms/-/1056/1268716/-/opme2/-/index.html

Kenyan army says al Shabaab jihadists flee

05 Nov – Source: Afrique Jet – 296 words

Foreign jihadists in Al Shabaab ranks have re-grouped in the town of Barawe and Marka to plan their flight to Yemen following an intensified military operation against the Islamist fighters in Somalia, a military spokesman said. The Kenyan Defence Forces (KDF), operating inside Somalia, said it had received intelligence reports that the foreign fighters were hunting down for any merchant ship to help them flee towards Yemen.

http://www.afriquejet.com/kenya-army-al-shabaab-jihadists-flee-2011110526714.html

Kenya says Kismayu assault on course

06 Nov- Source: the Standard- 554 words

The military stepped up Operation “Linda Nchi”, which is being conducted together with Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government Forces, with the Navy sinking another suspected al Shabaab vessel near Ras Kamboni after it defied orders to stop for identification.

http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=2000046243&cid=4&ttl=Kenya%20says%20Kismayu%20assault%20on%20course

Kenya not at war with Somalia, says Kenyan Minister

07 Nov- Source: Nairobi Star- 152 words

Kenya is not at war with Somalia and Parliament did not take part in approving the decision to pursue the al Shabaab, Information assistant minister Dhado Godhana has said. Godhana said there is much misunderstanding about Kenya’s incursion into Somalia. “I have heard many things said about the ‘Operation Linda Nchi’. It is time we put things into perspective. The actual situation is not war but a peace support operation,” said Godhana, who is a retired major.

http://www.the-star.co.ke/local/coast/48019-kenya-not-at-war-with-somalia-says-godhana

Kenya Navy sinks another Shabaab boat

04 Nov- Source: Capital FM- 527 words

Kenya Navy forces sunk yet another boat in Kenyan waters on Friday as it intensified patrols in the sea to fight off al Shabaab militants from Somalia even as coast residents accused the forces of attacking and killing innocent fishermen. Military Spokesman Maj Emmanuel Chirchir did not state the death toll from the Friday dawn attack on the suspected fighters who were said to have been confronted as they sped towards the Kenyan side.

http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/2011/11/kenya-navy-sinks-another-shabaab-boat/

US Senator lauds Kenya operation in Somalia

04 Nov- Source: Daily Nation- 230 words

A US senator has praised the Kenyan Government for its operation against Somalia militia al Shabaab. Mark Kirk, a Republican representing President Barack Obama’s home state of Illinois, told his Senate colleagues on Wednesday that the Obama administration and Nato should support Kenya’s incursion.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/US+Senator+lauds+Kenya+operation+in+Somalia/-/1056/1267208/-/vrgej3z/-/

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Somalis revel on Mogadishu’s safe beaches for first time in three years

06 Nov – Source: Guardian – 296 words

Hundreds of residents of the Somalian capital Mogadishu have taken respite from bombs and bullets by flocking to the beaches for the first time in three years. The revellers, who included former president Ali Mahdi Mohamed, converged on the Lido beach where they played football and swam. The African Union Mission in Somalia said the return to Mogadishu beaches on Friday showed a new sense of security since the militant group al-Shabaab, aligned with al-Qaida, retreated from Mogadishu in August. “Roads are being repaired, homes rebuilt and markets reopened,” it said.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/06/somalians-revel-mogadishu-safe-beaches?newsfeed=true

Hijacked Taiwanese fishing boat escapes to safety

07 Nov – Source: Taiwan Today – 280 words

Taiwanese fishing boat hijacked by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean has successfully escaped to safety, the Council of Agriculture’s Fisheries Agency said Nov. 6. The crew of the Chin Yi Wen, taken hostage Nov. 4 by six pirates armed with AK-47 rifles while fishing off the coast of Somalia, managed to subdue the villains and regain control of the ship the following day, according to an FA press release.

http://www.taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=179425&ctNode=445

UN convoy hits landmine in Kenya’s Dadaab camp

05 Nov – Source: Reuters – 324 words

A Kenyan police jeep escorting U.N. vehicles struck a landmine in the country’s Dadaab refugee complex near the border with Somalia on Saturday, police said, underscoring the mounting threats facing aid groups and refugees in the camp. The explosive device failed to detonate. The incident took place close to where two Spanish women working for the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) were kidnapped last month.

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE7A404C20111105?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews

Somali residents living in fear of Kenya attacks

07 Nov- Source: AFP- 567 words

Residents of Somali towns targeted by Kenyan forces fighting Shebab rebels said on Friday they were caught between two fears: getting hit in an air raid or being accused of spying for Nairobi. In Baidoa, one of the 10 towns singled out this week by Kenya for attack, residents say they spend as little time as possible outdoors, fearing that a bombardment would unleash dangerous rock shards from the huge boulders that dot the area.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gFbnjp2mIBdfFO0d6uQ9NTw-7-_A?docId=CNG.169f45a6794162076f0de0671b82b663.291

At least seven fishermen feared shot dead off coast of Somalia

04 Nov- Source: Xinhua- 596 words

At least seven Kenyan fishermen are feared dead after they were shot at sea, after being mistaken to be either Al-Shabaab or pirates off the coast of Somalia. Sources claimed on Friday that the fishermen from Mombasa were in a group of 11 during the Thursday dawn incident after they went to sea via Kiangoni route.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/04/c_131230185.htm

UN convoy hits landmine in Kenya’s Dadaab camp

05 Nov- Source: Reuters- 329 words

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE7A404C20111105?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews

Kenya-Eritrea row over arms to Somalia heats up

06 Nov – Source: Reuters – 443 words

Eritrea has rejected a Kenyan accusation that it might be arming Somalia’s Islamist al Shabaab rebels, and said a threat by Kenya to take unspecified action in response was “unfortunate.” Eritrea has become increasingly isolated by accusations from its neighbours that it is arming the Islamist rebels in Somalia. The diplomatic row follows Kenya’s deployment of troops across its border to fight al Shabaab in southern Somalia three weeks ago.

http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNews/idCATRE7A51WA20111106?rpc=401&feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&rpc=401