14 Oct 2011 – Morning headlines
Key Headlines:
- Jerry Rawlings visits Mogadishu
- Heavy fighting erupts in parts of Lower Jubba
- Gunmen kidnap aid workers at Kenyan camp
- Somali capital slowly returns to life after rebel retreat
- Five more Somali children die of diarrhoea in Lower Jubba
SOMALI MEDIA
Jerry Rawlings visits Mogadishu
13 Oct- Source: Radio Bar-kulan, Radio Mogadishu, Kulmiye, Risaala – 146 words
The African Union special representative to Somalia, Jerry Rawlings, on Thursday visited Mogadishu where he met officials from TFG and the AU forces in Mogadishu. Rawlings met the Somali president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and PM Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and discussed with them numerous issues including the implementation of the recently adopted Roadmap and the recent truck bombing in Mogadishu.
Heavy fighting erupts in parts of Lower Jubba
13 Oct- Source: Radio Mogadishu, Bar-kulan, Somaliareport, and Kulmiye – 39 words
Dozens were killed and many others injured when forces from Ras Kamboni, a pro-government militia, shelled al Shabaab positions near Taabta village, Dhobley, witnesses said. The Ras Kamboni militia group claimed that it killed over forty rebel fighters, with only four deaths on their side during the fighting.
President officiates Mogadishu health initiative
13 Oct- Source: Radio Mogadishu- 153 words
Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed yesterday initiated a health program aimed at assisting the needy displaced persons in the capital. Immunization program commenced from door to door in Shangani and other displaced camps in Mogadishu. The health initiative was launched in accordance with the Somali President’s directive that needy persons be assisted. The medical assistance is offered free of charge from the Somali Ministery of health.
Five more Somali children die of diarrhoea in Lower Jubba
13 Oct- Source: Radio Bar-kulan- 98 words
At least five children have been confirmed to have died of diarrhoea-related complications in the border town of Dobley, along the Kenyan-Somali common border in the last 24 hours. Head of Dobley MCH, Sahra Hassan Ali said several cases of children, mainly children under the age of five years who succumbed to the disease, have been reported in the area.
Elders call on al Shabaab to accept defeat and not to use IDPs as human shields
13 Oct- Source: Radio Mogadishu, Somaliareport- 56 words
The Hawiye clan council elders called on al Shabaab not to fight inside the IDP camps located on the outskirts of Mogadishu. The spokesman of the elders, Ahmed Diriye Ali, called on al Shabaab to accept defeat and to stop the resistance. Mr Ahmed also congratulated the Somali National Forces for its recent victories.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Gunmen kidnap aid workers at Kenyan camp
13 Oct- Source: Daily Nation- 303 words
Two foreign aid workers have been kidnapped by suspected al Shabaab militia at a refugee camp in Kenya. A Kenyan driver, who was with two Spaniards, suffered injuries after the captors shot and hurled him out of the vehicle as they sped away. The victims were relief workers with Médecins Sans Frontières, at Dadaab refugee camp in Garissa county.
Massive hunt as gunmen kidnap Kenya aid workers
13 Oct- Source: Africa Review- 98 words
Kenya’s security agencies have mounted a massive search for aid workers kidnapped by gunmen suspected to be from war-torn Somalia. Police sources in Nairobi identified the victims as two international aid workers from Doctors Without Borders and their two Kenyan colleagues. Two choppers have been deployed to help trace the hostages. However, poor visibility caused by heavy rainfall, was hindering the operation.
Al Shabaab kidnap aid workers at Kenyan camp
14 Oct – Source: Daily Nation – 392 words
Two Spaniards were on Thursday kidnapped by al Shabaab gunmen at the Dadaab refugee camp in Garissa. The victims were relief workers with Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders). Police spokesman Eric Kiraithe said: “We’ve dispatched a helicopter. Another chopper from the military is also involved.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Gunmen kidnap two Spanish aid workers from Kenyan camp
13 Oct- Source: Reuters- 339 words
Gunmen kidnapped two Spanish women working for Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) at Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp on Thursday, the third abduction of Westerners in Kenya by attackers linked to Somalia in a month. Kenyan police said they suspected Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgents were behind the kidnapping and that security forces are chasing the abductors.
http://www.reuters.com/
Jerry Rawlings visits Somalia, condemns extremist attack
13 Oct- Source: Ghanaweb- 707 words
Former Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings who is the African Union High Representative for Somalia visited Mogadishu to console bereaved families of a recent suicide attack as well as to inspire the government to keep up with its political and military transformation in order to prepare the country for elections scheduled for August next year.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/
Somali capital slowly returns to life after rebel retreat
13 Oct- Source: AFP- 779 words
Old men sip tea while children kick a football on a dusty street in the Somali capital: ordinary scenes of daily life unthinkable just weeks ago, when al Shabaab fighters were in control here. “We came back last month after al Shabaab left, because it was not safe before,” said Abdulah Abubakr, sitting beside a bullet-scarred building in Mogadishu’s northeastern Tawfiq district, a former al Shabaab stronghold.
Eritrea cabinet approves aid to Somalia
13 Oct- Source: VOA- 334 words
An official says Eritrea’s cabinet has approved a food aid package to Somalis affected by drought and famine. Some skeptics have questioned the timing as well as the size of the approved aid. Information minister Ali Abdu says “it not about how much [aid] you give, it’s about how much love you give with what you give.”
http://www.voanews.com/