16 Nov 2011 – Daily Monitoring Report
Key Headlines:
- Police intercept explosives in Mogadishu (Source: Radio Bar-Kulan Radio Mogadishu)
- President Sharif: Anti al Shabaab crusade still active (Source: SONNA Radio Mogadishu)
- President praises TFG and AMISOM forces (Source: Radio Mogadishu SNTV Somali Channel TV SONNA)
- President travels to Nairobi for talks (Source: Radio Mogadishu Mareeg Online)
- Several injured in an explosion targeting a house in Darkenley Mogadishu (Source: Radio Bar-Kulan)
- UN to punish al Shabaab allies (Source: The Standard)
- Concern grows in UK U.S. over Somali-based militants (Source: Al Arabia)
- The Mayor of Mogadishu (Source: Aljazeera)
- Kenya UN envoy seeks US help on Somalia (Source: AFP)
SOMALI MEDIA
Police intercept explosives in Mogadishu
16 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan, Radio Mogadishu – 121 words
Police in Mogadishu’s Hodan district on Tuesday night seized a minibus laden with explosives and eight people onboard at Tarabunka junction, reports say.
The car and suspects in the minibus were immediately transferred to the criminal investigation department headquarters in Mogadishu for further investigations. Police are yet to release the details of the explosives and those in custody. The destination of the explosives still remains unclear, as investigations are not yet over.
On October 4, al Shabaab rebel group detonated a truck laden with explosives outside a government building in Mogadishu, killing at least 70 people and wounded 50 others including students, soldiers and civilians.
President Sharif: Anti al Shabaab crusade still active
16 Nov- Source: SONNA, Radio Mogadishu – 218 words
The president has vowed to kick out al Shabaab from Mogadishu and Somalia. President Sharif said that the TFG is planning to purchase new equipment for the military so that they can effectively attain victory in their fight against al Shabaab.
He added that the planned offensive against al Shabaab in Somalia is ongoing and that the insurgents should get ready for more fighting. ‘The aim is to secure peace in Somalia and defeat the militants’ he said.
The president urged all Somali citizens to assist the government in the fight against what he described as the common enemy, al Shabaab. The president also promised also promised “logistical and financial support” to the TFG forces fighting al Shabaab.
President praises TFG and AMISOM forces
16 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, SNTV, Somali Channel TV, and SONNA – 164 words
President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has toured Jazeera military base camp where new Somali recruits from Uganda are based following their successful military training in Uganda. The president praised the Somali national army and AMISOM for the commendable work they have done in eradicating al Shabaab from their bases in Mogadishu.
He added that the Al Qaeda and al Shabaab rein is over and called on all the Somalis to assist security forces in trouncing the extremists from Somalia. TFG forces have vowed to continue building on the progress made in securing other parts of Bakol region.
Several injured in an explosion targeting a house in Darkenley, Mogadishu
16 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 196 words
Five people, two of them children, were injured in an explosion at a house near the former UNISOM base in Mogadishu’s Darkenley district. The injured people were reportedly watching a television screen when a hand grenade was hurled into the house. They were immediately taken to health facilities in Mogadishu for treatment. No group has claimed responsibility of the attack.
The incident comes just a week after one person was killed and several others wounded in a separate grenade attack on residential and military bases in the districts of Wadajir, Yaqshid, and Howlwadag in Mogadishu.
Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack targeting government troops and a house for a member parliament, Abdirahman Mohamud Farah Janaqow. In another separate incident, attackers hurled hand grenades at government military bases in Fagah and Howlwadag, where two officers sustained injuries.
President travels to Nairobi for talks
16 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Mareeg Online – 94 words
The President has departed for Nairobi where he is expected to hold talks with the Kenyan president, Mwai Kibaki and the Ugandan president, Yoweri Museveni.
Al Shabaab: “Kenyan invasion into Somalia has failed”
15 Nov – Source: Shabelle, Mareeg Online – 177 words
Somalia’s Al-Qaeda linked group of al Shabaab said on Tuesday that the military incursion into southern Somalia by the Kenyan military has failed.
The spokesman for al Shabaab, Sheik Ali Mohammud Rage, said at a press conference held in Mogadishu that al Shabaab has launched a spate of attacks against Kenyan forces in the regions of Jubba and Gedo inflicting heavy casualties.
Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage issued a warning stating that Kenya still has a chance to withdraw its forces from Somalia because ‘things have not begun in earnest,’ a possible reference to threats to carry out terror attacks in Nairobi.
http://www.shabelle.net/
TFG parades bodies of al Shabaab fighters killed in Mogadishu fighting
15 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Somalia Report – 71 words
TFG military officers today exhibited 6 bodies of al Shabaab fighters killed in fighting on Monday night at SOS village in Heliwa district. Col. Mohamed Mohamud Saneey stated that some of those killed have already been buried. He added that ‘this shows how al Shabaab has been weakened’.
EU Naval Force returns captured “pirates” to Somalia
15 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 280 words
The European Union anti-piracy mission said it has returned to Somalia 19 pirates who surrendered to a naval warship early this week after a foiled piracy mission. E.U. Naval Force spokesperson Harrie Harrison said the Yemen registered dhow, Al Jabal, which had been stolen for use as a pirate mother-ship, was stopped by the FGS Koeln on Nov. 8.
In a statement on Saturday Harrison said a group of 19 Somali men were on board and surrendered to the boarding team, adding that two Yemeni crew members were released. He said the dhow had been previously detected in the area of a number of failed pirate attacks and tracked to a position where an unopposed boarding could be carried out.
He said the 19 men were returned to Somalia due to lack of sufficient evidence to prove piracy and reluctance of two crew members to testify against them. He said the dhow, with a crew of German sailors onboard, has sailed toward the port of Al Mukalla on the Yemen coast, where it will be handed over to the Yemen Coastguard for return to its owners and for the two crew members to be reunited with their families.
Somali FA lauds Qatar FA for raising money for draught-hit Somalia
15 Nov – Source: Somaliweyn – 214 words
As the world football struggles to play its role in the campaign against famine in Somalia, the Somali Football Federation (SFF) lauded Qatar government, Football Association and people for organizing a friendly football match between Brazil and Egypt which raised money for the draught-displaced people in Somalia.
Somali Football Federation President Said Mahmoud Nur who was watching last night’s Brazil-Egypt clash in Doha said in a press statement on Tuesday that his Federation and the whole Somali people were very grateful to the Qatar Football family for its sympathy and kind heartedness to the needy people in Somalia.
“My particular thanks and gratefulness are due to the Qatar FA president his highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani for hosting the friendly match in a bid to raise money for his brothers in Somalia—Qatar and Somalia have had long-existing bilateral relations and both football Federations in Qatar and Somalia are strengthening that old relation” the Somali Football Federation President Said Mahmoud Nur emphasized in his Tuesday’s press statement.
The statement said that the kingdom of Qatar was already playing a very big role in surviving the lives of hundreds of needy people in Somalia and the Qatar Football Association’s latest step shows that Qatar’s people and government are sharing the hardships with their Somali brothers.
http://www.somaliweyn.org/
Puntland Police detain television journalist and a female reporter forced to go into hiding
16 Nov – Source: Raxanreeb, Somalia Channel – 672 words
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) and the Media Association of Puntland (MAP) protest the deliberate attack and man hunt against journalists which continues in Puntland, following the overnight raid on the homes of two journalists working for Somali Chanel Television in Garowe.
The Puntland police raided the homes of Mr. Mahad Abdi Ali, a reporter and cameraman and Ms. Saido-Kiin Ahmed Jama, a reporter, both working for Somali Chanel in Garowe at around 2:00am on Tuesday.
Mr. Mahad Abdi Ali has been detained but, Miss. Saido-Kiin Ahmed Jama told NUSOJ that she was not at home at the time of the police raid. She went into hiding after receiving tips of possible police raid at her home.
“Five armed police on board two vehicles came to my home, searched me the house but they were not able to find me, because I left the house in the evening when I got a tip from friends.” Saido-Kiinb Ahmed Jama in hiding told NUSOJ by phone. (…). Mr. Ali is being held at the Garowe Central Police station and has not been brought to court.
http://www.raxanreeb.com/?p=
REGIONAL MEDIA
UN to punish al Shabaab allies
16 Nov – Source: The Standard – 1009 words
The troops backed by TFG soldiers have now secured the towns of Qoqani, Tabda and Afmadow in Somalia. No casualties were reported on the Kenyan side and the port of Kismayu on Somalia’s coastline is the next clear target as terrorist group.
Kenya has accused Eritrea of being behind three planeloads of weapons delivered last month to Al Shabaab at Baidoa airport. On Tuesday, President Kibaki welcomed the support Kenya has obtained from both its citizens and governments in the operation against the militants who seek to destabilise the region’s economies.
While opening the Regional Infrastructure Conference at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kibaki said: “As we embark on planning our infrastructure programmes, I wish to underscore the importance of peace and stability in our region.”
Meanwhile, a police Toyota Land Cruiser escorting aid agency vehicles headed back to the UN complex in Dadaab reportedly hit a landmine on Tuesday along the road to Hagadera refugee camp, injuring two people.
North Eastern PPO Leo Nyongesa confirmed the incident. Last night President Kibaki worked late at his Harambee House offices discussing internal security matters with top departmental officials.
In July, the UN Somalia-Eritrea Sanctions Monitoring Group cited what it called “credible information received from multiple sources” that said aircraft carrying arms, ammunition, equipment, militia commanders and wounded fighters on behalf of Al Shabaab landed in Baidoa, Baledogley and Kismayu from Eritrea.
http://www.standardmedia.co.
Missile raid targeted top Shabaab leaders
15 Nov – Source: Daily Nation – 393 words
The Sunday night missile attack near Mogadishu targeted a meeting of top al Shabaab commanders. Among those at the meeting at the militants’ bases were spiritual leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, Ahmad Godane Abu Zubayr and Mr ‘Amerika’. The whereabouts of the three remained unknown on Tuesday night amid reports that they had been killed.
“There were air strikes in Afgoye and K50, which are controlled by al Shabaab. The area of concentration was Afgoye where the three Al-Shabaab commanders were holding a meeting. “We are informed that they hit their targets,” said African Union Mission for Somalia deputy special representative Wafula Wamunyinyi.
Mr Wamunyinyi could not, however, confirm whether the three were killed or injured during the strikes, saying information from the ground was still scanty. He could also not confirm whether the air strikes were carried out by the Kenyan forces or the African Union troops.
“All we know at the moment is that the allied forces hit their targets, some militants were killed and others were injured but it is difficult to tell because the militants who control the town have blocked anybody from reaching the scene,” he said.
http://www.nation.co.ke/News/
UAE’s humanitarian support to Somalia hailed
15 Nov – Source: Emirates News Agency – 195 words
Somali Minister of Min. of Mineral Resources, Water, Energy, ‘&’ Petroleum Abdulkadir Mohamed Dhi’sow expressed gratitude to the UAE for the continuous “invaluable humanitarian assistance” to the people of Somalia.
The Somali official made the remarks in a meeting here with Secretary General of the UAE’s Red Crescent Authority (RCA) Mohammed Al-Qamzi.
“Relief and medical aid provided by RCA to the poor in refugee camps and slums in and outside Mogadishu is the best instance of brotherly ties and cooperation between the two countries,” he said. The Minister also expressed confidence that the UAE’s RCA will continue to assist his country in drinking water projects in Somali cities.
For his part, Al-Qamzi said there are directives by the top leadership of RCA to expand the humanitarian and development support to the famine-struck Horn of Africa country. He cited RCA-funded Al-Hanan Maternity and Child Care Hospital which is under construction by UAE’s Al Waha International Company which is led by Sheikha Shamsa Bin Hamdan Al-Nahyan.
“Security and stability are required for the implementation of development projects and provide educational and health services to the people of Somalia and for building the country’s cities,” he added.
Video – Interview with the spokesperson for the TFG – Abdirahman Omar
15 Nov – Source: K24 – 7:41 min
K24 interview with Eng. Abdriahman Yarisow, the spokesperson for the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG ) on the issue of the Kenyan army’s crossing into Somalia.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Concern grows in UK, U.S. over Somali-based militants
16 Nov – Source: Al Arabia – 1194 words
In late October, two 18-year-old men from the Welsh city of Cardiff were arrested on Kenya’s border with war-torn Somalia. The father of one of them told the BBC he believed his son had been “brainwashed” and was on his way to join an Islamic holy war.
Kenyan authorities quickly sent the two men, both British citizens of Somali extraction, back to Britain. After questioning by police, they were released without charge.
The arrests, which occurred just as Kenyan security forces launched an air and ground incursion into Somalia, shone a light on an increasing concern for British and U.S. counter-terrorism experts — the interest of young British Muslims in joining al Shabaab.
The Somali-based Islamic militant group is aligned with al-Qaeda and its Yemen-based affiliate, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
European officials say a steady stream of British citizens and residents have been making their way to Somalia to join up with bands of al-Shabaab militants who patrol, and in some cases control, patches of Somalia’s fragmented territory.
Some of the group’s British recruits come from within insular communities of Somali immigrants to Britain, based in working class neighbourhoods of London and a few provincial cities, including Cardiff, a seaport where Somali immigrants involved in the shipping trade established a presence years ago.
But officials say Shabaab has also succeeded in recruiting Britons of much more diverse backgrounds, including British residents of Pakistani ancestry and Muslim converts with ethnic Anglo-Saxon pedigrees. The officials say dozens of English- speaking westerners have travelled to Somalia to join or train with Shabaab.
British authorities believe the potential problems posed by Britons connecting with al Shabaab could pose threats not just to Somalia and its neighbours – where investigators believe Shabaab is extending its activities but to Britain as well.
The British authorities are trying to spot and track people who travel to Somalia from Britain and might have come into contact with Shabaab.
http://english.alarabiya.net/
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
The Mayor of Mogadishu
16 Nov – Source: Aljazeera – 181 words
it is one of the world’s toughest jobs, but one man is determined to make a difference in the war-torn Somali capital.
Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, is considered one of the most dangerous places on earth. Its two million inhabitants have endured more than two decades of conflict and today a battle rages between the armed al-Shabaab group and Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Amidst the chaos of this war-torn city, Mahamoud Nur, the mayor of Mogadishu, is trying to make a difference, in part by “altering the mindset of the people”.
He left his wife and six children behind in London, where he had lived for more than 12 years, to return home to Mogadishu at the request of Sharif Ahmed, the country’s president.
This film explores Mahamoud’s extraordinary story and follows him in the days leading up to one of his most ambitious initiatives to date: a street festival celebrating Somali culture – the first event of its kind in many years and an obvious target for an attack.
http://www.aljazeera.com/
Why Kenya invaded Somalia
15 Nov – Source: Foreign Affairs – 718 words
When Kenya dispatched some 2,000 troops across the border into Somalia on October 16, officials in Nairobi argued that they’d had little choice. After a series of cross-border raids by the Somalia-based Islamist militant group al Shabaab, Kenya’s internal security minister, George Saitoti, said, “Kenya has been and remains an island of peace, and we shall not allow criminals from Somalia, which has been fighting for over two decades, to destabilize our peace.”
A recent spate of kidnappings of tourists and aid workers inside Kenya, Saitoti and others said, was the final straw. With its largely peaceful post-independence history, Kenya has built itself into a regional economic powerhouse, and a serious threat to that prosperity would have to be countered. Accordingly, Nairobi invaded its neighbour to secure its eastern border and to create a buffer zone inside Somalia.
But this case for war is less than convincing, as it is difficult to argue that the threat from al Shabaab is substantially worse than it has been in years past. Kenyan troops have armed, trained, and organized proxy forces to fight al Shabaab on the border since at least 2009, albeit to no great effect. For at least three years, al Shabaab has threatened armed attacks on Kenya; cross-border raids by al Shabaab fighters have been a fact of life in north-eastern Kenya for some time. In fact, by some estimates, the overall threat from al Shabaab has declined in recent months: the UN’s envoy to Somalia said in August that Ugandan and Burundian peacekeepers had actually weakened the al Qaeda-affiliated militants.
Nairobi’s incursion into Somalia was spurred less by the threat of al Shabaab and more by domestic military and political dynamics. Kenya will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of its independence in 2013, and so far the country has never once gone to war with another state. But recently, as Washington has funnelled counterterrorism funds into East Africa and underwritten a stronger Kenyan military, the country’s military has grown more confident and combative.
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/
Kenya UN envoy seeks US help on Somalia
15 Nov – Source: AFP – 545 words
Kenya’s UN envoy on Tuesday courted support from Washington for his country’s campaign against Islamist Shabaab rebels in southern Somalia.
“We would love to see the international community, with the US right up there, engaging in Somalia in ways in which they have not for quite a long time,” Ambassador Macharia Kamau told AFP in an interview.
Kenya deployed tanks and troops to the Shabaab-controlled southern Somalia on October 14 to fight the Al-Qaeda-linked rebels Nairobi blames for kidnapping foreigners and making cross-border raids.
“We would like to see the US and the international community taking advantage of basically what Kenya is doing, which is putting troops on the ground, taking risks that need to be taken to achieve the goals that we all say need to be achieved, which is to bring peace and security to Somalia,” he said.
The ambassador was due to meet with Democratic Senator Al Franken and Democratic Representative Keith Ellison of Minnesota, a state with a vast Somali-American community that al-Shabaab has tapped for recruits, and Republican Senator Mark Kirk, who has sounded the alarm over the al-Qaeda linked group.
The diplomat said Shabaab was training “over 40 known American citizens” in Somalia, warning that there was “a direct line” from the group “right back to American cities” that “poses a clear and present danger for Americans.”
“We should never forget that what’s going on in Somalia, while it might appear to be far away, out in the middle of nowhere, has tentacles that stretch back to the United States,” he cautioned.
And he made a fresh appeal to the United States to consider imposing a blockade on the rebel-held Somali port of Kismayo to choke off the rebels’ supply line, a move Washington has been reluctant to support.