18 Jul 2011 – Morning headlines
Key Headlines:
- Top Somali leaders standoff over the appointment of new cabinet
- AMISOM comes to the aid of Somali IDPs
- Al-Qaeda admits teenage Brit killed leading terror unit in Somalia
- Government forces arrest al Shabaab fighters in southern Somalia
- MPs issue caution on venue of the consultative meeting on Somalia
- Nairobi police nab two terror suspects
- Somalia drought: UN aid for camps under Islamists
- Pope urges help for Somalia
- Al Shabaab increase levy on businesses in Afmadow Lower Shabelle
- Puntland appeals for aid
- US to partner with Kenya in Somali border security
- No safe place for women refugees in Kenya
PRESS RELEASE
AMISOM comes to the aid of Somali IDPs
17 Jul – Source: AMISOM Force HQ – 307 words
Doctors from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) are helping to tackle an outbreak of measles at a camp for Somalis displaced by the drought ravaging the country. The camp, which has sprung up in the last two weeks next to the Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu, is estimated to hold 700 people though the number is increasing every day. Many, particularly children, show signs of severe malnutrition and say they have walked for up to five days in search of food.
Living conditions at the camp are also extremely poor and have been worsened by recent heavy rains in the capital.
AMISOM’s Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) unit has erected 5 large waterproof tents at the camp to serve as accommodations and a medical centre. AMISOM doctors have begun offering free medical treatment, including distributing Vitamin A pills. In addition to measles, they are also dealing with other diseases, such as malaria and diarrhoea, resulting from a combination of severe malnutrition and the unsanitary conditions at the camp. Serious cases are being referred to AMISOM’s Level 2 hospital at the main base.
SOMALI MEDIA
Top Somali leaders’ standoff over the appointment of new cabinet
17 Jul – Source: Shabelle, Mareeg Online – 211 words
The top leaders of Somali interim federal government of Somalia are still disagreeing over the appointment of new cabinet lineup, according to sources.
http://www.shabelle.net/
Government forces, al Shabaab clash in southern Somalia
17 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle, Radio Risala – 98 words
Heavy fighting between government forces and al Shabaab militias has broken out in Beled-hawo town of Gedo region in southwestern Somalia.
AMISOM provides humanitarian assistance to IDPs in Mogadishu
15 Jul – Source: Mareeg Online, Shabelle, Horseed Media – 186 words
The African Union peacekeeping troops provided aid food to displaced people and drought affected people near Aden Adde Airport in Mogadishu.
http://www.mareeg.com/fidsan.
UK officials set to visit Dadaab refugee camps
16 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 215 words
A team of UK officials led by the Secretary of State for International Development, Adrew Mitchell, is expected to visit refugee camps in Dadaab to assess drought situation in East Africa.
Government forces arrest al Shabaab fighters in southern Somalia
15 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle – 104 words
Government officials have reportedly arrested a number of al Shabaab fighters during security operations conducted in Tuulo Barwaqo village, Gedo region in southwestern Somalia.
MPs issue caution on venue of the consultative meeting on Somalia
16 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle, Radio Kulmiye – 126 words
Some Somali MPs after a meeting held on Saturday in Mogadishu have warned that the upcoming consultative meeting on Somalia should not be hosted out of Mogadishu. This comes after a number or reports have speculated that the meeting may be held in Garowe, the capital of Puntland.
Al Shabaab burns vehicle carrying medicine in southern Somalia
16 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle, Radio Mogadishu – 129 words
Al Shabaab fighters have burnt a vehicle carrying medicine in Gedo Region, southwestern Somalia. According to reports, the vehicle which was ferrying medicine from Mandera District in Kenya.
Number of IDPs in Las’anod town doubles
16 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 177 words
A local humanitarian organization in Las’anod town has revealed that the number of displaced persons reaching the town has doubled in the last couple of days. The organization said most of the displaced people especially children and women are severely malnourished and need immediate humanitarian assistance.
Somali legislator condemns traditional elders’ arrest
16 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 143 words
Mohamed Omar Gedi, an MP, has accused al Shabaab of arresting traditional elders in Yaq- Bisharo in Lower Jubba after the elders prevented al Shabaab from taking control of a water will in the area.
Govt forces seize military equipment in southern Somalia
16 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle – 117 words
Government officials have reportedly seized military equipment belonging to al Shabaab in parts of Gedo region in southern Somalia. Nur Sayah Hared, a military officer, said that soldiers seized the weapons in a security operation in Beled Hawo, a border town near Kenya.
Al Shabaab increase levy on businesses in Afmadow, Lower Shabelle
16 Jul – Source: Radio Risala, Radio Bar-Kulan, Somaliareport – 71 words
Al Shabaab has increased taxes to be paid by livestock owners in Afmadow town, Lower Shabelle region.
Grenade blast kills two children in southern Somalia
16 Jul – Source: Radio Kulmiye, Radio Risala – 39 words
Two children have been killed and three adults wounded after a hand grenade exploded in Xuddur Distric, southwestern Somalia. The children were reportedly playing with the bomb when it went off, adding that the wounded were rushed to a local hospital.
Puntland appeals for aid
15 Jul – Source: Radio Garowe, Puntlandpost – 193 words
Puntland’s Minister for Health, Dr. Abli Abdullahi Warsame, has said there are many displaced people who are in need of urgent assistance. Many he said have fled from the drought in other parts of Somalia and are now living in extreme hardship.
Al Shabaab destroy Khat just outside of Mogadishu
15 Jul – Source: Shabelle – 140 words
Al Shabaab on Thursday torched sacks of Khat at IDP camps in Elasha Biyaha just outside of Mogadishu.
http://www.shabelle.net/
REGIONAL MEDIA
Somalia crisis one of ‘largest in decades’
16 Jul – Source: Al Jazeera, AP – 463
East Africa’s worsening famine is one of the largest humanitarian crises in decades, a US official said, pledging “significant” aid. The US already pledged $5m on Friday to help Somali refugees on top of a previously budgeted $63m.
http://english.aljazeera.net/
Nairobi police nab two terror suspects
16 Jul – Source: Capital FM – 429 words
The Anti Terrorism Police Unit in Nairobi on Saturday said it was holding two people suspected to be terrorists. Police said that they picked up the two from a city hotel on Saturday morning, before taking them to them to the Nairobi area police station for further questioning.
http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/
Tents coming for Somalia refugees
16 Jul – Source: Capital FM – 412 words
The first batch of tents to assist Somali refugees in Kenya is expected to arrive in Nairobi on Sunday according to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/
Settle refugees outside: Kenya
15 Jul – Source: Daily Nation – 419 words
Kenya wants a refugee camp set up in Somalia over security fears. Internal security assistant minister Orwa Ojodeh said refugees in Dadaab would then be moved to the camp, four kilometers into Somalia.
http://www.nation.co.ke/News/
Somali refugees to be given citizenship – Kenyan immigration minister
15 Jul – Source: Kenyan privately-owned TV station – 171 words
Somali refugees fleeing violence and drought in their country and are stranded at the Kenya- Somali border in Liboi would be registered as Kenyan citizens within 30 days in a move aimed at curbing insecurity in the northeastern region.
Contact Group on piracy off the coast of Somalia holds meeting
15 Jul – source: Bahrain News Agency – 258 words
Member states’ representatives of the the contact group on piracy off the coast of Somalia have discussed various international efforts to address the scourge of piracy in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin region.
http://www.bna.bh/portal/en/
US to partner with Kenya in Somali border security
16 Jul – Source: Nairobi Star – 263 words
THE US government has pledged to partner with Kenya to ensure security threats arising from opening of the Somali border are addressed. US Deputy Assistant Secretary Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration Reuben Brigety said the American government shares Kenya’s concerns over the security threats but promised that all will be done to support the security systems.
http://www.nairobistar.com/
Ray of hope for Somali refugees
16 Jul – Source: The Standard – 581 words
It has been a long struggle for Abdulatiff Mohamed since he came to Dadab Refugee camp 12 years ago. Having lost his parents and the two siblings back at home, in Somalia, he had resigned to his situation. With little hope for education and a better life, he reluctantly enrolled in a primary school at the refugee camp.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Al-Qaeda: teenage Brit killed leading terror unit in Somalia
17 Jul – Source: Sunday Mirror – 172 words
A BRITISH teenager has been killed leading a unit of Al Qaeda fighters on a terror mission in Somalia. The announcement is thought to be the first time Al Qaeda has admitted that UK recruits are fighting in the lawless African country.
Somalia drought: UN aid for camps under Islamists
17 Jul – Source: BBC, AFP, CNN, Al Jazeera, The Independent, and CBS – 269 words
The UN Humanitarian Co-ordinator for Somalia, Mark Bowden, says aid is being provided to camps controlled by the Islamist group al Shabaab.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/
Pope urges help for Somalia
17 Jul – Source: AP – 160 words
Pope Benedict XVI urged the international community on Sunday to move quickly to aid hundreds of thousands of people fleeing drought and famine in Somalia and elsewhere in the Horn of Africa.
http://www.sfexaminer.com/
Pirates demand compensation from S. Korean navy
15 Jul – Source: AP – 452 words
Somali pirates holding South Korean hostages demanded on Friday that the South Korean government release pirate prisoners and pay compensation for a commando raid that killed several pirates earlier this year.
Pushed to the edge at Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps
15 Jul – Source: VOA – 561 words
Thousands of Somali refugees are continuing to pour into Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps. But as they flee hardships at home, they face new challenges at the overstretched facilities. Dahabo Salat is a 22 year-old refugee from Somalia. She is one of 300 new arrivals, waiting outside the gates of Dagahely camp — one of the three Kenyan refugee camps accepting Somalians fleeing drought and violence.
Kenya opens extension to refugee camp but more space needed
15 Jul – Source: VOA, The Guardian – 649 words
Kenya has announced it will reopen an unused refugee camp in Dadaab to accommodate the influx of refugees from Somalia. Aid groups have welcomed the move but warn that more assistance and yet another refugee camp will be needed to address the ongoing crisis.
UK pledges £52m aid to victims of east African drought
15 Jul – Source: Guardian, The Independent – 337 words
The development secretary, Andrew Mitchell, is to announce a £52.5m package of UK aid to help more than one million victims of drought in east Africa. Faced with a worsening humanitarian disaster, Britain will provide financial assistance to the three worst affected countries: Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/
No safe place for women refugees in Kenya
16 Jul – Source: VOA – 551 words
In the maternity ward at a hospital on the Hagadera refugee camp in Dadaab, Kenya, women refugees lay on beds nursing newborns or waiting to give birth. Katlum Mohammed, 22-yearsold, has just arrived at the camp from central Somalia. She lays on her side, nine months pregnant with her first child.
http://www.voanews.com/
Misery follows as Somalis try to flee hunger
15 Jul – Source: New York Times – 1139 words
The people start trudging in at dawn, more than a thousand every day, exhausted, sick and starving, materializing out of the thin desert air to take their places at the gates of the world’s largest refugee camp, here in northern Kenya. (…) By the time they get here, many can barely stand or talk or swallow. Some mothers have even shown up with the bodies of shriveled babies strapped to their backs.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/
Somali terror group linked to Al Qaeda ‘recruited 21 men in Minnesota’
16 Jul – Source: Mail Online – 599 words
A Somali terror group has allegedly recruited more than 20 young men from Minnesota to fight against the Ethiopian army. Details of how a carefully-organized Islamist cell raised money, created fake itineraries and held secret meetings have emerged ahead of the trial of one suspected leader. Omer Abdi Mohamed, 26, is one of 18 men charged with recruiting young Somalis from Minneapolis to join terror group al Shabaab, which has links to Al Qaeda.
UN envoy praises leaders’ commitment to accord on ending transition
15 Jul – Source: UN News Centre – 327 words
The United Nations envoy for Somalia today congratulated the country’s leaders for showing their commitment to peace by adhering to the terms of an accord they reached last month to break a political deadlock and seek ways to end the transitional period.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/
EU naval officials say Somali pirates seize small oil tanker headed for northern Somalia
17 Jul – Source: AP, Washington Post – 115 words
The European Union Naval force says Somali pirates have hijacked a small oil tanker.