22 Dec 2011 – Morning headlines
Key Headlines:
- Denmark pledges $5 million to boost AU mission in Somalia (Source: Radio Bar-kulan)
- Two dead as Kenyan army al Shabaab battle in southern Somalia (Source: Shabelle)
- Ugandan President praised for Somalia peace efforts (Source: Uganda Media Centre)
- Somali lawmakers draw blood in latest fistfight (Source: VOA News)
- Kenya says targets Somali rebels behind camp blasts (Source: Reuters)
- Britain’s new year resolution: intervene in Somalia (Source: Independent News)
SOMALI MEDIA
Denmark pledges $5 million to boost AU mission in Somalia
21 Dec- Source: Radio Bar-kulan- 106 words
Denmark has announced to offer $5 million to Somalia in order to boost the African Union peacekeeping mission in the Horn of African country, officials say. Danish defence minister Nick Haekkerup made the announcement on Tuesday evening in Nairobi, Kenya, while meeting his Somali counterpart, Hussein Arab Isse.
Somali defense minister meets with Danish counterpart in Nairobi
21 Dec – Source: Radio Mogadishu – 116 words
The Defence Minister Hussein Arab Isse held a series of meetings with his Denmark counterpart in Nairobi, Kenya.and discussed various issues concerning the two countries. The Danish defense minister, who is on an official trip to Kenya said that the meeting was fruitful and that the Denmark government has promised to assist Somalia in terms of security so as to boost the defense of Somalia.
Two dead as Kenyan army, al Shabaab battle in southern Somalia
21 Dec – Source: Shabelle – 178 words
Two people were reported to have been killed and more than ten others injured in a heavy battle between the Kenyan army and al Shabaab in southern border regions of Somalia, reports said on Wednesday. The fighting erupted in a village nearby Afmadow town in Lower Jubba region after al Shabaab fighters launched an ambush assault on an armored Kenyan military convoy heading to the town, killing two soldiers from both sides, according to residents.
http://www.shabelle.net/
Fistfight erupted in Somali MPs
21 Dec- Source: Hadhwanaag Press, Jowhar Online, 136 words
A fistfight on Wednesday erupted within Somali MPs, the second in less than two weeks. The aim of yesterday’s session was to elect a new speaker as the second deputy speaker and Madowe Nunow Mohamed, who is acting speaker of the parliament, were present at the meeting. The fistfight erupted after supporters of the dismissed speaker arrived at the parliament building and started shouting and being violent.
Clan fighting claims lives of four, injures four
21 Dec – Source: Radio Mogadishu, SONNA – 105 words
Two people were shot dead on the spot while four others were seriously wounded after a heavy fighting erupted between two militias loyal to local clans in central Somalia, reports said on Wednesday. Witnesses said the battle lasted overnight in a village in the northeast fragile divided town of Mudug province in central war and drought-stricken Somalia after the two militias clashed over unknown reasons.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Plot to kill
22 Dec – Source: The Standard, The Star, Daily Nation – 1000 words
Kenya Defence Force killed a top commander of al Shabaab and 18 members of his militia in two air strikes in Somalia close to the Kenyan border. Separate reports from the battlefront said KDF on Tuesday also fought the fierce battle in Busar town on Tuesday night to save TFG forces from annihilation by al Shabaab groups fighting to evict them from one of their former camps in Busar.
Hotels, malls on alert over terror strike fears
22 Dec – Source: Daily Nation – 800 words
Churches, hotels and shopping malls are among social places being provided with blanket security in an effort to prevent a terrorist attack this festive season in kenya. Security services are at an unprecedented state of alert amid reports that al Shabaab has dispatched bomb makers and assassins to eliminate Defence Minister yusuf haji and national Assembly Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim.
Ugandan President praised for Somalia peace efforts
21 Dec – Source: Uganda Media Centre – 144 words
President Yoweri Museveni has this evening received and held a meeting with a visiting American delegation led by the US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Mr. Karl Wycoff, who called on him at State House, Nakasero. The President and the US delegation discussed a range of issues, especially security in the region and Somalia in particular. Mr. Museveni and his guests also delved into matters pertaining to how the region and the international community could work together to support the peace process in Somalia.
http://www.mediacentre.go.ug/
UAE’s relief efforts receive accolades at Dubai summit
21 Dec- Source: Gulf Today- 439 words
A leading humanitarian agency has sought more contribution from the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organisation of Islamic Conference to feed famine-hit people of Somalia who are experiencing “the worst human catastrophe in the world today.” The appeal was made on Tuesday, by the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Somalia, Bruno Geddo, at Dubai’s International Humanitarian City.
http://gulftoday.ae/portal/
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
UN agency alarmed by series of blasts in camps for Somali refugees in Kenya
21 Dec- Source: UN News Centre – 382 words
The UN refugee agency today voiced alarm over a spate of deadly attacks using explosive devices in camps in Kenya that shelter more than 460,000 refugees, the majority of them from Somalia. Three Kenyan police officers have been killed in blasts near the refugee settlements in the Dadaab area of Kenya’s North-Eastern province, including the one who died in the latest explosion on Monday, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said in a press release.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/
Somali lawmakers draw blood in latest fistfight
21 Dec – Source: VOA News – 158 words
For the second time in a week, Somali lawmakers traded punches on the floor of parliament amid a dispute over who holds the post of speaker. Witnesses said lawmakers also wrestled and threw chairs at one another during Wednesday’s brawl in Mogadishu. A photo taken at the scene showed a lawmaker bleeding from his neck after the fight.
Britain’s new year resolution: intervene in Somalia
22 Dec – Source: Independent News (UK) – 756 words
Britain plans to deepen its involvement in Somalia – a land that has become a byword for instability and violence – in the new year.David Cameron describes Somalia as “a failed state that directly threatens British interests” and will convene a summit in London in February to bring together the countries currently active in the Horn of Africa state. A number of key decisions are expected to be made there, ranging from humanitarian aid to military missions.
Kenya says targets Somali rebels behind camp blasts
21 Dec – Source: Reuters – 214 words
Kenyan air strikes on an Islamist rebel-held village in southern Somalia targeted a militant base from where attacks on the world’s largest refugee camp had been planned, Kenya’s military spokesman said on Wednesday.
http://af.reuters.com/article/
Somali pirates ‘holding 200 crew hostage’
21 Dec- Source: AFP- 250 words
Somali pirates are currently holding 200 people hostage as part of their ransom business, keeping them from their families during the festive season, the EU’s anti-piracy mission says. “This humanitarian tragedy is especially pertinent over Christmas, a time when families normally gather to celebrate,” EU NAVFOR said in a statement.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
Examples of diaspora contributing tangible change
SomaliNet Forum Thread
Edna Aadan Ismaaciil
Edna Adan was born the daughter of a prominent Somali medical doctor and was trained as a nurse in the United Kingdom at the Borough Polytechnic, now London South Bank University (the first Somali girl to study in Britain), becoming Somalia’s first qualified nurse-midwife. She was also the first Somali woman to drive.
Sada Mire
When Sada Mire fled war-torn Somalia as a frightened teenager, the nation was descending into darkness, mired in the grip of a long civil conflict. But several years later, when she returned to the Horn of Africa as an ambitious archaeologist, her fierce determination and meticulous fieldwork brought to light the region’s rich cultural heritage.
HIRDA – Fadumo Farah
In 1996, a group of Somalis living in the Netherlands came together to discuss how they could contribute to the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Somalia. After several meetings, they decided to establish an organization with the aim to deliver development and humanitarian aid to Somalia. This organization, formally established in 1998, was the Himilo Relief and Development Association (HIRDA)