27 Jul 2011 – Daily Monitoring Report
Key Headlines:
- WFP is set to airlift food to Mogadishu
- Tension high in southern Somalia as clan militia defy al Shabaab order
- Al Shabaab deploys fighters to Mogadishu
- Somali diaspora pools resources for famine victims
- Agencies inside Somalia to get EU aid directly
- UN World Food Program readies aircraft to fly food aid to Somalia
SOMALI MEDIA
WFP is set to airlift food to Mogadishu
27 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan, Radio Mogadishu – 11 words
The United Nations World Food Programme is set on Wednesday to airlift food to Somali capital, Mogadishu to aid to hundreds of thousands in dire need of humanitarian relief food.
WFP spokesman David Orr said that cargo flights carrying relief food and other nutritious food items to Somalia are expected to land at Mogadishu international airport on Wednesday.
He also revealed that this will be the first of series of flights and they will continue airlifting food to Somalia during the operation.
The UN’s World Food Programme readied aircraft with food aid for Somali capital Mogadishu amid intensifying relief efforts for millions hit by drought across the Horn of Africa region.
Al Shabaab deploys fighters to Mogadishu
27 Jul – Source: Mareeg Online – 48 words
300 al Shabaab troops stopped at a military base in Elasha-biyaha and are reportedly heading to the capital Mogadishu. According to eyewitness reports, al Shabaab fighters were in Elashabiyaha for a few minutes and were later seen heading to KM13 close to the capital Mogadishu.
Sources close to Shabaab media confirm the arrival of hundreds of al Shabaab militias from Jubba, Middle Shabelle, Lower Shabelle and Hiiraan regions to fight in the holy war during the upcoming month of Ramadan.
http://www.mareeg.com/fidsan.
Tension high in southern Somalia as clan militia defy al Shabaab order
27 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle, Kulmiye – 94 words
Tension between al Shabaab and clan miltia is said to be high in Cadcadey in Middle Shabelle region, southern Somalia, following orders for residents to contribute two camels or a teenager to the ongoing fight being waged by al Shabaab.
The tense situation has caused “fear and anxiety” among the residents who are already suffering from severe drought which has hit the region.
Official handover ceremony held in Borame, Awdal region
27 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 164 words
Ahmed Ige, the newly appointed coordinator of education officially took office at a handover ceremony held at the Ministry Headquarters in Borame, Awdal region.
Speaking at the handover ceremony attended by several top government officers the outgoing office bearer,Dahir Mohamed Hadi, welcomed his successor advising his colleagues in the ministry to work with the new coordinator.
Mr. Ahmed Ige thanked his predecessor and urged the ministry employees in the district to help him in his new job.
Four Somalis shot dead at Mozambique border
27 Jul – Source: Radio Shabelle, Kulmiye and Risala – 167 words
Four Somalis have been shot dead by Mozambican security forces while crossing the country’s border, witnesses said today.
Mohamed Omar, a Somali citizen in Tanzania told the media that the young guys had been trying to illegally cross Tanzania-Mozambique border. The victims were en-route to South Africa to get a better life than they had in Somalia.
UN chief urges Arab countries to aid Somalia
27 Jul – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 123 words
The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar to make hefty donations aimed at supporting the Somali people starving inside Somalia due to the ravaging drought.
The U.N Secretary General urged Arab countries to take part in the ongoing relief operation in Somalia aimed at tackling drought situation in the Horn of African country.
In a statement, Ban Ki-moon also called for the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahayan, to respond to the UN appeal for emergency funds for drought victims in Somalia.
Ban Ki-moon’s call comes just a day after the Saudi government has pledged $60 million aid package to the drought and famine-stricken population in Somalia.
TFG troops in Lower Jubba capture al Shabaab commander
27 Jul- Source: Radio Bar-kulan, Somalireport-61 words
The TFG troops in Lower Jubba region have captured Saneey Abdi Hoog, the al Shabaab chairman of Afmadow district. A TFG officer in Lower Jubba, col. Mohamed Hassan Buule, said that they seized the officer after he arrived unexpectedly at a TFG checkpoint in Bankajjiira village 30 kilometers west of Afmadow and he is now in custody at Dhobely district.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Somali diaspora pools resources for famine victims
26 Jul – Source: Al Jazeera – 2:20 min
Somali charities in the UK are putting their different agendas aside and pooling their resources for the famine-hit country.
London’s money transfer offices are busy. And remittances to the worst hit areas of Somalia are up 10 per cent.
These efforts are a lifeline for the starving people; but not enough to end a 21st century famine. Al Jazeera’s Charlie Angela reports from London, home to one of the largest Somali communities in Europe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Kenya beefs up security at Uganda, Burundi missions
26 Jul – Source: New Vision – 348 words
Security at the Uganda and Burundi missions in Nairobi has been beefed up. The move follows renewed fears of possible attacks owing to the two countries’ active role in the African Union Mission in Somalia.
Uganda and Burundi are the only countries which have peacekeeping troops in Somalia guarding the transitional government against al-Shabaab terrorists.
The al-Shabaab has been fighting over control of Somalia with the internationally-backed transitional federal government forces.
The rebels have been a constant threat to regional security and have claimed responsibility for deadly attacks. They include the July 2010 bombings in Kampala which killed over 70 people.
Kenya, too, has been a victim of the militant group’s criminal activities.
http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/
Agencies inside Somalia to get EU aid directly
26 Jul – Source: Daily Nation – 192 words
The bulk of EU financial assistance for hunger victims will now be directed to aid agencies inside Somalia. Funds will only go to organisations that have experience working in that country as it is feared new entrants could be rejected or attacked by al Shabaab militants.
With funding almost trebled for Horn of Africa drought victims, European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Kristalina Georgieva said in Nairobi on Tuesday that focus was on preventing people from walking across the borders.
“It is very critical that we work on the ground to strengthen organisations that are already there,” Ms Georgieva told an international news conference after a three-day visit to Kenya and southern Somalia.
“We will direct a big part of our assistance to organisations inside Somalia. We strongly believe that experienced organisations in partnership with local chiefs can save lives.
“It is no time for inexperienced organisations and individuals to venture into Somalia,” she said. She also announced an immediate allocation of Sh3.6 billion, bringing the EU’s contribution to Sh12.7 billion, with another Sh7.8 billion on the way to alleviate the suffering of an estimated 11 million people.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
UN World Food Program readies aircraft to fly food aid to Somalia
27 Jul – Source: Herald Sun, AP – 623 words
THE UN’s World Food Program readied aircraft with food aid bound for the Somali capital Mogadishu, as relief efforts continued for millions affected by drought across the Horn of Africa.
However, hopes that the aircraft could take off yesterday were dashed by last minute bureaucratic hurdles in Kenya.
“The aircraft are loading with the hope that they can take off on Wednesday,” said WFP spokesman David Orr.
“This will be the first of a series of flights — once they start, they will just keep coming and coming in an ongoing operation,” he added. The flights have only a narrow time frame to fly, offload their critical cargo and then return to Nairobi, Orr added, and a wait for clearance permission in Nairobi had delayed the mission.
An estimated 3.7 million people in Somalia — around a third of the population — are on the brink of starvation and millions more in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda have been struck by the worst drought in the region in 60 years.
The UN last week officially declared a famine in two regions of southern Somalia, and on Monday called for “massive” action to support 12 million people affected by drought.
Relief efforts will be the focus of a donor and aid agency meeting in Nairobi on Wednesday, as discussions continue on how to tackle the crisis, including delivering aid into areas held by Somalia’s Shabab Islamist insurgents.
UN officials say the drought has killed tens of thousands of people in recent months, forcing hundreds of thousands to walk for weeks in search of food and water.
At an emergency meeting on the Horn Africa drought in Rome on Monday, officials said the UN had received about $US1 billion ($A924.56 million) since first launching an appeal for the region in November 2010 but needs a billion more by the end of the year to cope with the emergency.
The World Bank on Monday pledged more than $500 million, with the bulk of the money set to go towards long-term projects to aid livestock farmers while $12 million would be for immediate assistance to those worst hit by the crisis.
US Somalis move to ease misery of famine back home
27 Jul – Source: AP – 966 words
Mohamed Hassan gets emotional when he hears about the famine devastating Somalia, recalling his own months-long walk from Mogadishu to Kenya two decades ago as a teenager fleeing the civil war.
Now Hassan and other Somalis here are digging deep to help. “I’ve lived through starvations, hunger. I’ve lived in a refugee camp,” Hassan said. “Because of my relationship to the people of Somalia back home, but also because of past experiences, I feel the pain. I cannot afford to sit back and watch people go through these experiences.”
From Facebook campaigns to car washes and concerts to local collection sites, Minnesota’s Somali community — the nation’s largest at an estimated 25,000 people — is raising tens of thousands of dollars to help the starving masses.
Though an overall total isn’t known, Somalis have helped raised roughly $100,000 for the American Refugee Committee, including $47,000 at a single event last week. Another group, Amoud Foundation, reported raising $94,000 from the Twin Cities in less than two weeks.
“I don’t think we’ve ever seen an emergency like this where the diaspora is at the center of the response,” said Daniel Wordsworth, the president and chief executive of American Refugee Committee. “They are all taking a lead … We don’t have to convince the Somalis to care. They care more than we ever will.”
But Minnesota Somalis are taking precautions. The state has been the center of a long-running federal investigation into the recruiting of Americans to join al Shabaab, a terror group responsible for much of the violence in Somalia. As part of that investigation, two Minnesota women were accused last summer of soliciting money and clothes for refugees in Somalia but steering the money instead to al-Shabab.
To guard against that, Somalis are carefully partnering with or donating to long-established relief organizations.