June 9, 2017 – Daily Monitoring Report
Somalia’s President Vows Revenge On Al-Shabaab After Deadly Attack
09 June – Source: Reuters – 241 Words
Somalia’s president said late Thursday night the country’s army was in “hot pursuit” of Islamist group al Shabaab fighters after the insurgents’ assault on a military base in the Puntland region that left at least 38 people dead. In the early Thursday attack, the Islamists overran a military base in Af Urur, a town about 100 km (60 miles) south of Bosaso, the capital of Puntland, one of Somalia’s semi-autonomous regions. Most of those killed were soldiers, a Puntland security official said, adding 18 others were wounded, with an unknown number also feared captured alive.
In a statement, President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo promised the Somali military would retaliate and avenge al Shabaab’s attack. “We must show no mercy in dealing with Al-Shabaab,” he said. “We promise that Al-Shabaab won’t get away with this. As of now, our troops are in hot pursuit of the enemy, they will pay for today’s attack.” The al Qaeda-linked Islamist group cited a higher toll in the attack, saying it had killed 61 soldiers. Numbers given by officials and al Shabaab often differ.
Al-Shabaab is fighting to topple Somalia’s central government and rule the country according to a strict version Islam’s sharia law. They also want to drive out the African Union peacekeeping force AMISOM which is helping to defend the central government. The group rarely carries out attacks in Puntland, where the security forces are relatively regularly paid and receive substantial U.S. assistance.
Key Headlines
- Somalia’s President Vows Revenge On Al-Shabaab After Deadly Attack (Reuters)
- Puntland Speaks Out On Dawn Attack At Af-Urur Military Camp (Garowe Online)
- Third Electoral Delegate Gunned Down In Mogadishu In Three Days (Dhacdo.com)
- Steps To Remove Roadblocks Coming Soon Says President Sharif (Goobjoog News)
- UNHCR Repatriates 66807 Somali Refugees From Kenya (Xinhua Net)
- Somalia: A Generation At Risk (International Rescue Committee)
- Treat Returning Kenyan Al-Shabaab Fighters As Assets (Daily Nation)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Puntland Speaks Out On Dawn Attack At Af-Urur Military Camp
08 June – Source: Garowe Online – 246 Words
The government of Somalia’s northeastern region of Puntland has spoke about the deadly Al-Shabaab attack on a military camp in Af-Urur area, in Bari region on Thursday morning. Speaking at a press conference in Garowe, Puntland’s Minister of Security Abdi Hersi Ali “Qarjab” said Al-Shabaab militants have killed fasting civilians, including elders before attacking the troops stationed at the base.
Minister Qarjab denied the death toll claimed by Al-Shabaab, saying it was pure “propaganda”. He added that the group suffered most casualties, but declined to give numbers of Puntland soldiers killed in the raid. “The militants killed elders and innocent civilians, before attacking a remote outpost manned by Puntland troops, where they encountered a stiff resistance and lost many combatants,” said Qarjab. He refuted Al-Shabaab claims of killing 61 Puntland Defense forces in the attack. “The evil-doers claimed massacring many innocent civilians. That is baseless report and untrue,” added the Minister.
When asked about the casualties on Al-Shabaab side, he said they will comment the death toll later. He added the soldiers have successfully repulsed the attackers, and the camp was not overrun. The Minister has urged the public to contribute to Puntland’s military efforts to get rid of the presence of terrorist groups, including Islamic State and al-Shabaab militants in the entire region. Garowe Online has learnt that at least 60 people, including 26 civilians died in Af-urur attack, which was the deadliest single-day assault by the militants based in Galgala mountains in Bari region.
Third Electoral Delegate Gunned Down In Mogadishu In Three Days
09 June – Source: Dhacdo.com – 112 Words
Unidentified assailants shot dead an electoral delegate in Mogadishu’s Yaaqshiid district on Thursday evening, the third delegate killed in three days’ period. Ahmed Barre (Ahmadey) was shot dead by two men armed with pistols and who escaped from the scene immediately. Ahmadey was one of the electoral delegates who elected MPs from Jowhar.
Security forces arrived at the scene, but did not make any arrest. His Killing comes a day after another delegate by the name Hussein Hassan Mohamud was killed in the same district. Targeted killings against electoral delegates have created fear among the families and friends of people who were involved in the recently concluded electoral process in the country.
Steps To Remove Roadblocks Coming Soon Says President Sharif
08 June – Source: Goobjoog News – 161 Words
The regional leader of Southwest State Sharif Hassan declared that they will start removing roadblocks with the assistance of the federal government. In order to provide emergency delivery to the local people living in remote locations of his administration, the need for safe passage is imperative said President Sharif. “We are ready to unblock those roads cut off by the enemies of peace with the assistance the federal government. It is crucial to extend emergency service to the people. As a result, we have to start the operation for unblocking the roads’’ said Sharif Hassan.
Meanwhile President Sharif appealed to the people residing in his State to mobilize together on how they could extend help to the people affected by the famine. Many roads specially feeding ones to Bay and Bakol regions has been blocked by Al-Shabaab and vehicles cannot access some of the blocked roads in order to reach towns believed to be under the control of the government forces.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
UNHCR Repatriates 66,807 Somali Refugees From Kenya
08 June – Source: Xinhua Net – 249 Words
The UN refugee agency said Thursday it has repatriated some 66,807 Somali refugees from Kenya since the voluntary return exercise begun in December 2014. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in its bi-weekly Update released in Nairobi that some 65,470 refugees were supported to return to their home in Somalia from the Dadaab refugee camp in northeast Kenya. “During the period under review (May 16-31), 1,620 refugees were supported to return to Somalia,” UNHCR said, adding that some 26,156 were supported from Dadaab in 2017 alone.
According to the refugee agency, currently, 19,515 refugees are registered for voluntary repatriation, noting that there has been reduction in the number of persons repatriated for the last four weeks under review. “This reduction could be attributed to drought and the cholera outbreak that has impacted several parts of Somalia, the suspension of road convoys as a result of heavy rains in Dadaab area of operation and some parts of Somalia, as well as the ongoing Ramadhan,” UNHCR said.
More than 2 million Somalis have been displaced in one of the world’s most protracted humanitarian crises that have now entered its third decade. An estimated 1.1 million people are internally displaced (IDPs) within Somalia and nearly 900,000 are refugees in the region. Experts say continuing political and security stabilization progress in Somalia, along with growing pressures in hosting countries, makes this a critical moment to renew efforts to find durable solutions for Somali refugees.
Somalia: A Generation At Risk
08 June – Source: International Rescue Committee – Video : 1:31 Minutes
Mass tragedies happen to people one by one. Decades of conflict and drought have gripped Somalia. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from parched villages, and 3 million urgently need food and help making ends meet as the crisis worsens. The U.S. threat to cut foreign aid could not come at a worse time.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“Accept them; they can be supported to come up with a powerful narrative to counter Al-Shabaab’s alluring narratives. Vulnerable youths are likely to belief first-hand accounts of what it means to be a terrorist in a foreign land and the recent executions targeting Kenyans by returnees themselves can drive the point home. The authorities should identify, counsel, rehabilitate and reintegrate the returnees and, most importantly, treat them as assets and not enemies.”
Treat Returning Kenyan Al-Shabaab Fighters As Assets
08 June – Source: Daily Nation – 455 Words
It is believed that in the past few weeks, Al-Shabaab has carried out at least 11 terrorist attacks in north-eastern Kenya and Lamu County, killing more than 20 security personnel and maiming many more. Security analysts and politicians have been quick to infer that the successes of the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) have forced Al-Shabaab operatives to cross over to Kenya and these are the ones responsible for the attacks. The attacks have also ignited calls for the withdrawal of Kenyan troops serving under Amisom from Somalia to come and bolster homeland security. Some even argue that Shabaab attacks Kenya because of Kenya’s involvement in Amisom. As much as these arguments may hold water, there is another potentially contributing factor that is given little thought.
In the recent past, the unprecedented executions of Kenyan Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia at least 20 in the past year on suspicion of spying for the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) have caused fear and shock within their circles. Returnees: This may have triggered their escape back to the country, posing additional security challenges to Kenya. Most of the returnees are believed to be hiding in the poorly policed, porous North-Eastern and Lamu. But, as much as the returnees could be blamed for the escalating attacks, they could be valuable in countering radical ideologies that motivate youth to join extremist groups and commit attacks. Writing in the TIME magazine (February 27-March 6, 2017 issue), Charlotte McDonald-Gibson argues that returnees are both a security risk (in terms of committing terrorist attacks or recruiting others) as well as an “enormous” asset in counter-radicalisation efforts.
Modeling: In The former Neo-Nazi helping returning ISIS fighters let go of hate the writer notes that, by treating returnees as enemies of the State and potential attackers, they will feel isolated and alienated the very attributes that “pushed” them to extremist groups. They know a lot about the people who may be radicalised. They also know what buttons are pushed by extremists. With proper amnesty backed by a legal and policy framework and community goodwill, returning Kenyan Al-Shabaab fighters could be recruited to give a first account of the hard (and un-Islamic) life that a militant goes through while in Somalia.
Accept them: They can be supported to come up with a powerful narrative to counter Al-Shabaab’s alluring narratives. Vulnerable youths are likely to belief first-hand accounts of what it means to be a terrorist in a foreign land and the recent executions targeting Kenyans by returnees themselves can drive the point home. The authorities should identify, counsel, rehabilitate and reintegrate the returnees and, most importantly, treat them as assets and not enemies.
TOP TWEETS
@HarunMaruf: BREAKING: Reports from Baidoa say at least 6 people may have been killed after a shootout between 2 groups within security forces, 9 wounded
@HassanIstiila: #BREAKING: Explosion heard in #Mogadishu‘s Hamar-weyne district, more to follow. #Somalia
@TheVillaSomalia: President Farmaajo: “We will pursue Alshabab, and we will defeat them”
@Jubaland: #Jubaland presidency strongly condemns the terror attack on #afurur military base ,Condolences to @puntlandsh people the loss of soldiers.
@UNSomalia: Out of 12.3 million Somalis, over half (6.7 million) are now in need of humanitarian assistance. http://bit.ly/2rSmDu0 #AvertSomaliaFamine
@HarunMaruf: Breaking: Several people are reportedly dead after a shooting at an internally displaced camp near Baidoa, Friday: source
@JohnSjoholmLC: #SOMALIA: Somali special forces have raided the Karan District HQ in Mogadishu, one official reported dead. Explosion reported.
@FAOKnowledge: Over 3 million people are struggling to feed themselves in #Somalia. We need to act now http://bit.ly/2s3vD1n #famine @faoinsomalia
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Southwest President, Sharif Hassan Adan, lays the foundation stone for the construction of Barawa airport
Photo: Shalambood.com