May 17, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
Jubbaland Hunt Down Al-Shabaab Defector After Killing Security Official
17 May – Source: Halbeeg News – 231 Words
Jubbaland forces have been dispatched to pursue the killer of a security officer, in the outskirts of Beled-Hawo town, Jubbaland authorities have confirmed. Mr. Abdi Yare Hassan is suspected to have rejoined Al-Shabaab group five months after he defected. The former Al-Shabaab commander killed Mr. Abdinasir Abdullahi Ibrahim, a security official who was escorting him while on patrol duty.
Mr. Abdirashid Hassan Noor Janan, Jubbaland Security Minister, who spoke to media said, Jubbaland forces had already launched a manhunt for the assailant who fled to a nearby village. “Our officers are already pursuing the perpetrator in the outskirt of the town, particularly at Tula Barwaqo village and the surrounding areas,” Mr Janan said. He said the man made away with the rifle of the victim after killing him within the village: “The man who handed himself in to the authorities in Bardhere town was taken to Beled-Hawo town where he hails from but apparently he had not severed links with Al-Shabaab. He killed the officer just a few metres away from the police station and escaped with the AK47 of the victim,” he confirmed.
Unconfirmed reports claim that Hassan was recruited into the immigration department less than three months after he surrendered to the authorities. In 2013, Jubbaland Security Forces commander, Issa Mohamed Alaki was assassinated by an Al-Shabaab defector. The assassin reportedly sneaked back to the Al-Shabaab militant group after the attack.
Key Headlines
- Jubbaland Hunt Down Al-Shabaab Defector After Killing Security Official (Halbeeg News)
- Preparations For National Security Council Meeting Underway In Baidoa (Radio Dalsan)
- Somali PM Inspects Checkpoints And Police stations In Mogadishu (Halbeeg News)
- Five Somalis Sentenced For Illegal Entry Sent Back Home (The Star)
- Somalia To Set Up Internet Exchange Point To Enhance Digital Services (Xinhua)
- US Forces Accused Of Complicity In Somalia Raid That Left Five Civilians Dead (The Guardian)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Preparations For National Security Council Meeting Underway In Baidoa
17 May – Source: Radio Dalsan.com – 132 Words
Reports from Baidoa, the interim capital of Southwest state, indicate that the preparations for the National Security Council meeting are underway. The National Security Council is chaired by Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo, who is currently heading to Baidoa. Separately, the Council of Inter-State, whose members also form part of the National Security Council, are still in town after concluding their separate meeting yesterday. They are also expected to join the said meeting.
So far, the National Security Council has been held in different cities across the country. Participants usually deliberate on the security situation in the country, and how both central government and member states can best cooperate to enhance security nationally and in their respective states. Security of Baidoa town has been tightened as delegates arrive. The council is expected to issue an official communiqué at the end of the event.
Somali PM Inspects Checkpoints And Police Stations In Mogadishu
17 May – Source: Halbeeg News – 318 Words
Somali Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire has inspected bases and checkpoints manned by Somali forces in Mogadishu on the eve of the Holy month of Ramadan. Just hours after the city was attacked with IEDs in several districts, the Premier paid a surprise visit to different sector forces tasked to beef up the security of Mogadishu during the month of Ramadan. Mr. Khaire, who was accompanied by Security Minister Mohamed Abukar Islow and officials from Benadir Administration and police officers, was briefed by the commanders on the security situation in Mogadishu ahead of Ramadan.
Briefing the Prime Minister, Somali Police commissioner Bashir Abi Mohamed said the security situation had improved significantly: “Mr. Prime Minister, we have deployed our forces in all parts of the capital, The security has been tightened ahead of the holy month of Ramadan,” said Mohamed. Speaking about last night’s incident, the police noted that several improvised explosive devices had been launched in the city the town, causing no casualties. “Shortly after 7:30 pm, a number of IEDs were fired at different areas in the capital, five of them landed in Hamarweyne, two in Wadajir district as two others hit Waberi district. Fortunately, they caused no casualties,” Mohamed explained.
Mr. Islow, who spoke to the media during the visit said the tour of the Prime Minister was intended to assess the security situation in the town. “Tonight, we have visited stations and checkpoints manned by Somali forces. The team was led by Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire. Among the visited areas are Galgalato, Suqa-holaha as well as several other stations across the city. The tour was aimed at assessing the security condition of the town,” said the Minister. Last week African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) said Somali Police Force and African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) Police will conduct joint patrols throughout the Ramadan period with the aim of beefing up security in the capital city.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Five Somalis Sentenced For Illegal Entry, Sent Back Home
17 May – Source: The Star – 143 Words
Five Somalis have been slapped with two-year suspended jail sentences for being in Kenya illegally. Fatuma Shukri, Nalsa Mohammed, Fhati Mohammed, Kofio Hamed and Hussein Fisal faced Kericho Resident Magistrate Elizabeth Karani. They were arrested last Friday after the vehicle they had been travelling in was stopped at Kipsitet roadblock on Kericho-Kisumu road. They did not have entry permits and visas.
Karani directed that the five be sent back to Busia which was their entry point to Kenya. Their repatriation will be overseen by the Kericho OCS and the Kisumu immigration department. Chris Tunduli, the driver of the vehicle of registration number KCG 705D, was charged separately with transporting the foreigners to an unknown destination. Tunduli pleaded not guilty to the charge of human trafficking and was released on a cash bail of Sh20,000. The case will be mentioned on May 25.
Somalia To Set Up Internet Exchange Point To Enhance Digital Services
17 May – Source: Xinhua – 260 Words
Somalia on Wednesday announced plans to establish the country’s first Internet Exchange Point (IXP) in Mogadishu to help enhance digital services across the country. Abdi Ashur Hassan, the Minister of Post, Telecom and Technology, said establishing the first IXP is a very positive step forward in building Somalia’s ICT infrastructure which will enhance the digital services being offered by local institutions in business, education, health, government services.
“We want this infrastructure to be owned and managed by the stakeholders. I hope you will discuss and come up with the best governance model for MogIX and form an interim committee from the community that will run the facility,” Hassan told participants at a forum in Mogadishu.
He said his ministry and its partner organizations, such as World Bank and Packet Clearing House (PCH) would only help establish the facility, but noted that the government wants the local internet providers to run it in the best interest of both the sector and consumers. The minister said the IXP will allow local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to connect their networks and exchange Internet traffic locally, providing high-bandwidth and low-latency access.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“There are several hundred US troops in Somalia whose primary role is to enhance the local military’s ability to fight al-Shabaab, which is affiliated to al-Qaida. Ali Mohamed Moalin, a traditional elder close to where the alleged raid took place on Wednesday night, told the AFP news agency that “two military helicopters” were involved, as well as “some foreign special forces””.
US Forces Accused Of Complicity In Somalia Raid That Left Five Civilians Dead
17 May – Source: The Guardian – 847 Words
US special forces have been accused of complicity in the deaths of civilians after five unarmed men were killed during a raid by Somali troops last week that they “aided and assisted”. The casualties were described as banana farmers by local inhabitants, and appear to have been shot while trying to flee the site of the operation, which officials say targeted commanders of the al-Shabaab extremist group.
Somali intelligence officials say three men detained in the raid on a village in the Lower Shabelle region were senior militants. Mohamed Sheikh Mohamud, a farmer in the village of Ma’alinka, 37 miles south of Mogadishu, told the Guardian the operation started at about 1am last Thursday when “forces came down from a helicopter and started shooting the people in the farm”. Mohamud said he knew the five men killed. Two were tractor drivers at a banana farm, and three were cattle farmers.
Anisa Abdullahi, a mortuary attendant who inspected the bodies when they were brought into the Medina hospital in Mogadishu the day after the raid, said four of the men died from fatal bullet wounds to the back and one was killed by a wound to the chest. “After checking, we found all died because of gunshots. The type of the weapon is one type, as the wound holes have similar sizes,” Anisa Abdullahi told the Guardian.
There are no accounts of any sustained resistance to the special forces during the raid. Four Somali security officials and a senior officer with the Amisom regional force based in Mogadishu said they did not believe any weapons had been seized during the operation. A second resident in the area said he just left the farm when he heard the first shot. “It was past midnight and all was peaceful when the shooting began. Nobody fired at them as the people there were not armed.
They shot the victims from close range and killed them,” said Hassan Muhidin, a farmer. An account in the Daily Beast said that at least one villager fired a number of shots at the special forces in the belief that they were from a rival clan militia before being wounded and throwing his AK-47 away. The US has ramped up military efforts against al-Shabaab, the deadliest Islamic extremist group in sub-Saharan Africa, under the Trump administration.
The exact role of the US forces during the raid last week is unclear. There are several hundred US troops in Somalia whose primary role is to enhance the local military’s ability to fight al-Shabaab, which is affiliated to al-Qaida. Ali Mohamed Moalin, a traditional elder close to where the alleged raid took place on Wednesday night, told the AFP news agency that “two military helicopters” were involved, as well as “some foreign special forces”.
TOP TWEETS
@sntvnews1: #Somalia And #Turkey Sign Bilateral Agreements Projected To Increase Turkey’s Investment To $200 Million.
@DalsanFM: Somalia to set up internet exchange point to enhance digital services https://www.radiodalsan.com/
@Goobjoognews: 27,600 CANDIDATES up from 7,000 in 2015 to sit for government administered exams Saturday.
@DalsanFM: Tropical Cyclone To Hit Somalia ThursdayAfternoon https://www.radiodalsan.com/
@taakulosom: Due to the recurrent drought many children in the IDP camps of Ali Awed and Jameccadka Caynaanshe were severly manlourishd. But thanks to @shf_somalia funding the children have been provided with vital nutritional assistance that will allow the children to thrive.
@ACUSomalia: Federalism and Reconciations Sub Working Group meeting was discussed the national Reconciliation framework Development as well as the presentation of National Reconciliation Framework. @DeputySomaliPM @Adow77@SomaliMOIS @SRSGKeating
@Goobjoognews: SOMALIA TO set up internet exchange point to enhance digital services –
@DalsanFM: Fireworks Display, Mortar Shells & Grenade Attack Usher In Ramadan In Mogadishu https://www.radiodalsan.com/
@ACUSomalia: Federalism and Reconciations Sub Working Group meeting was discussed the national Reconciliation framework Development as well as the presentation of National Reconciliation Framework. @DeputySomaliPM @Adow77@SomaliMOIS @SRSGKeating
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire inspects police stations and checkpoints manned by Somali forces in Mogadishu on the eve of the Holy month of Ramadan.
Photo: @SomaliPM