March 13, 2012 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Heavy fighting in Mogadishu kills 2, injures 6
13 Mar – Source: Shabelle – 179 words
At least two people have been confirmed dead and six others wounded after heavy battle erupted between Somalia soldiers alongside AU forces and Al-Shabaab militants overnight on the outskirts of Mogadishu, residents and officials said.
The fighting sparked by Al-Shabaab fighters’ attack on AMISOM and TFG force bases near Dharkenlay district in Banadir region killed two civilians and wounded six others, among women and children after their house in Kahda and Hoosh village were hit by mortars shells.
Locals told Shabelle Media that the clashes lasted for hours with both sides exchanging heavy artilleries and machine-guns that could be heard in the town and nearby locations. Colonel Abdullahi Osman known as Agey told Shabelle Media that one TFG army officer sustained minor injury during the combat and was taken to hospital for treatment.
Key Headlines
- Kenya releases four suspects held over blasts ( Reuters)
- Attack on residence of former provisional commissioner of Hiiraan region (Radio Risaala Shabelle)
- Heavy fighting in Mogadishu kills 2 injures 6 (Shabelle)
- TFG forces displays weapons seized from al Shabaab ( Radio Mogadishu Somalia Report Hadhwanaag Times)
- Al Shabaab promises major war against Baidoa town (Bariga Afrika Shabelle)
- Chatting with Former Somali Prime Minister Farmajo (Somalia Report)
- KDF deploys 16 officers in expanded AMISOM secretariat (Standard)
- AMISOM to pay KDF soldiers Sh84296 monthly allowance (Business Daily)
SOMALI MEDIA
Attack on residence of former provisional commissioner of Hiiraan region
13 Mar – Source: Radio Risaala, Shabelle – 163 words
Reports reaching our studios from Beledweyne are saying that late yesterday night a hand grenade was thrown inside the house of Yusuf Hagar Daba Geed, the former provincial governor of Hiiraan in his Beledweyne residence.
Witnesses in Beledweyne told radio Risaala that one person died in the explosion and eight others were injured. All the victims were civilians who happened to be at the spot at the time of the explosion.
No casualties was reported from the security force guarding the residence. Similarly the security detail of Yusuf Ahmed are said to have opened fire after the explosion which injured some civilians. The person responsible for tonight’s bombing got away. The police are conducting investigation to find the bomber of Yusuf Ahmed Hagar Daba Geed’s residence.
Heavy fighting in Mogadishu kills 2, injures 6
13 Mar – Source: Shabelle – 179 words
At least two people have been confirmed dead and six others wounded after heavy battle erupted between Somalia soldiers alongside AU forces and Al-Shabaab militants overnight on the outskirts of Mogadishu, residents and officials said.
The fighting sparked by Al-Shabaab fighters’ attack on AMISOM and TFG force bases near Dharkenlay district in Banadir region killed two civilians and wounded six others, among women and children after their house in Kahda and Hoosh village were hit by mortars shells.
Locals told Shabelle Media that the clashes lasted for hours with both sides exchanging heavy artilleries and machine-guns that could be heard in the town and nearby locations. Colonel Abdullah Osman known as Cagey told Shabelle Media that one TFG army officer sustained minor injury during the combat and was taken to hospital for treatment.
TFG forces displays weapons seized from al Shabaab
12 Mar – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Somalia Report, Hadhwanaag Times – 52 words
The Somali national forces on Monday displayed weapons, vehicles and other military equipment seized from al Shabaab militias. The forces entered one of the most important positions for the militants in Suqa-Xolaha neighborhood.
The officials found the caches during search operation in a recently liberated Mogadishu neighborhood of Suqa Holaha where al Shabaab has been forced out after heavy battle.Officials of transitional government told the media that at least six caches were found during the intensive operations.
Explosives, bullet proof jackets, rocket propelled grenades and AK47 rifles were among the materials the officials displayed to the media. TFG military officer, Abdulahi Ali Anod, spoke to the media and said that they will continue the operations against al Shabaab.
Al Shabaab promises major war against Baidoa town
13 Mar – Source: Bariga Afrika, Shabelle – 190 words
Somalia’s al Shabaab militants linked with al Qaeda have on Tuesday vowed to carry out a major offensive against TFG and Ethiopian forces in the town of Baidoa, the capital of Bay region in southern Somalia.
Muktar Robow known as Abu Mansour, a top al Shabaab commander urged a crowd of sympathisers at a gathering square in Dinsor town in Bay region to join the group in carrying out attacks such as suicide car bombs and hit and run attacks against Somali and Ethiopian troops inside Baidoa town.
Abu Mansour also called on local elders of Bay and Bakol regions to take part in their coming big warfare in Baidoa town against Ethiopian and Somali soldiers.
‘Residents in Baidoa town, we warn you: keep away from government buildings and the bases of the soldiers as well as Ethiopian troops, deadly combats and serious blasts are coming,’ said Muktar Robow, the al Shabaab commander.
Joint Security committee held their 12th meeting in Mogadishu
12 Mar – Source: Radio Mogadishu – 187 words
The joint committee meeting on security opened their 12th meeting today in Mogadishu co-chaired by the Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and Special representative of the Secretary General Ambassador Augustine Mahiga along with deputy special envoy of AU to Somalia Wafula. Dr. Abdiweli, Ambassdor Mahiga and AU envoy gave speeches at the meeting.
Abdiweli asked the participants in the meeting to turn every stone on the security issues particularly the need for the Somali Army and the Police force to bring order and maintain security. He added that for the army and the police force to fulfil their duties, they need the necessary support that will allow them to defeat al Shabaab. He mentioned the building of government security agencies as a vital step towards the realization of complete order in the country.
The meeting which will take two days was convened today by only the Somalis and the international community will join tomorrow. In today’s meeting, the participants included ministers, military and police commanders, members from Galmudug and Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a.
Chatting with Former Somali Prime Minister Farmajo
12 Mar – Source: Somalia Report – 2305
On February 28, Somalia Report interviewed the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG) to Somalia, Augustine Mahiga,in his Mogadishu office. In his comments Mr. Mahiga referred Somali members of parliament as future war criminals, accused former Transitional Federal Government (TFG) prime minister Mohamed Farmajo of clawing his way back into power, and referred to the TFG Islamist faction Ala Sheikh as al-Shabaab militants without the arms. The remarks drew intense criticism from TFG President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed—who described Mr. Mahiga’s clothes as having “fallen off” (in other words, that he had embarrassed himself)—as well as the Somali press.
In an open letter to the Somali people on March 9, the SRSG indirectly addressed the remarks he had made in our interview:
“I remain deeply concerned by the conscious efforts by groups and individuals to derail the Roadmap, engineer another extension of the transition and to obstruct inclusiveness which the Roadmap and the Garowe process seek to accomplish.
I regret that my comments have been interpreted in some quarters as anti-religious and counter to freedom of political expression as well as a criticism of the Executive Branch of government. I apologize for any misunderstanding. On the contrary, my goal was to highlight the dangers inherent in any one group exerting undue political influence due to their proximity to political power. Over the past week, I have had a series of productive and enlightening discussions with religious leaders, elders and statesmen concerning the Al-Sheikh group and their interpretation of Islam. In these discussions, my interlocutors confirmed their support to the Roadmap process and, for my part, I reaffirmed my enduring commitment to the overall success of the Somali peace process. I encourage and welcome political pluralism in the runup to ending the transition in electing the next leadership as well as of the post-August dispensation.”
This week, Somalia Report interviewed former PM Mohamed Farmajo, with the aim of giving him a chance to respond to Mr. Mahiga’s allegations, as well as discuss his political aspirations for the August national elections.
Mr. Farmajo, are you intending to run for the TFG presidency in August?
I haven’t come to that decision yet. I will cross that bridge when I come to it. Hopefully what we can do first is come together and organize, after which we will decide as an organization what we will do next as far as taking part in the election process.
‘Puntland must be part of TFG-Somaliland talks’ says President Farole
12 Mar – Source: Garowe Online – 211 words
The president of Somalia’s Puntland government has welcomed proposed talks between Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and the Somaliland separatist region in northwest Somalia, but warned against denying the role of Puntland, Garowe Online reports. Puntland President Abdirahman Mohamed Farole spoke at an event on 10 March 2012 in Garowe launching the adoption process for the Puntland State Constitution by a 480-person Constituent Assembly.
The Assembly members will be drawn from across Puntland regions and society and will convene in Puntland capital Garowe on 15 April 2012 to adopt Puntland’s state constitution, according to Puntland Parliament Speaker Abdirashid Mohamed Hersi who spoke at the event.
Mohamed Hassan Barre, chairman of Puntland Electoral Commission, said a Presidential Decree is needed to hold the Constituent Assembly on 15 April 2012, which President Farole signed at the event. The Chairman thanked President Farole for “supporting the Electoral Commission to conduct its work and for supporting the democratization process in Puntland towards a multiparty political system.”
Al Shabaab executes man for murder in Jamame
12 Mar – Source: Radio Andulus, Somalia Report, Somali Memo – 45 words
An al-Shabaab Mujahideen court in Jamame district of Lower Juba region publicly executed 30 year old Ahmed who was accused of killing another man in the region. Hundreds of people, including the chairman of Lower and Middle Jubba regions, Sheikh Ali Aden, attended the event
REGIONAL MEDIA
KDF deploys 16 officers in expanded AMISOM secretariat
13 Mar – Source: Standard – 442 words
The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) has unveiled details of how Kenya’s 4,660 military contingent will integrate into the UN supported African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). Each Kenyan soldier will receive a monthly allowance of about Sh85,000 besides medical cover, accommodation, food and evacuation and treatment by the UN in case of injury in Somalia Reports indicate KDF does not have “clear policies” on compensation for KDF soldiers killed in action.
And Kenya has managed to secure operational command of its forces inside AMISOM in independent Sectors within Somalia and will also deploy 16 officers to the now expanded Amisom secretariat of 85 military officers in Mogadishu.
Although the overall force commander of AMISOM will be a Ugandan general there will be Kenyan and Burundian deputy commanders, according to the Chief of Defence Forces of the KDF General Julius Karangi who also announced that Kenyan military officers will take the posts of AMIOMS spokesman and head of intelligence within the 85 person officers corps. Meanwhile a military contingent from Sierra Leone that will joinAMISOM in June will be deployed in areas secured by KDF.
Kenyan ministers push for return of refugees
12 Mar – Source: Daily Nation – 305 words
Thousands of Somali refugees at Dadaab Camp in northern Kenya should be resettled in their country, two Cabinet ministers have said. Internal Security Minister George Saitoti and his Foreign Affairs counterpart, Mr. Moses Wetang’ula, on monday told Parliament’s Defence and Foreign Relations Committee that the refugees posed “security, economic and political” threats to the area.
At a meeting in Nairobi’s County Hall, the two ministers, who sit in the National Security Council, said the 630,000 refugees would be relocated to “liberated areas” of Somalia. The ministers revealed that they had been in touch with the UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, and other humanitarian agencies, to help relocate the refugees.
That there were 630,000 refugees in an area occupied by 150,000 locals worries the authorities in Kenya. “We’re not asking them to relocate the refugees to Europe. We’re saying that Somalia is safe,” Mr. Wetang’ula said.
AMISOM to pay KDF soldiers Sh84,296 monthly allowance
12 Mar – Source: Business Daily – 408 words
Kenyan soldiers fighting the al Shabaab in Somalia will each receive a monthly allowance of Sh84,296, ($1,028) on top of their salaries after they integrate into African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). Chief of Defence Forces General Julius Karangi said the 4,660 soldiers would also get comprehensive medical cover and access to advanced equipment. Kenyan soldiers intergrated into AMISOM on February 22, 2012 after the United Nations Security Council passed resolution 2036.
Under AMISOM, Kenya’s taxpayers will not foot the cost of the war as the case has been, except for naval hardware which was not covered by the UN resolution. “We entered Somalia with the full cost to taxpayers but with AMISOM, Kenyans will no longer be required to pay for our stay in Somalia,” General Karangi told the Defence and Foreign relations committee of Parliament.
Kenya is the only country in the region with Naval capacity to engage in war, General Karangi said, adding that fuel for navy ships would be reimbursed and soldier sailors accorded AMISOM benefits.
Ethiopia in deal to export electricity to Somaliland
12 Mar – Source: Africa Review – 214 words
Ethiopia has announced a plan to export electricity to the self-declared autonomous nation of Somaliland. A document released by the Ethiopian Foreign Affairs ministry said that an agreement had been reached with Somaliland officials to connect Addis Ababa’s power grid to Hargeisa.
State-owned utility Ethiopia Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO) also confirmed a broad deal has been reached but that some details were yet to be fleshed out. EEPCO spokesperson Misiker Negash told the Africa Review by telephone that the company was already working to install a power transmission line to Togo-Wuchale, a border town between the two neighbouring countries.
“We have already begun the installation on the Ethiopian side and soon we will sign a detailed agreement with Somaliland,” Mr Misiker said, adding that both sides were looking for possible financiers of the project. Somaliland is not an internationally recognized nation but the self-declared state has a number of development projects running and initiated with its own people’s money.
Ministers Grilled Over Somalia Mission
12 Mar – Source: Citizen TV – 2:55 min
Kenya’s Defence Forces are now officially part of the African Union’s peace keeping mission in Somalia,Amisom. The Chief of Defence Forces, General Julius Karangi revealed this when he briefed the Parliamentary Defence Committee on the ongoing Operation Linda Nchi in Somalia. At the same time, Kenyans have been urged to be extra-vigilant on security issues following the Saturday evening grenade attacks that have so far claimed six lives with 74 victims still admitted at the Kenyatta National Hospital. The Al Shabaab terror outfit has issued a statement denying any involvement in the latest Nairobi grenade attacks.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kenya releases four suspects held over blasts
13 Mar – Source: Reuters – 206 words
Kenyan police on Monday released conditionally four people arrested over a grenade attack at the weekend at a crowded Nairobi bus station blamed on Somali Islamist militants, local television stations and a lawyer for one of the suspects said. Police had earlier told Reuters four people had been arrested. They were released on a conditional bond pending further investigations, local TV and the lawyer said.
Mbugua Mureithi, a lawyer for one of those detained, said: “My client has been released.” The client has denied being behind the attacks. The suspects were asked to report to police on Tuesday and any other time to assist with the investigations, local TV said. Police officials could not be reached to comment.
The Kenya Red Cross said the death toll had risen to seven and more than 40 people remained in hospital after four grenades were thrown at the bus station from a passing vehicle on Saturday.
Yemen: Tortured for ransom
12 Mar – Source: IRIN – 846 words
The discovery of 70 battered men and women held captive in a remote area of Yemen’s Hajjah Governorate near the Saudi Arabian border has sparked an investigation into the torture and extortion of African immigrants by criminal gangs, say local authorities.
The men and women, Oromos and ethnic Somalis from Ethiopia’s Somali Region, had been held for some time in a house in the Sharqia area of Haradh city, and were found wearing just their underwear. Two men who managed to escape by jumping over the wall of the house, alerted the authorities. Their captors, they said, had beaten them with pipes, burned them with cigarettes and poured liniment in their eyes, making them scream in pain.
“We are really shocked,” said Ali Ibrahim, a criminal investigator in Haradh. “I have been in the department for 15 years and I don’t remember anything like this… It’s unbelievable that this was going on in our own back yard.”
Another government official who preferred anonymity told IRIN: “This problem is unique. No one could imagine that the people were kept in a smuggler’s house for such a long period of time. We don’t know how many were killed.”
Somalia: On Scene in Baidoa after Ethiopia’s Rout of al Shabaab
12 Mar – Source: Daily Beast – 699 words
The previous occupants of the crumbling palace left its interior covered with multicolored chalk drawings and painted graffiti. The childishly rendered pictures give the place a kind of schoolroom look. That is, except for the subject matter: AK-47s and tanks spewing bullets and flames; exploding airplanes; cellphones, complete with painstakingly detailed buttons, the detonators of choice for the roadside bombs that are used by the Islamist radicals of al Shabaab. Guiding us through Somalia’s onetime presidential palace in Baidoa, Capt. Mahamoud Yissak seems almost regretful for the fighters, who mostly fled when the Ethiopian Army captured the city. “They’re only teenagers,” the Ethiopian officer says. “They think only about jihad.”
The building now serves as a command center for the Ethiopians, who insist they have no intention of staying in Somalia. All they want to do, they say, is to eradicate al Shabaab, the Islamist threat on their eastern border, and enable Somalia to create its first stable central government in more than 20 years. “It’s an issue of national security,” says an Ethiopian diplomat. “Once we get a responsible government, we leave.” The hope is that Baidoa is a big step in that direction. The strategic city, midway between the Ethiopian border and Mogadishu, was under Al-Shabab’s control for three years until the Ethiopians finally drove the militants out on Feb. 22. It was the al Qaeda–linked group’s biggest loss since it pulled out of the Somali capital last August. This month a reporter and photographer for Newsweek were among the first Western journalists in years to visit Baidoa, embedded with the Ethiopian Army.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
Somali pirates are protecting fish
12 Mar – Source: The Globe and Mail – 643 Words
“As Somali pirates rain terror along Africa’s eastern seaboard, capturing trade ships and holding crews hostage for ransom, a remarkable development is taking place underwater: Tuna and marlin populations are surging,” Utne Reader says. “It turns out that the rogue seamen have scared away commercial fishing trawlers as well as tankers dumping toxic waste, both of which formerly devastated the coastal fisheries. The results are so profound, according to the University of California, Berkeley, alumni magazine California … pirates are ‘claiming that they are an ad hoc ‘coast guard’ for Somalia’s offshore resources.’ ”
“Given the enormity of the tasks of the roadmap and the timeline to end the transition by August 2012, coupled with emerging crises and political squabbles and infighting among the leadership of the TFI, one can see that this roadmap is dead.”
Dreadful Somali roadmap is destined for failure
12 Mar – Source: Hiiraan Online – 911 Words
The latest action taken by Puntland administration of Somalia to print its own currency will serve as a catalyst for dreadful failure of the Roadmap. This, in the view of many Somali political analysts is the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
The federalism components agreed upon in Garowe and signed by the Signatories of the Roadmap including Puntland clearly states; that tasks of monetary, foreign affairs, natural resources and defense are federal jurisdiction and that no state of the federation has any constitutional rights to print its own currency.
It was on the same day March 8, 2012 that the Prime Minister of Somalia admitted in an interview that the Roadmap and Garowe principles will not end the transition unless it is ratified by the parliament- in other words there is an urgent need to resolve the crisis in the TFP before the tasks of the Roadmap can be implemented. The PM Abdiweli Ali wants to bring the budget and the Road Map to the Parliament for ratification and he has been telling both the president and the former speaker Sharif Hassan to arrange a Parliament meeting for the last two months without any success.
It is now a matter of time before the Prime Minister asks the new speaker Madobe Nunow to chair the parliament in order to discuss theses outstanding legislative matters and to ratify the roadmap. However, the SRSG Dr. Mahiga is resisting that route and is insisting that the signatories of the roadmap to go ahead its implementations and wants to by-pass the ratification of the roadmap by the legislative branch.
“Undoubtedly, Somaliland needs investment, growth, development, and jobs; however, awarding Dahabshil a license to build a cement factory is not to going create jobs or entice investment. Because it would only give Dahabshil the rights to claim the sole ownership of the raw materials and the minerals that are essential to produce cement– and then look for a foreign investor as joint venture, maybe in China—for capital and machinery, to build the physical plant to produce anything, and sell it as a cement. There is a possibility this could happen, and we must stop, before it is too late.”
Dahabshil Group vs. Sahel Communities
13 Mar – Somaliland Press – 994 Words
Last week, a group of elders representing the Sahel Communities ( Dan iyoDuco) raised objection the permit for Dahabshil to build a new cement plant from scratch right next to the ruins of old Berbera cement factory.
As I watched the video of the gathering of the elderly, the Sahel communities concerns about the new cement plant permit were: residents including their own elected local officials were completely cut-out the decision making process regarding the permit for the construction of the plant. The environmental and safety issues that could affect the well-being and the quality of life of the citizens and children in the region were not addressed. However, the most contentious of all was a permit that former Riyaale administration issued to a local group to rebuild the old factory if it is feasible or to build a new one.
Hidden Treasures of Somaliland
13 Mar – Source: Dissident Nation
The self-declared Republic of Somaliland in northwestern Somalia is renowned for its rocky terrain, and beneath Somaliland’s picturesque mountain landscape is a trove of gems and other rare minerals. In Somaliland’s key province of Waqoyi, there is a burgeoning gemstone industry that is gaining a new following after years of quiet exploration by local artisans and entrepreneurs. At the center of the industry is the Somagem Mining Company, run by Abdisamad Hussein, based in the Somaliland capital of Hargeysa.
Although Somaliland has not enjoyed the same kind of attention as neighboring semi-autonomous Puntland in respect to rigorous oil exploration, it is picking up steam among small exploration firms, one of which is Ophir Energy of the UK. Somaliland was set to enter into its first agreements with Ophir at the closing of 2011, though it isn’t certain if those deals were ever made.
Currently, Somagem is running two operations, called the Mandheera Project and Simodi Project, both in the areas surrounding Hargeysa within the Waqoyi province. The images below are from regular operations by the Somagem Mining Company.
Top tweets
@DissidentNation Hidden Treasures of Somaliland region of #Somalia [PICTURES] bit.ly/
@dailynation TWO MINISTERS tell Parliamentary team there are too many Somali refugees in Kenya and they should be resettled in liberated areas of Somali.
@Aynte There’s a major gathering in #Mogadishu today calling for UN #Somalia envoy to go #MahigaMustGO.
@viewstatus CIA Islamists Destroy #Somalia theintelhub.
@felix_kipro @amisomsomalia
@ClaysonMonyela: Expect major announcements regarding bilateral relations between the two countries. #Somalia/SA.
@IHHen Deputy PM BozdaÄŸ inaugurates mosque in #Somalia ow.ly/9CrAn.
Image of the day
Somali Ministry of Women & Family Affairs organized a tournament for Women’s basketball teams in Mogadishu. Heegan defeats Local Government Women team 34-24.