March 15, 2012 | Morning Headlines.
Al Shabaab claims responsibility for Mogadishu Blast
14 Mar – Source: Shabelle – 115 words
Somalia’s Al Qaeda-affiliated al Shabaab rebels claimed responsibility for a suicide attack Wednesday at the presidential compound, saying it has killed 16 soldiers and wounded 30 others. One of the top al Shabaab commanders told a pro-militants radio station in Elasha-Biyaha, south of Mogadishu that a bomber had targeted a main TFG compound and frequented by senior government officials.
Key Headlines
- Piracy off the coast of Somalia reduced by 40% says Kenya (Source: Radio Bar-kulan)
- Silanyo fires key ministers in a mini-reshuffle (Source: Bar-Kulan)
- Suicide bomber targets presidential palace (Source: BBC)
- Two Somali refugees shot dead in Kenya camp (Source: AFP)
- Anti-Mahiga meeting held in Mogadishu (Source: Somalia Report Shabelle Mareeg Online)
- Somalia’s children schooled in guns (Source: Washington Post/AP)
SOMALI MEDIA
Minister of information returns home
14 Mar – Source: SONNA – 79 words
Minister of information, Posts and Telecommunications of Somali Transitional Federal Government, H.E. Abdukadir Hussein Mohamed has on Wednesday returned to Mogadishu after having attended international meetings abroad. Officials of Information Ministry welcomed the information minister, H.E. Abdukadir Hussein Mohamed at Mogadishu international airport, SONNA reported.
Al Shabaab claims responsibility for Mogadishu Blast
14 Mar – Source: Shabelle – 115 words
Somalia’s Al Qaeda-affiliated al Shabaab rebels claimed responsibility for a suicide attack Wednesday at the presidential compound, saying it has killed 16 soldiers and wounded 30 others. One of the top al Shabaab commanders told a pro-militants radio station in Elasha-Biyaha, south of Mogadishu that a bomber had targeted a main TFG compound and frequented by senior government officials.
Piracy off the coast of Somalia reduced by 40%, says Kenya
14 Mar – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 147 words
Piracy off the coast of Somalia has dropped by 40 per cent since Kenya deployed its forces in the chaotic country, according to a report by the Kenyan government. The report was made after a joint meeting with Kenya’s security and defense officials. “There has not been any single case of piracy since then,” George Saitoti, Kenya’s minister for internal security told reporters.
Silanyo fires key ministers in a mini-reshuffle
14 Mar – Source: Radio Bar-kulan, Hiiraan Online – 125 words
The president of Somaliland, Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo on Wednesday sacked several of his cabinet ministers and immediately replaced them. The affected ministers are Finance, Public Works and Housing, as well as Labour and Social Affairs minister and Post and Telecommunication.
Anti-Mahiga meeting held in Mogadishu
14 Mar – Source: Somalia Report, Shabelle, Mareeg Online – 274 words
A meeting attended by the different sectors of the Somali community, including elders, women, Members of Parliament (MPs) and religious leaders, which was against the head of United Nations Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) Augustine Mahiga, took place in Mogadishu late on Tuesday.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Kibaki sends special message to Somalia
14 Mar – Source: Capital News – 263 words
President Mwai Kibaki has sent a special message to Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed.
In the message delivered on Wednesday in Mogadishu by Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula, President Kibaki underscored the need for a regional initiative to resolve the re-emergence of dispute between Sudan and South Sudan that is threatening to develop into a fully fledged conflict.
UAE ‘terror’ trial delayed until defence lawyers are appointed
14 Mar – Source: Gulf News – 88 words
The trial of the four suspects (three Somali and one Sudanese) accused of belonging to a Jihadist organisation has been postponed till Monday until lawyers have been provided to defend them.
“All lawyers have refused to defend the suspects during the last Monday session, so the trial has been postponed to next Monday,” an official at the Supreme Federal Court told Gulf News.
KDF clout will not diminish under AMISOM, says Karangi
14 Mar – Source: the Star (Nairobi) – 292 words
The Chief of Defence Forces Gen Julius Karangi has said the clout of the KDF will not be diminished under the African Union Mission in Somalia command to fight al Shabaab group. Karangi told MPs that besides taking charge of the areas already liberated from the al Shabaab, the KDF will dispatch 16 officers to be part of the 85 officers at Amisom command centre in Mogadishu.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somalia’s children schooled in guns
14 Mar – Source: The Washington Post/ AP- 422 words
Adan Abdi worries that the students in his class show too little interest in education.
That might be a common complaint among teachers, but Mr. Abdi’s concerns go further: His students are interested in playing war.
Mr. Abdi is a teacher in southern Somalia, a region that has been dominated by militia violence for years. “Students here are not so much interested in learning, because they can see a lot of people carrying guns,” said the 22-year-old English teacher.
Two Somali refugees shot dead in Kenya camp
14 Mar – Source: AFP – 215 words
Two Somali refugees were shot dead and a third was wounded by gunmen in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp, a spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency that runs the camp said Wednesday.
Dadaab, the world’s biggest refugee complex, is home to 460,000 people, most of them Somalis fleeing two decades of civil war as well as drought and famine in their home country.
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Suicide bomber targets presidential palace
14 Mar – Source: BBC – 96 words
At least five people have been killed in a suicide bombing in the heart of the Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, officials have said. A bomber blew himself up at the gates of the presidential palace, which correspondents say is one of the city’s most closely guarded areas. The Islamist militants al Shabaab said they carried out the bombing.
Somali Federation buoyed by Jeenyo United FC relaunch
14 Mar – Source: BBC – 497 words
Somalia’s Football Federation says the revival of one of the country’s leading clubs can lift its national team.
Jeenyo United relaunched on Sunday, some 22 years after the former champions collapsed.
“We are very happy because Jeenyo was once very popular, with enormous support and very talented players,” said secretary general Abdi Qani.
“Football needs supporters to improve the quality of the game, the players and national team players.”
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“Now, al Shabab can see that just like any people living under tyranny, Somali women had never accepted the unaesthetic lifestyle that they tried to impose on them. Just like fascism, communism and the countless tin pot dictators that have all gone and left nothing but bad memory behind, Al Shabab will only be remembered by the amputated limps of the youth that they left behind. Hope has returned to Somali women and should never leave them again.”
Somali women between hope and reality
14 Words- Source: Hiiraan Online-883 Words
Browsing through Somali websites on the International Women’s Day on March 8, two episodes attracted my attention; one was heartwarming and inspiring while the other was disheartening and sad.
Heartwarming was seeing Somali women in Mogadishu celebrating the International Women’s Day in their traditional Somali butterfly attire since the routing of Al Shabab from the city.
In a scene that was reminiscent of the old days before extremist ideologies and alien cultures shrouded the beauty and intelligence of Somali women in mourning garments, it was refreshing to see them come out dressed in their modest but elegant Diric, garbosaar and hagoog or Masar attire and celebrate the International Women’s Day in a dinner hosted by the TFG President Sheikh Sharif’s two wives. One cannot but be delighted by the transformation that took place in a few months since Al Shabab were driven out from Mogadishu. In their days, women were not allowed to celebrate even weddings let alone international events.
They were forced to wear the Al Shabab ordained head-to-toe black cloaks and publicly rebuked and sometimes punished for wearing bras. It was equally enchanting to see Sheikh Sharif himself attending the women’s dinner. Some may argue and rightly whether sitting between his two wives was sending the wrong signal to the millions of Somali girls who would be watching this event from around the world. But the fact that a Somali president who himself went through a remarkable transformation was attending a women’s dinner party itself reflected the air of freedom that Somali women in Mogadishu were now breathing.
“As history would attest, nations and their people neither accept forced form of government nor a Constitution that they did not collectively endorse. The conspicuous patronizing undertones of the Communiqué in this regard are appalling and the overreliance on flawed political frameworks that lack legitimacy from the Somali people are doomed to fail and bound to ruin the goodwill and the reputation of the members of the international community that genuinely want to help Somalia to stand on its own feet.”
Hiil Qaran response to the London Conference on Somalia
14 Mar- Source: Kismayo News/Raxanreeb-1206 Words
The question that remains in the minds of many Somali people is: Did the much heralded London Conference on Somalia live up to its expectations?
In his opening remarks, British PM David Cameron, called the Conference “…the largest gathering of countries and organizations around the world and the most influential”. The Conference and the momentum that led up to its preparation created high expectations and raised the hopes of the Somali people. Many saw this new attempt, though late in the game, as an unprecedented and serious effort by the international community to move from a “Containment Policy” of the past 17 years to a policy of genuinely helping the Somali people solve their problems.
Although the final Communiqué contained several positive proposals and had the support and the commitment of prominent world leaders, it was a disappointment to most Somalis for two crucial reasons: