October 9, 2013 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

Obama says U.S. to keep ‘going after’ al Qaeda-linked groups in Africa

08 Oct- Source: Reuters- 876 words

President Barack Obama on Tuesday staunchly defended his decision to order commando raids in Libya and Somalia last weekend, saying the United States would keep targeting al Qaeda-linked groups in Africa but had no intention of going to war there. Speaking at a news conference, Obama said the United States was justified in seizing a senior al Qaeda figure in Tripoli and whisking him out of the country, and he made clear that it likely would not be the last operation of its kind. “Where you’ve got active plots and active networks, we’re going to go after them,” Obama said. “We’re not going to farm out our defense.” Nazih al-Ragye, better known by the cover name Abu Anas al-Liby, is being held aboard a U.S. Navy ship in the Mediterranean Sea where he was questioned by an elite American interrogation team. The capture in Tripoli came the same weekend that a Navy SEAL team swooped into Somalia in an operation targeting a senior al Shabaab figure known as Ikrima, described by U.S. officials as a foreign commander for the organization.

Key Headlines

AMISOM congratulates the People of Uganda on their Independence Day (AMISOM)
Somalia signs historic agreement with UN ICAO (Hiiraan Online/SNTV)
Al Shabaab kidnaps civilians from Southern Somali districts (Bar-kulan)
Al Shabaab says ready to defend itself from possible attacks (Somali Current)
Ahmed Madobe appeals for international support (Bar-kulan)
Spain Tries 6 Somalis for Piracy After Ship Attack (AFP)
Three Turkish nationals held at JKIA over undeclared cash (Daily Nation)
Student terrorist suspect seized in Kenya (Africa Review)
SEALS could not get to their target in Somalia because of heavy defenses (USA Today)

PRESS STATEMENT

AMISOM congratulates the People of Uganda on their Independence Day

08 Oct – Source: AMISOM – 193 words

The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia (SRCC) Ambassador Mahamat Saleh Annadif congratulates the people of Uganda as they mark their 51st Independence Day.

Ambassador Annadif commended the support by the Ugandan Government and its people towards the African Union Mission in Somalia. “As the Ugandan people celebrate this very important day, we wish to further voice our gratitude for their support in this important mission geared towards the betterment and recovery of Somalia.

We praise and thank the brave Ugandan men and women for their service and further appreciate the strong partnership we enjoy with the government of Uganda,” he said. In a previous statement, Ambassador Annadif also noted that Independence celebrations for African countries this year held much more meaning as the continent celebrates 50 years of unity.

Uganda was the first country to deploy their armed forces in March 2007 under AMISOM and the Uganda Formed Police Unit the first ever Formed Police Unit deployed by the African Union to conduct peace support operations in Somalia. Uganda has since endeavored to extend a hand to the Government of Somalia and its people under AMISOM.

SOMALI MEDIA

Somalia signs historic agreement with UN ICAO

08 Oct – Source: Hiiraan Online/SNTV – 46 words

The agreement which was signed by Somalia’s information and transportation minister Abdullahi Elmoge Hersi and The head of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Raymond Benjamin states millions of dollars that was held in the ICAO Trust fund will be transferred to the government of Somalia.

Al Shabaab kidnaps civilians from Southern Somali districts

08 Oct – Source: Bar-kulan – 82 words

Reports from southern Somali region of Middle Jubba indicate that al Shabaab militant group raided several villages and kidnapped civilians from the area. Speaking to Bar-kulan, an eyewitness who asked not to be named said that a humanitarian worker dubbed Barawani was abducted from his house in Bu’ale district by al Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab group on Monday night. According to locals, another man accused of having ties with the Jubba administration in Kismayo was kidnapped from Jilib district of the same region by the militant.

Al Shabaab says ready to defend itself from possible attacks

08 Oct – Source: Somali Current – 90 words

Somalia’s al Qaeda affiliated terror group said that they are ready to resist raids from U.S or any foreign forces. U.S Navy Seals forces raided on a villa in Barawe town in South Somalia region of Lower Shabelle in an attempt to apprehend al Qaeda leader in Somalia. The militant group resisted the Navy seal, leading to their withdrawal before achieving the goal of the raid. Addressing the press, Sheikh Abdulaziz Abu Muscab, al Shabaab military operations spokesperson said that ‘the Mujahidiin’ are very careful of such attacks from the ‘enemy’.

Ahmed Madobe appeals for international support

08 Oct – Source: Bar-kulan – 95 words

The leader Jubba Interim Administration Ahmed Mohamed Islan (Ahmed Madobe) has asked international community to help his administration restore basic needs. Speaking at a press conference in the southern port city of Kismayo, Ahmed Madobe said that he will soon unveil his cabinet ministers in a bid to improve security and develop the region. The leader of Kismayo-based administration affirmed that the key priority is security and stability of the Jubba regions. Mr Ahmed Madobe also thanked International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that recently took over to run Kismayo general hospital.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Three Turkish nationals held at JKIA over undeclared cash

08 Oct – Source: Daily Nation – 73 words

Three Turkish nationals have been arrested at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) with USD 350,000 (about Sh30 million) which they had not declared. The three were arrested as they were boarding the East African Airlines scheduled to leave Nairobi for Somalia at 6am. The three men have claimed they work for the Red Cross in Turkey but could not explain why they failed to declare the amount to the Customs authorities.

Student terrorist suspect seized in Kenya

08 Oct – Source: Africa Review – 143 words

A high school student suspected to be a member of the al Shabaab militia has been arrested in Kenya. The student was arrested on Monday evening at Murang’a Road Mixed Secondary School in the capital Nairobi, following intelligence reports that he could be a member of the Islamist militia linked to the dreaded al Qaeda network. Police from the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit in Nairobi were on Tuesday interrogating the Form Three student, with hopes that he could give crucial information that could help in the fight against terror. “The police arrested the boy following information that he was a member of al Shabaab, but we are still treating him as a suspect,” local Starehe police boss Samuel Anampiu said. An intelligence report from the National Intelligence Service leaked last week revealed that a large number of high school students were recruited and trained by the al Shabaab.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Obama says U.S. to keep ‘going after’ al Qaeda-linked groups in Africa

08 Oct- Source: Reuters- 876 words

SEALS could not get to their target in Somalia because of heavy defenses

08 Oct – Source: USA Today – 132 words

Navy SEALS abandoned their mission to capture a terrorist suspected of planning the mall attack in Kenya after encountering strong resistance at the man’s beach-side stronghold in Somalia, U.S. officials told Reuters and NBC. The SEALS mission took place the same day that Army special forces captured a wanted terrorist in Libya in a raid in Tripoli. Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, known by his alias Anas al-Libi, is being held in a U.S. warship. The target of the SEALS was Abdikadar Mohamed Abdikadar, say Kenyan and Western security agencies. Reuters said Abdikadar is a liaison between commanders of the al Shabaab militant group in Somalia with terrorist cells in linked to al-Qaeda in Kenya, Yemen and the Afghanistan-Pakistan area, said J. Peter Pham, director of the the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center.

Spain Tries 6 Somalis for Piracy After Ship Attack

08 Oct – Source: AFP – 149 words

Six Somalis who allegedly attacked a Spanish warship in 2012 off the coast of Somalia went on trial in the Spanish capital, with prosecutors seeking a 23-year sentence for each defendant. A National Court spokesman said Monday the six are charged with piracy, weapon possession and membership of a criminal group. The six were arrested in January 2012 following a shootout when they allegedly tried to board the Patino vessel. The Defense Ministry said the attackers possibly mistook the warship for a freighter. The six claim they are fishermen and had approached the ship for help. The Patino formed part of a European Union flotilla fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean. The trial is expected to end Wednesday.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“A false and premature sense of security regarding al Shabaab’s capabilities led to the tragedy in Nairobi, Dersso writes.”

The fight against al Shabaab

08 Oct- Source: Al Jazeera English-1355 Words

The attack by al Shabaab elements on the Westgate mall in Nairobi, on September 21, stands out from any of the attacks that the group has orchestrated in the region. More than 62 innocent people lost their lives and more than 150 others sustained injuries. The attacks took place at the centre of Kenya’s economic and political power. As such, it represents a direct challenge to the power and prestige of Kenya, a regional economic power-house The Westgate attack was the largest and most sophisticated, in terms of its planning and execution, of any of the attacks for which al Shabaab has claimed responsibility, outside of Somalia. Regionally, the Westgate Mall attack, the second major attack by al-Shabab after the 7/11 Kampala bombings in 2010, epitomises what the capability of the group. While in Kampala, al-Shabab undertook a series of coordinated bombings, in Westgate, its operatives stormed and forcibly seized the mall resulting in four days of siege at the heart of Kenya’s capital.