August 29, 2014 | Daily Monitoring Report.

Main Story

Somali, AMISOM forces launch fresh security operations in Hiiraan

29 Aug- Source: Radio Bar-kulan-131 Words

Reports from Somalia’s central region of Hiran indicate that fresh security operations have been launched in various parts of the region against al Shabaab militant group. Bar-kulan correspondent in Hiran region, Ali Dahir Ali has reported that Somali government forces and AMISOM troops early Friday morning reached Halgan and Burweyn locations in Hiran region. He added that the allied forces also reached El-dher village which lies 12 KM out of Buq-gosar.

Somali government military officials told Bar-kulan that the allied forces are on their way to Jalalaqsi district in Hiran region to drive al Shabaab militant group out of the area. Senior officials from the national army and the African Union Mission in Somalia announced joint offensive against al Shabaab militant group to remove roadblocks set up by the militant group.

Key Headlines

U.S. Special Representative for Somalia UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia and EU Ambassador to Somalia Appeal for All Armed Forces to Withdraw from Saaxdheer Sool Region (UNSOM)
Somali AMISOM forces launch fresh security operations in Hiiraan (Radio Bar-kulan)
Cabinet ministers postpones the approval of the media bill (Radio Mogadishu/Goobjoog)
Mogadishu Mayor opens radio for regional admin (Radio Mogadishu)
Internews Europe Opens Media Resource Centre in Mogadishu (Radio Dalsan)
Taxman returns to Somalia (Al Jazeera)
Tanzania takes a chunk of Kenya tourism pie after terror attacks (Star-Kenya)
Somali Community Leaders in Minn: Jihadists Recruiting Using ‘Same Methods as Gangs (FOX News)
Nine killed in fighting between rival regions in north Somalia (Reuters)

PRESS RELEASE

Joint Press Release: U.S. Special Representative for Somalia, UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, and EU Ambassador to Somalia Appeal for All Armed Forces to Withdraw from Saaxdheer, Sool Region

29 Aug- Source: UNSOM-155 Words

United States Representative for Somalia James P. McAnulty, UN Special Representative for Somalia Nicholas Kay and European Union Ambassador Michele Cervone d’Urso express profound concern about the deployment of armed forces and the resultant conflict within Saaxdheer, Sool Region.

We call for the immediate withdrawal of forces from Saaxdheer, and the immediate release of all prisoners. We urge all parties to refrain from violence and make concerted efforts to de-escalate and resolve differences through peaceful means and dialogue. All parties should make immediate efforts to demonstrate genuine willingness to create the conditions necessary for long-term and durable stability in the region.

The U.S. Special Representative, the UN Special Representative and the EU Ambassador urge all parties in the affected region to engage peacefully and find constructive ways to address jointly the drivers of conflict. They express their commitment to help all parties to seek compromise and work towards durable peace and stability in the region.

SOMALI MEDIA

Somali, AMISOM forces launch fresh security operations in Hiiraan

29 Aug- Source: Radio Bar-kulan-131 Words

Cabinet ministers postpones the approval of the media bill

29 Aug – Source: Radio Mogadishu/Goobjoog – 170 words

The Council of ministers of the Federal Government of Somalia today in their regular meeting postponed the approval a proposed media bill prepared by the ministry of information.

The cabinet meeting was chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister and inister for Religious Affairs of Somalia Ridwan Hersi Mohamed, discussed the draft submitted by the Minister for Information Mustaf Sheikh Ali Duhulow before requesting the minster to make amendments to some articles and return it to the cabinet on Monday, 1stSeptember 2014 for detailed discussion.

Some of the media owners and professional journalists are skeptical on some articles, saying the bill does not have enough precision in its current form to provide journalists with the guarantees they need to work freely.

Meanwhile,this comes at a time two media outlets who are accused of inciting the public and encouraging them to oppose the disarmament campaign were recently closed by the government after raiding their premises in the capital, detaining some of the staffers as three of them still remain in jail.

Mogadishu Mayor opens radio for regional admin

29 Aug- Source: Radio Mogadishu-87 Words

Banadir Governor who is also Mogadishu Mayor Mohamed Hussein Mungab has officially opened a radio station meant for the regional administration. The ceremony was held at the regional administration headquarters in Mogadishu on Thursday.

Mayor Mungab said the radio will help in propagating policies and development messages from the authority to the public. The mayor also encouraged the staff working in the radio to be patriotic in serving the country and the public. The radio will broadcast on FM transmission within Mogadishu and it’s environ, airing development programs.

Internews Europe Opens Media Resource Centre in Mogadishu

28 Aug- Source: Radio Dalsan-174 Words

A launching ceremony for a centre of Internews Europe took place at Wadajir District in Mogadishu today. Media staff members including directors of radio stations and civil society organizations were invited to the ceremony.

Among other speakers were the representative of Internews Europe Abdilatif Adan, Abdullahi Shirwac, the chairman of SIMHA who is also the director of Dalsan Radio Mr. Hassan Ali Geesey, the Secretary General of NUSOJ Mohamed Ibrahim Pakistan, Abdullahi Mohamed Hassan from Network 13 and Farhiya Mohamed Kheyre from SWJ.

In a press statement, Internews Europe explained the main tasks of the centre that was opened in Mogadishu today. Since August 2014 to January 2016, that centre will be used for training journalists and members of civil society organizations. The main headquarter of Internews is in London.

The work of Internews Europe has two core aims: to support the highest standards in and sustainability of local media and information systems around the globe and to ensure that communities, families and individuals, whatever their circumstances, can claim their right to access information.

Bare Hirale agrees to attend second phase of Juba reconciliation conference

28 Aug-Source: Radio Goobjoog-119 Words

According to reports GoobJoog Radio is getting from the port city of Kismayo, reconciliation conference will be held in the town earlier next month.

Preliminary reports state that the hot discussions between Bare Adan Shire ‘Bare Hirale’ and Interim administration of Juba administration led by Ahmed Madobe brokered by the Federal government and IGAD officials issued three points.

1. Bare Adan Shire accepted to take part in the second phase of Juba reconciliation conference due to be held in Kismayo on 12th September.

2.He also accepted his forces to be integrated into Juba administration.

3. A committee was formed to bring Bare’s militia to bases in the outskirt of Kismayo until the agreement is fully signed.

Somaliland: German GIZ and KFW Bank in Gabile Farms Inspection

28 Aug- Source: Somaliland Sun-220 Words

Studies have ensued towards alleviating constraints caused by droughts on the farming community in Somaliland. The minister of Agriculture Prof Farah Elmi Gedode and a team from GIZ and KFW bank of Germany are on an inspection tour of the Allaybaday farms in Gable region with the objectives of est5ablishing support guidelines to the farming community in Somaliland affected by droughts.

According to Prof Gedode who was flanked by representatives from KFW bank and GIZ, Thomas Herzberg and Ahmed Abdilahi respectively said the German support towards alleviating constraints to farming in the country is highly appreciated and shall be utilized appropriately. On their part the GIZ and KFW bank officials said they are happy to be in Somaliland where they hope they assorted contributions shall help increase food production thence reduce not only imports but help in assuring food security.

Constant and prolonged droughts in the country have not only reduced local farm production with resultant dependency on exorbitantly priced imports but the creation of internally displaced persons who were former farmers. While GIZ the German government’s foreign aid arm has been operating in the country for many years the Berlin based KFW Bank made its intentions to establish activities in Somaliland following a meeting with then foreign minister Dr Mohamed Abdilahi Omar in Berlin on the 27th February 2013.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Taxman returns to Somalia

29 Aug- Source: Al Jazeera -02:14mins

Taxmen have returned to work for the first time in decades in the Somali capital Mogadishu. The Federal Government has decided to collect taxes from market traders as it tries to establish its authority in the lawless capital. But dozens of collectors have been killed by men unwilling to pay up. Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Adow reports from Mogadishu.

Tanzania takes a chunk of Kenya tourism pie after terror attacks

29 Aug- Source: Star-Kenya-672 Words

Tanzania expects tourist numbers to double to 2 million by 2017, the state tourist board said, challenging regional rival Kenya where Islamist attacks have scared away visitors. Tanzania, famed for its pristine beaches and safari parks beneath snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro, has always played second-fiddle to Kenya, which has a more developed tourism industry and better air links to the key markets in Europe and United States. But a surge in visitors to Tanzania in the past two years has chipped away at Kenya’s dominance and helped Tanzania’s ambitions to become a regional tourist hub.

“We expect to reach 2 million tourist arrivals by 2017,” Devota Mdachi, acting managing director of the Tanzania Tourism Board (TTB), told Reuters in an interview. “With more international airlines flying into Tanzania … improved infrastructure, increased tourism investments and marketing, we can reach that target.”

Tanzania’s tourist arrivals rose 1.7 percent in 2013 to 1.095 million, earning the country $1.85 billion. In 2012, arrivals surged 24 percent as the country hit the 1 million-mark for the first time. Visitors mostly come from Britain, Germany, the United States and Italy. Next door, Kenya’s industry has struggled. Tourist numbers slid last year to 1.5 million after an all-time peak of 1.8 million in 2011. In the first quarter of 2014 arrivals fell 4 percent compared to 2013, while a leading Kenyan hotel chain said the real figures were worse.

Somali attorney general pledges to reform prosecutor’s office, eradicate corruption

28 Aug- Source: Sabahi Online-1266 Words

In less than a month in office, Somali Attorney General Ahmed Ali Dahir, 49, has already faced numerous challenges, including inheriting an office “in ruins” that lacked skilled employees and adequate office equipment. Somalia’s new attorney general has pledged to overhaul the Public Prosecutor’s Office to instil rule of law and ensure that no one, whether a Somali citizen, government security agency or judge, is above the law.

Dahir holds a law degree from Somali National University and a master’s in business administration from Uganda’s Makere University. In 1988, he was appointed public prosecutor in Bay, Bakol and Gedo regions and served until the fall of the Mohamed Siad Barre regime. Between 1996 and 1999, he worked in Ethiopia’s Somali regional judiciary and as a legal adviser for various non-governmental organisations in the United States where he moved in 1999. Dahir currently holds dual Somali and US citizenship.

In an exclusive interview with Sabahi, Dahir talked about the dispute over the legality of his appointment, his short- and long-term plans for the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the anticipated charges against the directors of Shabelle Media Network and Sky FM radio stations, among other issues.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Somali Community Leaders in Minn: Jihadists Recruiting Using ‘Same Methods as Gangs

29 Aug- Source: FOX News-07:35mins

Omar Jamal: Why isn’t US law enforcement preventing American teens from being radicalized? (TRT: 16) OMAR JAMAL: It defies logic, how this is happening under the nose of the law enforcement agency. What’s going on here? As we speak right now, young kids, probably at the airport somewhere in this country, (are) going to join ISIS. What happened? Omar Jamal: The leaders of my community need to condemn radical Islam. (TRT: 20)
OMAR JAMAL: The only way to do something about it is to appeal, and I’m asking this, the majority of the Muslim- American citizens, the leadership of my community, the Muslim community, not only in Minneapolis, but in California, in New York, in DC, to come out in one voice to come out and condemn these tactics.

Nine killed in fighting between rival regions in north Somalia

28 Aug – Source: Reuters – 150 words

At least nine people were killed in fighting on Thursday between rival areas in Somalia’s usually calm Somaliland region, residents said, highlighting the fragility of security improvements anywhere in the Horn of Africa nation.

Somaliland forces launched an offensive on a town where people had inaugurated a man they said was president of the newly autonomous Khatumo area. Officials and many attending the occasion in north Somalia fled to the nearby Ethiopian border.

The incident shows how quickly clashes can flare in Somalia, even in quieter regions like Somaliland where some semblance of normality has returned to towns after years of conflict between warlords across the nation on Africa’s eastern tip.

Somalia was fractured by more than two decades of conflict after the toppling in 1991 of the dictator Siad Barre, who held the nation together with brute force. Clan warlords and then Islamist militants have fought over the pieces.

Sources say second American killed fighting with ISIS in Syria identified as Abdirahmaan

28 Aug – Source: Fox News – 206 words

A second American reportedly killed fighting with the Islamic State group in Syria has been identified as Abdirahmaan Muhumed, of Minneapolis, two sources told Fox News late Wednesday. KMSP-TV in Minneapolis reported that Muhumed was killed in the same battle as Douglas McAuthur McCain, who grew up outside Minneapolis in the town of New Hope and most recently lived in San Diego.

The State Department confirmed McCain’s death earlier this week, but spokeswoman Jen Psaki saidWednesday that the U.S. has no independent confirmation of the second American’s death. “We’re looking into it,” she said. A source told Fox News that Muhumed’s family had been sent a photo of his body from Syria, but had not been formally notified by the State Department. Fox News was unable to contact the family.

A profile of Muhumed by Minnesota Public Radio this past June described him as a 29-year-old Somali-American who had been married more than once and was a father of nine children. MPR reported, citing the FBI, that at least 15 young men from the Twin Citites’ Somali-American community had traveled to Syria to join Islamic State, the militant group formerly known as ISIS that has captured wide swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“By Somali standards, hallmarks are immediately seized and politicized grievances against functioning institutions gradually exacerbate inter-clan feuds. If the government launches review into foreign exchange transactions and process vital economic data, Puntland will become springboard for Federal states.”

Somalia: Is Puntland ready for self reliance?

29 Aug- Source: Horseed Media-625 Words

Puntland, a federal state and leading pioneer in northern Somalia has been land of peace since 1998 when traditional leaders, veteran politicians and academia sat for a community-wide consultation. So far we to some extent have come of age, nevertheless the road ahead is still long. I prefer to remain silent on harrowing facts but instead focus on the progress without embroiling myself in competing interests. In this column I will be examining whether the newly elected President-economist by profession and experienced politician -Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali Gaas has begun to lead the state on the path to immense development.

We had strong leaders who dedicated their lives to the public interest, thanks to the political maturity and keenness on self-reliant Puntland by the overwhelming majority of happy hardworking citizens. I personally like the other development-loving people overcame with joy shortly after President Gaas put ‘push for self-reliance’ on display on the eve of celebrations that marked the founding day of Puntland on August 1, 2014. I do agree to this spectacular theme and remain wholeheartedly confident that he is committed to delivering on promises of 2014 Presidential Election.

Top tweets

@amisomsomalia 2/ #Somalia‘s 3,300 kilometre coastline gives the country’s fishermen access to over 400 different species of fish pic.twitter.com/wPyMEkwbo4

@Somalia111 Concerned by situation in #Saaxdheer.All parties must make efforts to de-escalate violence & resolve differences peacefully through dialogue

@tunajibu #selfie with #Somalia President H.E. Hassan S Mohamud in Ankara @ the inauguration of #Turkey #president @SOPresident pic.twitter.com/VaeVH9xK9L

@Oxfam #Remittances to #Somalia explained: how does the money transfer system work? by @Adesoafrica ht@OxfamInSOM pic.twitter.com/9xz6ELiqQp

@amisomsomalia A Media Resource Centre has been launched in #Mogadishu, aimed at enhancing the capacity of#Somali media. pic.twitter.com/CXtpCAecc8

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Image of the day

Image of the day Ceremony held on 27th August to mark the first National Human Rights Day in #Somalia. Photo: @amisomsomalia