October 15, 2014 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

International partners welcome agreement between the Federal Government and Puntland

14 Oct – Source: Mareeq.com/Radio RBC – 180 Words

The United Nations, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Ethiopia in its capacity as the Chair of the IGAD Council of Ministers, and the European Union (EU) welcomed the agreement signed today between the Federal Government of Somalia and Puntland State of Somalia to resume relations and work together on peace and state-building priorities.

“We welcome the agreement reached today between the Federal Government of Somalia and Puntland State of Somalia. This agreement is an important step forward in the path towards peace- and state-building for all Somalis. Puntland with its 16 years of experience in state building and governance has much to contribute to building a strong, peaceful, federal, democratic and united Somalia. Many crucial steps must be jointly taken in the coming months, including reviewing and implementing a Federal constitution and holding elections in 2016.

We stand ready to support the implementation of this agreement, including through the New Deal Somali Compact. Somalia’s international partners remain committed to supporting the nation’s peace and state-building agenda in full respect of the Provisional Federal Constitution”.

Key Headlines

Twelve die in clashes between two clan militias in Hiran region (RBC Radio)
AU envoy condemns cowardly attacks against peacekeepers (RBC Radio/Radio Goobjoog)
International partners welcome agreement between the Federal Government and Puntland(Mareeg.com/Radio RBC/Radio Goobjooj)
More updates on a man who stabbed to death another in Kaaraan last night (Dalsan Radio/Mareeg.com)
Talks due on Somalia border suit (The Nation)
5 Kenyans still held by Somali captors – police (Capital FM Kenya)
Sierra Leone peacekeepers bound for Somalia quarantined over Ebola (Reuters)
Sierra Leone soldier tests positive for Ebola but was not among troops deploying to Somalia (Star Tribune)
Businesses urged to seize investment opportunities in Somaliland (Gov.uk)

PRESS RELEASE

AU Special Representative condemns cowardly attacks against peacekeepers.

15 Oct – Source: AMISOM – 292 Words

The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Maman S. Sidikou today strongly condemned two separate attacks against AMISOM peacekeepers in Marka and Lego districts of Lower Shabelle region.

In Marka, Al-Shabaab terrorists attacked a convoy carrying AMISOM Ugandan peacekeepers firing AK-47s and hurling grenades in the Rusi neighborhood of the coastal capital. Unfortunately one peacekeeper died and another was wounded in the cowardly attack.

The other attack involved AMISOM’s Burundian peacekeepers as they were traveling along the busy Mogadishu- Baidoa Road. The Al-Qaeda linked extremists detonated a remote-controlled device as the convoy drove between the towns of Jereredo and Lego. An armored truck was partially damaged and it’s driver was slightly wounded.

“The peacekeepers targeted today were all busy with going their day-to-day peacekeeping mission, which aims to secure Somalia and serve the Somali population. These cowardly elements that attacked peacekeepers are from the same terror network that just yesterday killed innocent Somalis drinking coffee in Mogadishu. It’s clear that their mission is about taking away life and destroying Somalia,” Ambassador Sidikou said.

The Ambassador reiterated AMISOM’s commitment to the Somali people, saying that such senseless attacks would never weaken AMISOM’s resolve in helping Somalia emerge from its current security challenges.

“As a direct response to Al-Shabaab’s desperate attacks, I am very happy to share with the world the steady improvements that Somalia’s patriotic security agencies are portraying in their day-to-day efforts to defend their country. In Mogadishu today, a covert operation by the Somalia National Intelligence Security Agency (NISA) led to the arrest of 15 terrorists. NISA received tip-offs from concerned citizens that the house – within Bakara market – was being used as a hideout by extremists plotting to harm innocent Somalis.”

SOMALI MEDIA

Twelve die in clashes between two clan militias in Hiran region

15 Oct – Source: RBC – 162 Words

At least 12 are confirmed to have died and more than 40 others injured after militias clashed today in Difow village in Hiran region in Somalia, RBC Radio reports.
The clash is reported to have started early morning today between these two armed clan militias who engaged in direct gun battle.

Health workers told RBC Radio, all wounded persons were admitted to Baladwayne, Hiran’s regional capital, Hospital and are under treatments. These clashes came as a result of land disputes between the two conflicting clans.

Reports also indicate, the confrontation stopped without mediation and local people face fear of possible escalation of these clashes.
Difow village has experienced these confrontations several times in the past where prior negotiations to bring about long lasting reconciliation seemed to have failed.

International partners welcome agreement between the Federal Government and Puntland

14 Oct – Source: Mareeq.com/Radio RBC/Radio Goobjoog – 180 Words

More updates on a man who stabbed to death another man in Kaaraan last night

15 Oct – Source: Dalsan Radio/Mareeq.com – 128 Words

A man from the Diaspora communities who recently returned back into the country killed another young man. The incident took place in front of a mosque at Xaafadda Xaaji Culumo in Mogadishu’s Kaaraan District.

Residents said the killer was under the influence of drugs when he committed the heinous crime. The killer was later apprehended and is in police custody at Kaaraan Police Station. The victim was first rushed to Kaydsaney Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries after he was stabbed.

The victims was called Ahmed Abdi Osole and was a university student and was murdered soon after he left the mosque. The motive of the killing however remains unclear.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Talks due on Somalia border suit

14 Oct – Source: The Nation – 393 Words

Kenya is in The Hague for consultations on a suit filed by Somalia over boundaries in the Indian Ocean. The move came after talks between President Kenyatta and his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to discuss the crisis in New York three weeks ago failed to resolve the matter.

Attorney-General Githu Muigai is leading a team of legal experts to engage the president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Mr Peter Tomka, on preliminary administrative issues regarding the suit. Somalia has sued Kenya for violating her maritime boundaries and is seeking the help of the court to determine the matter.

The hearing date of the case which is seen as a big threat to regional harmony, will be set by the ICJ presidency after administrative issues raised by Kenya are dispensed with.

5 Kenyans still held by Somali captors – police

14 Oct – Source: Capital FM (Kenya) – 306 Words

Deputy Inspector General of Police Samuel Arachi has denied claims that five men Kidnapped by Al-Shabaab militants on Friday last week have been freed. He said there was no communication from their respective families indicating the release.

Arachi however said the rescue operation was on, as well as the hunt for the attackers. A combined team of Kenya Defence Forces and the police have mounted an extensive operation to rescue the five, who were abducted at the coastal town of Lamu. A ground and aerial security operation is also conducted in the vast Boni forest near the Kenya-Somalia border, which is used by the militants as a hideout.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Sierra Leone peacekeepers bound for Somalia quarantined over Ebola.

15 Oct – Source: Reuters – 178 Words

A battalion of 800 Sierra Leone soldiers awaiting deployment as peacekeepers in Somalia has been placed in quarantine after one of its members tested positive for the deadly Ebola virus, military officials said on Tuesday.

The soldiers were due to relieve the West African nation’s contingent already deployed with Somalia’s African Union peacekeeping mission, known as AMISOM.

Sierra Leone soldier tests positive for Ebola but was not among troops deploying to Somalia

14 Oct – Source: Star Tribune – 711 Words

A Sierra Leone soldier has tested positive for Ebola but he is not a member of and had no contact with a battalion of peacekeepers waiting to deploy to Somalia, a government spokesman said Tuesday. The case underscores the precautions being taken to minimize the spread of the deadly disease, and the risks inherent in the movement of people.

Doctors Without Borders, meanwhile, said Tuesday that 16 of its staff members have been infected with Ebola and that nine have died. The toll highlights the high risk of caring for Ebola patients even at well-equipped and properly staffed treatment centers.

Businesses urged to seize investment opportunities in Somaliland

14 Oct – Source: Gov.uk – 508 Words

UK and Somaliland today co-hosted a business forum to promote trade and investment opportunities in Somaliland. The UK and Somaliland rallied businesses to make the most of Somaliland’s rich agricultural and investment opportunities to create a thriving economy and reduce its dependency on aid.

Attendees at today’s conference agreed that whilst the aid relationship will remain important, it will be business and investment that will prove increasingly important in creating jobs, sustainable growth and prosperity in Somaliland.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“The band gained popularity for denouncing al-Shabab though its songs and one of its members, Shine Akhyar, was shot and wounded by suspected militants in Nairobi in 2007.”

Somalia’s Falis Abdi Mohamud in Netherlands asylum bid

14 Oct – Source: BBC News – 308 Words

A popular Somali band has been forced to seek asylum in the Netherlands after Kenya revoked its refugee status, its lead singer has told the BBC. Falis Abdi Mohamud said Kenyan officials seized her refugee card and that of four other band members when they flew out of Nairobi last month.

The band – famous for singing against Islamic extremism – was due to return on 11 October after performing at a peace concert in Amsterdam. Kenya has not commented on their case. Its government has been cracking down on Somali refugees and immigrants, accusing them of harbouring fighters from militant Islamist group al-Shabab.