May 12, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report.
US Withdraws Nomination Of Ambassador To Somalia
12 May – Source: Al-Jazeera – 341 Words
US President Barack Obama has withdrawn the nomination of the US’ first ambassador to Somalia in 24 years, the White House has said. The administration confirmed on Monday that Katherine Dhanani, a long-time diplomat with deep experience in African affairs, has turned down the nomination for personal reasons. “She is withdrawing for personal reasons,” an administration official told AFP news agency. Dhanani had appeared before the Senate in March to seek confirmation in the post. President Obama nominated her for the post in February, the first since 1991. “Decades of conflict, famine, and oppression led many to label Somalia a ‘failed state’. Today, Somalis are proving those pessimists wrong,” she told a panel.
Abukar Arman, a former Somalia special envoy to the US and a foreign policy analyst, told Al Jazeera that he believed the decision to withdraw the ambassador’s nomination might be more of a political decision. “It would be too reckless from the Obama administration’s point of view to open a full-fledged embassy and assign an American ambassador to operate out of Mogadishu knowing that the front runner of the Democratic Party [Hillary Clinton] has the Benghazi tragedy hovering over her head,” Arman said. “Democrats would consider such adventure as a risky business.”
Although the US never formally severed ties, the embassy in Mogadishu was closed in 1991 as Somalia descended into chaos amid a bloody power struggle among brutal clan chiefs. The darkest chapter in ties came in 1993 when the bodies of US soldiers were dragged through the streets of Mogadishu by a mob after fighters loyal to Mohamed Farah Aideed, who was on the US’ wanted list, shot down two Black Hawk helicopters. Thousands of Somalis and 18 American soldiers died in the ensuing battle between fighters loyal to Aideed and US soldiers.
Key Headlines
- US Withdraws Nomination Of Ambassador To Somalia (Al Jazeera English)
- Hundreds Displaced By Floods In Areas Under Lower Shabelle Region (Goobjoog News)
- Somalia President Meets British Swedish Ambassadors (Garowe Online)
- Measles Vaccination Campaign Kicks Off In Mudug Region (Wacaal Media)
- Somalia Government Sets Date For Hiiraan And Shabelle Conference (Somali Current)
- Somalia To Evacuate Citizens From Yemen In Ceasefire Deal (Horseed Media)
- Puntland deploys hundreds Of Police officers Into Bossaso Amid Intense Security Threats In The Region(Sahal News)
- Step Up War On Terrorists Bishops Tell President Uhuru Kenyatta (Daily Nation)
- Minnesota Terrorist Recruit Back In Custody After Allegedly Violating Conditions Of His Release (Star Tribune)
- Fadumo Dayib Is Risking Her Life To Be Somalia’s First Female Presidential Candidate (Marie Claire)
- A More Potent Threat (Beijing Review)
- A Somali Solution To The Perilous Exodus( New York Times)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Hundreds Displaced By Floods In Areas Under Lower Shabelle Region
12 May – Source: Goobjoog News – 148 Words
Floods from River Shabelle in some areas around Lower Shabelle have affected hundreds of people raising fears of loss of livelihoods. Among the areas affected by the floods are Baladul-Amin and Mareeray localities where many families are homeless after their houses were washed away. Mareeray district officer, Sayid Bale Mayow who spoke to Goobjoog News said that the floods destroyed a variety of crops along the river and that the locals have started fleeing from areas around Shabelle River after heavy rains fell on the the upper parts of the river. Meanwhile, Baladul-Amin assistant district officer for social affairs, Musa Abiikar called on the federal government and NGOs to help the affected people and respond quickly before the situation becomes tragic.
Somalia President Meets British And Swedish Ambassadors
12 May – Source: Garowe Online – 132 Words
Federal Government of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has met with British and Swedish ambassadors to Somalia on Monday, Garowe Online reports. The separate meetings with Britain’s Neil Wigan and Swedish envoy Mikael Lindvall focused on the country’s framework for action, and support for the Mogadishu-based nascent institutions. After Tories landslide victory, Wigan handed over a letter reassuring Somalia of British Prime Minister, David Cameron’s commitment to a bilateral understanding based on cooperation, support and rebuilding. He said, UK wants to provide financial support for the establishment of united and strong national army. Meanwhile, in another meeting, Swedish Ambassador reiterated that the European country would assist Somalia in political development and security sector. Lindvall welcomed the recent endorsement of three national-level commissions-Electoral Board, Boundary Committee and Judicial Service Commission by federal cabinet.
Measles Vaccination Campaign Kicks Off In Mudug Region
12 May – Source: Wacaal Media – 81 Words
A measles vaccination campaign has kicked off in several districts in Mudug region which falls under the Galmudug administration. This comes after several cases of the disease were reported from the area. Galmudug’s Minister for Health Mr. Omar Abdi Mohamed has called on parents to cooperate with the teams that have mobilized to carry out a vaccination campaign to ensure their children are given the jab. Measles is a killer disease but can be prevented by taking the vaccine.
Somalia Government Sets Date For Hiiraan And Shabelle Conference
12 May – Source: Somali Current – 84 Words
Somalia Interior Ministry has set June as the date to kick off Conference aimed at forging regional government for Middle Shabelle and Hiiraan regions. This according to Amin Jessow, deputy chairperson of parliament’s interior committee. In the recent months, the government has been holding separate reconciliations meetings meant to unite tribes in the two regions. The government faces uphill task in implementing Federalism in the country before 2016 elections.
Somalia To Evacuate Citizens From Yemen In Ceasefire Deal
12 May -Source: Horseed Media – 337 Words
A Somali diplomat in the conflict-hit Yemen has said that a preparatory work to remove Somali nationals trapped in the country has started. A five-day ceasefire offered by the Saudi-led air strike coalition is expected to start on Tuesday to allow humanitarian aid to reach civilians and make evacuation of foreign nationals possible. Somalia’s Consular General based in Sana’a Ahmed Osman Mohamed stated they soon start the process of evacuating citizens, especially the vulnerable ones. The evacuation will be carried out by the International organisation for Migration (IOM) after the Federal government of Somalia had requested the organization’s assistance. “A plane will arrive in Sana’a on 17th of this month and will be able to carry 145 people, We will evacuate as many people we can during the five days of the truce,” Ahmed Osman Mohamed said in an interview with the BBC Somali Service. Since the violence in Yemen erupted, more than 50 Somali have lost their lives.
Somalia’s federal government has been criticized for delaying to speed up the process for evacuating stranded citizens while some small nations have gone on to seek from other nations like China and India help moving their nationals from the strife-torn country. With the government’s evacuation plans failing, thousands of citizens took the risk of travelling by small boats to reach Somalia’s shores. Though the exact number of Somalis stuck in Yemen is unknown, hundreds of people in Somalia and abroad have expressed concern about loved ones in the middle-eastern country. Saudi Arabia unleashed a series of air raids against the Houthis rebels onMarch 26 in an attempt to restore power to embattled Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a close ally to Riyadh. The embattled president fled Aden to the Saudi capital city of Riyadh after the Houthis pushed into Aden, where he had sought to set up a temporary governmental operation after the Shiite rebels seized control of Yemen’s capital Sanaa.
Puntland Deploys Hundreds Of Police Officers Into Bossaso Amid Intense Security Threats In The Region
11 May – Source: Sahal News – 161 Words
Puntland government in north eastern Somalia has deployed hundreds of police forces into the commercial hub in Bari region. At least two hundred and fifty police officers who have just wrapped up training in Puntland’s Qardho training camp were deployed into the port town of Bossaso, reinforcing the security of the town and the region at large. Senior police officers have welcomed these battalions into the town before addressing journalists. Speaking to journalists in Bossaso, Puntland police chief Mohamed Saed Jaqanaf stated that this new officers will take part in tough security measures to intensify the security of Puntland’s major port town. These police officers numbering two hundred and fifty have wrapped up three months of training in main training camp in Qardho, Karkaar region. This comes after Al-Shabaab militants have launched guerilla attacks on police forces in Bossaso and its outskirts.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Step Up War On Terrorists, Bishops Tell President Uhuru Kenyatta
12 May – Source: Daily Nation – 770 Words
Religious leaders from the mainstream churches on Monday put pressure on President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government to improve security. At an emotional memorial service for the 142 students who were killed by terrorists during an attack on the Garissa University College last month, the clerics, who included John Cardinal Njue of the Catholic Church and Archbishop Eliud Wabukala of the Anglican Church, also called for unity between Christians and Muslims. They spoke in Nairobi in the wake of recent terrorist attacks, which have targeted Christians. Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the killings. As the clerics were leading prayers on the atrocity, the worst since the Westgate massacre of September 2013, Zombe AIC Girls Secondary was closed down only hours after suspected terrorists were said to have targeted the institution run by the African Independent Church.
Shots were fired on Sunday nights as police sought to flush out five men suspected to have been planning an attack. The school in Kitui County sent students home as the local police boss said security had been beefed up in other institutions within the region as the five suspects remained at large. During Monday’s memorial at Ufungamano House, Archbishop Wabukala said the 142 students who were killed by terrorists should not be forgotten. He proposed that the attack be commemorated every year in May. While calling on the authorities to ensure security for every Kenyan, the Most Rev Wabukala regretted that the country had not learnt any lessons from past terrorist attacks. “We should not continue to condone the culture of short memory, this (attack) is an event which should not be forgotten,” he said. “Those who lost loved ones should get justice.” He regretted that while the police arrest terrorism suspects, the conclusion of the cases against them was not always known to the public. “Justice should be seen to be realised,” he said.
Minnesota Terrorist Recruit Back In Custody After Allegedly Violating Conditions Of His Release
12 May – Source: Star Tribune – 250 Words
Abdullahi Yusuf, a Somali-American who pleaded guilty to conspiring to support terrorists in the Middle East, has been taken into custody for allegedly violating conditions while living in a St. Paul halfway house, according to court documents filed Monday. Yusef, a student at Inver Grove Community College, drew national attention after a federal judge decided to place him in a halfway house and provide counseling for him rather than hold him in custody while awaiting sentencing.
Yusuf’s alleged violations were not detailed in court records. After Yusuf pleaded guilty earlier this year to conspiracy charges, Chief U.S. District Judge Michael Davis agreed to a proposal by his attorneys to enroll the 18-year-old man in Heartland Democracy’s program designed to reshape the attitudes of troubled youth, with special emphasis on Somali-American teens who feel disenfranchised. The move was hailed by counterterrorism experts as a novel idea and was viewed as a test case on whether such persons could be rehabilitated. In May 2014, Yusuf was stopped from boarding a flight by FBI agents at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Fadumo Dayib Is Risking Her Life To Be Somalia’s First Female Presidential Candidate
11 May – Source: Marie Claire – 862 Words
When Fadumo Dayib announced her bid to run for President of Somalia on national TV last year, people thought she was crazy. Somalia’s violent history and the life-threatening conditions that the country’s politicians and activists face on a daily basis makes Dayib’s choice to run for office— especially as a woman in a patriarchal culture—a brave one. “People just can’t understand why I would do such a thing,” Dayib says. Somalia’s 2016 elections will be the first democratic elections held since 1967, when President Abdirashid Ali Shermarke rose to power. He was assassinated two years later and the Somali Army quickly took control, declaring a military coup d’état. A civil war followed in the early 1990s, as well as severe famine and political upheaval. A federal, democratic president was finally elected by the Parliament in 2012 to replace a series of transitional governments. And if all goes according to Vision 2016, Somalia’s citizens will officially elect its first democratic President next year.
If anyone can become Somalia’s first female president, it is this articulate, highly successful Finnish woman of Somali origin. Born to illiterate Somali parents in the mid-1970s, Dayib had a turbulent childhood full of financial difficulties. Her single mother, who often had to go to great lengths to make ends meet, mainly raised her. But despite the disadvantages she faced early on in life, her résumé boasts an impressive list of credentials: After receiving several degrees in international public health, Dayib is currently a MC/MPA Mason fellow at Harvard and a doctoral candidate with a focus on women, peace, and security at the University of Helsinki. She also has over a decade of experience working for the UN. An especially notable feat considering Dayib didn’t become fully literate until about the age of 14. “Throughout my childhood, I was constantly moving back and forth between Kenya and Somalia. At the age of 11, I really started to concentrate on my studies and I fully became literate at 14, having less than five years of primary schooling,” she says. At around 17 years old, she and her two younger siblings moved to Finland as refugees, and there Dayib was able to build take advantage of academic opportunities and build a successful career. Dayib’s husband and four children are still based in Finland today.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“Apart from local Somali militants, the group has also been active in attracting foreign extremists. Muslims account for 10 percent of the Kenyan population. Military intervention in Somalia and fighting against al-Shabaab have resulted in criticism by Muslims in Kenya. Al-Shabaab is recruiting militants heavily in northeast Kenya bordering Somalia.”
A More Potent Threat
12 May – Source: Beijing Review – 1, 015 Words
The recent one-two punch of attacks of al-Shabaab and other terrorist groups on the African continent shows the land is rising to become another major battleground in the war against terrorism. The al-Qaeda-linked group al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the killing of nearly 150 people at northeast Kenya’s Garissa University College on April 2, saying it was retaliation for Kenya’s role in military campaigns against them in neighboring Somalia since 2011. Over the past few years, al-Shabaab has launched a string of attacks on targets in Kenya, with the tragic incident at Garissa University College being the deadliest to date. In the most notable one before the Garissa incident, al-Shabaab militants killed 61 people at Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi in September 2013.
Al-Shabaab emerged from war-torn Somalia and is the East African branch of al-Qaeda. It has been designated as a terrorist organization by many countries including the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and the United Arab Emirates. After the Somali Government collapsed in 1991 in a civil war, a number of Islamic groups in the country established the Union of Islamic Courts and controlled national capital Mogadishu in 2006. Al-Shabaab, established in 2004, was a radical faction of the Union of Islamic Courts. After the union was defeated by Ethiopian forces, al-Shabaab did not stop fighting and continued to recruit Islamic extremists from both home and abroad. When Ethiopian troops withdrew from Somalia in 2010, al-Shabaab already had 10,000 militants and controlled central and southern parts of Somalia.
However, since the African Union (AU) started fighting against the group in 2011, al-Shabaab has been retreating in defeat. Most notably, Somalia’s peace process made significant progress in 2012. That year, a provisional constitution was enacted and a new federal government led by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was established, ending the 21 years of anarchy in Somalia. Presently, al-Shabaab only controls some rural and remote areas in central and south Somalia. It mostly fights back international forces through terrorist attacks in AU countries such as Kenya whose troops are the main strength of AU forces fighting against al-Shabaab. However, the attacks have incurred more retaliation from Kenya. For example, the Garissa attack has prompted immediate airstrikes against al-Shabaab targets by Kenyan Air Forces. The fight between Kenya and al-Shabaab will continue.
“Addressing the root causes of unauthorized migration is one solution. While some fled civil war, many more of those who have died were simply seeking a better life. About two-thirds of Somali youths want to leave the country because they are unable to find work; in south-central Somalia, which includes the capital, the figure is as high as 87 percent. It is important to identify the communities at highest risk of choosing illegal migration and provide them the livelihoods they so desperately seek.”
A Somali Solution To The Perilous Exodus
11 May – Source: New York Times – 910 Words
Somalia — We were sitting in a crammed cafe in the sweltering heat of a Mogadishu afternoon. The mishmash of conversation, clinking plates and loud horns from the street outside forced us to speak loudly across our plates of rice. A 22-year-old man I will call Liban, to protect his identity, sat across from me. Gangly and bursting with frenetic energy, he was telling me of his plans to cross the Mediterranean Sea to enter Italy illegally. The topic came up casually during a conversation about a youth entrepreneurship summit I was organizing that week. He told me about a friend who introduced him to a fixer last year, who then connected him with a smuggler. He said his next step was to get together the last portion of the $4,000 that he would pay for his journey.
He pulled out a notebook and drew me a map. The plan was straightforward: He would cross the Ethiopia-Somalia border and meet with smugglers in Ethiopia. They would take him across the porous Ethiopian border with Sudan and on to Khartoum. From there, he would begin his journey into Libya. In Tripoli, he would board a boat and cross the Mediterranean to the Italian island of Lampedusa. Sweden was his final destination. His cousin lived in Stockholm and promised to house him and help him find a job. He circled Sweden emphatically. When I looked down, I couldn’t help but notice the crammed scribbles of quadratic equations on the opposite page. He was in his final year at university, hoping to become an engineer.
Two years later, I’m not sure where Liban is. I know he finished his degree in mathematics and is no longer in Somalia’s capital. But whenever I read about the horrific capsizing of boats loaded with hundreds of migrants off the coast of Italy, I think of our lunch that day. I can’t help seeing an image of him in a rickety boat out at sea, crammed in with hundreds of others like cattle, sweltering under an unforgiving sun. I imagine him gaunt from dehydration, perhaps witnessing his fellow passengers turning on one another, or worst of all, surrounded by screaming, struggling migrants as their boat founders. People often ask me what drives young men like Liban to take a journey that might very well lead to death. Are the privations of the journey, the abuse of traffickers and the risk of drowning worth the distant hope of finding a job as a janitor in Stockholm or picking tomatoes in southern Italy? Why would a young man, a university graduate, chance everything?
TOP TWEETS
@amisomsomalia: A meeting between AMISOM and its partners has begun today in Nairobi, to discuss the of strengthening Civil- Military Cooperation in #Somalia
@DalsanFM_SOM: #Somalia BREAKING: more than 25#Puntland regional state parliament members sign motion against the cabinet.
@Alafrangi: Iyad Madani: We work within a humanitarian framework at #OIC and saw success in #Somalia and#Indonesia #AMF15
@EdPaiceARI: #Somalia elections a definite for 2016, says president, but one person one vote unlikely http://bit.ly/1Hega0r
@SalahOsman0: Moving forward: After 24 yrs of conflicts The biggest Fuel Depot in #Somalia is under reconstruction now.#Mogadishu
@ICRC_Africa: #Somalia‘s Red Crescent Society pres: Biggest challenge is providing consistent health servicehttp://bit.ly/SmRc6
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Residents of Hodan district attend a community policing meeting convened by AMISOM Police at Hodan district offices on 10th May, 2015. Photo: AMISOM