December 9, 2015 | Morning Headlines

Main Story

Somali President And UN Envoy For Somalia Co-host Seventh High-Level Partnership Forum

08 December – Source: UNSOM – 437 Words

The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General (SRSG) for Somalia, Nicholas Kay co-hosted the Seventh High-Level Partnership Forum (HLPF) in the Somali capital of Mogadishu on Tuesday. The December HLPF brought together a broad range of Somali stakeholders and 29 international delegations with more than 250 participants. The event was the first HLPF to be attended by all of Somalia’s regional presidents.

The HLPF reviewed overall progress over the past six months against the New Deal Somali Compact and its five Peace- and State-Building Goals. The HLPF represents a critical point at which to review such progress, address the challenges, identify possible gaps, and agree on what must be accomplished ahead of the Ministerial HLPF scheduled to be held in Istanbul in February 2016.

“Today we reviewed Somalia’s substantial progress against the New Deal Compact. We must consider what will make the most significant difference most quickly. Security is of course key, but we must build security and stability in Somalia not just through military action, but by investing in initiatives that will provide jobs, income and meaning to young Somalis. The promise of Somalia is manifested in our young people and we must give them the future they deserve,” said the President.

“The New Deal in Somalia is the most advanced, the most comprehensive of all agreements ever made by the international community and a fragile country,” said SRSG Kay. “The progress is tremendous, the achievements impressive, but the work is not yet done.” An update was provided on the progress made in determining the 2016 electoral process, following a series of regional consultative forums held across Somalia. A decision that sets out the electoral process, accompanied by an implementation plan, will be presented to the HLPF in Istanbul next February.

Progress in the security sector, including troop integration and improvements made to troop payment and registration, was discussed. The need for agreement on the national security architecture by the time of the Istanbul meeting was agreed. Financial governance and economic recovery were highlighted, in particular the recent positive findings by the International Monetary Fund regarding Somalia’s economic growth.

The importance of revitalising and rebuilding Somalia’s infrastructure was addressed, as was the critical nature of tangible public service delivery. An update was provided on the status of the New Deal Compact Review ahead of the HLPF in Istanbul, which will establish the process and principles that will guide identification of the post-2016 aid architecture. Somalia and its partners reaffirmed their commitment of continuing their partnership towards a peaceful, stable and prosperous Somalia beyond 2016.

Key Headlines

Somali President And UN Envoy For Somalia Co-host Seventh High-Level Partnership Forum (UNSOM)
Ceasefire Makes Way In Galkayo As Residents Return (Garowe Online)
Surrendered Pro-ISIL Al-Shabaab Commander Flown To Mogadishu (Shabelle News)
After Deadly Fighting Two Rival Regional Leaders Share Flight For Mogadishu Trip (Hiiraan Online)
2 American Fighters Defect In Somalia Amid Tensions (Associated Press)
Internal Rifts ‘Do Not Mean The End’ Of Terror Group Al-Shabaab (Deutsche Welle)
Somali Piracy: Redrawing The Boundaries (Forbes Business)
Fire At Grand Forks Somali Restaurant Follows Apparent Nazi Symbol Vandalism (Grand Forks Herald )
16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence: Supporting Somalia To Empower Women (Hiiraan Online)

NATIONAL MEDIA

Ceasefire Makes Way In Galkayo As Residents Return

08 December – Source: Garowe Online-105 Words

Ceasefire is holding and displaced residents, mainly in the vast north, began returning to their homes. On the main highway leading from nearby districts of Burtinle, Ba’adweyn and Harfo, the Garowe Online team observed convoys of vehicles heading back to Galkayo. Returnees piled their belongings onto vehicles in revived hope of stability and reprieve from the conflict that claimed lives of at least 30 people:“Actually many people have craved for this peace. And today a number of families were on the road with their households heading back to Galkayo,” observed a Garowe Online correspondent, who has extensively covered the Galkayo chaos.

Surrendered Pro-ISIL Al-Shabaab Commander Flown To Mogadishu

08 December – Source: Shabelle News – 127 Words

An American-born Al-Shabaab commander, Abdul Malik John, who surrendered himself to Somali National Army (SNA) and African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) forces near Barawe on Sunday, was flown to Mogadishuon Tuesday. Malik, 31, from Maryland, USA, said he decided to leave Al-Shabaab two months ago and defected last week fearing for his life. He gave up himself to Somali troops and AMISOM in Barawe town. John said he was one of the Al-Shabaab commanders, who recently pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) of Syria and Iraq. This caused a dispute among the group’s top leadership. Malik, who joined Al-Shabaab in 2012 and took part in several attacks in the country and Kenya, is now held in Somali government custody in Mogadishu for interrogation.

After Deadly Fighting, Two Rival Regional Leaders Share Flight For Mogadishu Trip

08 December – Source: Hiiraan Online- 201 Words

As the plane carrying Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke and his delegation touched down at the Mogadishu airport on Monday, two men who have separate stands on the Galkayo clashes emerged with smiles — Abdiweli Gaas and Abdikarim Guled.Thanks to the recent peace deal, the goodwill gesture by two leaders, presidents of Puntland and Galmudug states, was most reassuring. Only recently, forces from their states battled for the control of the central Somali town of Galkayo in deadly clashes that left more than 30 people dead.

On Tuesday, the two leaders declared, upon alighting from the plane, that they were peace with each other. One week ago, the two presidents could not share a platform and utterly ignored calls for an inclusive meeting to end the hostilities. This hard stance really complicated the mediation efforts spearheaded by the Premier. On Saturday, however, the two presidents signed a ceasefire deal brokered by the PM. The truce has taken into effect already with the two sides withdrawing their troops from the troubled town. The two leaders arrived to attend Somali government-sponsored high level National Consultative Forum that kicked off on Tuesday.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

2 American Fighters Defect In Somalia Amid Tensions

08 December – Source: Associated Press – 559 Words

The defections of two fighters, an American and a U.S. resident, from Somalia’s Islamic militant rebels highlight tensions within Al-Shabaab over whether it should remain affiliated to Al-Qaida or switch allegiance to the Islamic State group, according to an Al-Shabaab commander.

Foreign fighters are being alienated and feel trapped in Somalia over suspicions that they are plotting to switch allegiance to the Islamic State group fighting in Syria and Iraq, Abu Mohammed, a military commander with Al-Shabaab told The Associated Press Tuesday. The “ambitions” by some foreign fighters in Al-Shabaab to join the Islamic State group had led to them to be isolated within the Somali group and even face death at the hands of their erstwhile comrades-in-arms.

An American who had been fighting with Al-Shabaab left the rebels and was arrested by Somalia’s security forces on Monday. Abdimalik Jones, who said he is from San Diego, was arrested in the southern port of Barawe, said African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) spokesman, Col. Paul Njuguna. Jones claimed he fled Al-Shabaab because of rifts within the group, said an official with Somali security forces who insisted on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the press. Jones is missing the index finger of his right hand, said the official.

Internal Rifts ‘Do Not Mean The End’ Of Terror Group Al-Shabaab

08 December – Source: Deutsche Welle – 872 Words

Two foreign fighters of terror group al-Shabab have given themselves up in Somalia. This follows a warning from Al-Shabaab saying any fighters who switch allegiance from al Qaeda to “Islamic State” would be killed. A man from the US state of Minnesota who joined Somali terror militia group Al-Shabaab over seven years ago has handed himself over to authorities in Somalia.

The man, who was just 17 when he left the US to join al-Shabab, had been active in posting jihadist rhetoric online and was a vocal support of the “Islamic State” (IS) group. Terrorism experts believe the man, who was born in Somalia, may have decided to give himself up because Al-Shabaab has been targeting people within its ranks who have been supporting IS. On Tuesday there was news of a second defection, this time by a man from San Diego. Deutsche Welle spoke to Laura Hammond from SOAS University in London to find out more about the significance of the defections.

DW: There seems to be a lot happening among the three terrorist groups, Al-Qaeda,”Islamic State” (IS) and Al-Shabaab. A section of Al-Shabab claims affiliation to Al Qaeda while others claim affiliation to IS. A member of Al-Shabaab has just handed himself in to the Somali government. What does this tell us about Al-Shabaab. Could there be a rift within the group?

Laura Hammond: I think there is some kind of rift which is not necessarily new. There’s the rift between those who would like to see more of a link to al Qaeda, to the wider, transnational networks, and on the other side there are those who are focused on the struggle within Somalia and are less concerned about an international jihad. That’s one rift and then there is another one apparently between those who would like to have an alliance with al Qaeda and those who would like to have an alliance with IS more broadly.

DW: What does this mean exactly, this internal fighting? Does it tell us the group has been weakened?

Laura Hammond: I don’t think the group is necessarily weakened. These kinds of tensions and splits have been going on for quite a long time within the movement. It tends not to have a huge impact overall, they are still able to pose a significant threat inside Somalia. This does not mean the end of Al-Shabaab, it’s not disintegrating. But the tensions between the leaders of different factions within Al-Shabaab limit their effectiveness in the sense that they are not completely unified around a central goal.

Somali Piracy: Redrawing The Boundaries

08 December – Source: Forbes Business – 245 Words

From 1 December 2015, the shipping industry’s ‘high risk area’ off Somalia was reduced in size. The redrawing of the boundaries, announced in October 2015, followed a significant drop in armed attacks and hijacks in the north-western Indian Ocean. Somali piracy in 2015 reached around one percent of the levels seen at its height in 2011. Yet a month after the announcement was made, the pirates reminded the industry of their continued potency, reportedly seizing a fishing vessel in the Indian Ocean more than 200 nautical miles from the coast. While the reduction of the high risk area was designed to symbolise the success of counter-piracy measures, those opposed argue that reducing security measures could encourage groups to launch more such attacks.

After all, the situation onshore in Somalia, which enabled the groups to operate their unique ‘hijack-for-ransom’ model, has not dramatically changed. The reduction of the high risk area followed pressure from regional states, which pointed to the drop in activity and lack of high-profile hijacks since 2012, rather than the dismantling of pirate capability and economic advances within Somalia. Now the shipping industry and navies face difficult choices. Since mid-2011, a combination of co-ordinated naval patrols and improved ship security measures, including the use of armed guards, has effectively contained Somali pirate groups offshore. Yet maintaining these measures is expensive, particularly at a time of global economic pressures and emerging naval commitments elsewhere.

Fire At Grand Forks Somali Restaurant Follows Apparent Nazi Symbol Vandalism

08 December – Source: Grand Forks Herald – 154 Words

An early morning fire heavily damaged Juba Coffee House, a popular Somali restaurant on South Washington Street. Grand Forks Fire Department responded to the call at about 2:06 a.m. at 2017 S. Washington St. Firefighters brought the blaze under control within 20 minutes, Battalion Chief Rob Corbett said. No one was injured at the scene.

The estimated damage is about $90,000 to the building and contents, he said. About 17 firefighters were on the scene. The fire was the second incident at the business in the past few days. Grand Forks Police Department is investigating an apparent hate crime that occurred overnight Thursday, when someone painted graffiti on the exterior wall of the building. The graffiti included what appears to be an SS, in the style of an old Nazi Germany symbol, above the painted words, “go home.” Authorities have not determined whether the incidents are related. The investigations are continuing.

OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE

“With elections due, 2016 will be a crucial year for Somalia and represents an opportunity to push women’s empowerment forward. Women have played an active and vibrant role in the discussions that have taken place across Somalia on the electoral process for 2016,”- The Right Honourable Baroness Anelay

16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence: Supporting Somalia To Empower Women

08 December – Source: Hiiraan Online – 716 Words

The 25th of November was the International Day to Eliminate Violence against Women and the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign. I took this opportunity to meet leading women from the British Somali Diaspora, to reinforce the UK’s commitment to women’s empowerment in Somalia and to hear their views on the challenges faced by women, both in Somalia and in the Diaspora community here.

The women I met displayed an unwavering commitment to enabling women and girls, both in Somalia and the UK, to have a future free from violence. They raised a number of important issues and concerns during our discussion. As the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, I share their concerns and am committed to ensuring that Somalia remains at the forefront of the UK’s efforts on Women, Peace and Security.

The need for further discussion about how we respond to female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK was apparent from our conversation. We continue to work across the UK government to ensure that its policies on FGM are in the best interest of the women and girls they are trying to protect. We have launched a £3 million national FGM Prevention Programme to improve the way in which the NHS responds to the health needs of girls and women who have undergone FGM, and to support prevention. However, it was evident that we still have work to do to ensure that those who have been subjected to the practice do not feel stigmatised or re-victimised.