December 6, 2017 | Morning Headlines
Military Court Hands Death Sentence To Shabaab Militant, Jail Terms To 4 Others
05 December – Source: Goobjoog News – 249 Words
One Al-Shabaab militant was today sentenced to death, while three others were condemned to serve jail terms after a military court found them guilty of involvement in hotel explosions in the city. The convicts Mr. Abdikadir Abukar Shire, Mr. Mohamed Omar Akile, Mr. Daud Mohamed Ali and Mr. Abdullahi Ibrahim Gesey were accused of carrying out bomb attack in three hotels along Makkah Al-Mukaramah road in Mogadishu.
The verdicts was announced by Colonel Hassan Ali Noor Shute, the chairperson of the First Degree Military Court. Military court chairman Col. Hassan Noor Shute said, the court found the four guilty of various charges and handed over the sentences in accordance with the law. “The Court has sentenced Mr. Abdikadir Abukar Shire to death, Mr. Mohamed Omar Akile to a life sentence, Mr. Daud Mohamed Ali to 10 years behind bars, and Mr. Abdullahi Ibrahim Gesey to 2 years in a military prison,” said Colonel Shute.
The Court specifically accused Mr. Shire of being the mastermind behind the killing of innocent civilians in three hotels situated along Makkah Al-Mukaramah road. The general prosecutor presented before written and videos evidence among them one that depicted Mr. Shire lighting-up the car that is used to detonate opposite the Security Ministry. The 4 suspects had to go through different levels of public court hearings, and were granted lawyers to represent them for a fair trial. “The accused can appeal if they are not satisfied with the sentences meted out to them” added Colonel Shute.
Key Headlines
- Military Court Hands Death Sentence To Shabaab Militant Jail Terms To 4 Others (Goobjoog News)
- Somali Govt Forces Carry Out A Security Operation In Afgoye (Shabelle News)
- A Joint And Simultaneous Offensive Can See Al-Shabaab Defeated Says Jubbaland President (Hiiraan Online)
- Gov’t Forces In Gedo In Hunt For Fleeing Al-Shabaab Officers (Dhacdo.com)
- Qatar Commits To Partner Somalia To Sustain Humanitarian Action (Kamupdates)
- Somalia Signs Jeddah Amendment On Illicit Maritime Activity (The Maritime Executive)
- Intensifying Drought In Somalia Heightens Risk Of Severe Famine (PR Newswire)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali Govt Forces Carry Out A Security Operation In Afgoye
05 December – Source: Shabelle News – 109 Words
Somali government forces have launched a security operation in Afgoye, about 30KM northwest of Mogadishu after a renowned elder was injured in the town by gunmen. According to the local residents massive operation have been launched in the area, saying several people were detained by the troops in connection with the Elder’s attack.
The security officials did not give further details on their operation which came after series of insecurity incidents that took place in the district which once served as a main Al-Shabaab stronghold. Somali forces are trying to deal with the frequent attacks by Al-Shabaab militants in Afgoye and restore law and order in the strategic town.
A Joint And Simultaneous Offensive Can See Al-Shabaab Defeated, Says Jubbaland President
05 December – Source: Hiiraan Online – 110 Words
Jubbaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam (Ahmed Madobe) has explained the best approach to quickly crush the militant group Al-Shabaab. Speaking at the Mogadishu security conference, Ahmed Madobe said that a joint and simultaneous military assault against Al-Shabaab strongholds can see the militant group’s capability undermined so swiftly.
Ahmed Madobe noted that the fight against Al-Shabaab needed unity, seriousness, and commitment. He said government and regional administrations’ leaders should work together to develop the Somali national army so that they can be able to take over security responsibility from the African Union troops when their time to leave comes. Ahmed Madobe made the remarks at the high-level Mogadishu conference on security.
Gov’t Forces In Gedo In Hunt For Fleeing Al-Shabaab Officers
05 December – Source: Dhacdo.com – 94 Words
Somali government troops in Gedo have launched an operation aimed at nabbing fleeing Al-Shabaab members who were reportedly spotted in parts of the region. Commander of the 43 Division of the Somali National Army, General Ismail Sahardid said their forces have left for the areas where the militants were seen.
He noted that the increasing US airstrikes are partly attributable to the displacement of the Al-Shabaab militants. Similar comments were recently made by SNA commanders in Hiiraan who cautioned that many Al-Shabaab members were fleeing to the regions of Hiiraan, Galgaduud, and Bari regions.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Qatar Commits To Partner Somalia To Sustain Humanitarian Action
05 December – Source: Kamupdates -359 Words
The Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Peter de Clercq has welcomed the State of Qatar’s commitment to partner with Somalia amid growing calls for a new approach where sustained humanitarian action is complemented by long-term efforts to build the country’s resilience. Mr. de Clercq was addressing participants at the workshop for Qatar Humanitarian and Development partners on the Somalia Resilience and Recovery Framework held in Mogadishu on 2 December 2017.
Over the past decades Somalia has faced a vicious cycle of recurring droughts and protracted conflict that have led to loss of lives, caused mass displacement, and put the lives of millions of Somalis in peril and dependent on life-saving assistance. Since 2011, with the generous contribution by international partners, approximately USD 4.5 billion has been spent on the emergency response alone.
In 2017, over $1.2 billion has been mobilized enabling humanitarians to avert a famine but the causes of Somalia’s fragility remain. “I am encouraged to see the Government initiating discussions to forge a way forward on how to strengthen the structural resilience of Somalia to prevent future humanitarian disasters that undermine the country’s path to recovery and reconstruction,” said Mr. de Clercq.
Somalia Signs Jeddah Amendment On Illicit Maritime Activity
04 December – Source: The Maritime Executive – 213 Words
Somalia has become the 14th signatory to the Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct – the instrument developed and adopted by countries in the Western Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden that has been a key factor in repressing piracy and armed robbery against ships operating in that region.
The Amendment significantly broadened the scope of the Djibouti Code when it was adopted at a high-level meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in January 2017. It covers measures for suppressing a range of illicit activities, including piracy, arms trafficking, trafficking in narcotics, illegal trade in wildlife, illegal oil bunkering, crude oil theft, human trafficking, human smuggling and illegal dumping of toxic waste.
H.E. Mariam Aweis, Minister of Marine Transport and Ports, Federal Government of Somalia, deposited the instrument with IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim at IMO Headquarters in London on December 1. In a resolution adopted last month, the 15-member U.N. Security Council urged Somali authorities to continue passing comprehensive anti-piracy laws, to establish security forces with clear roles and jurisdictions to enforce the laws and to strengthen the capacity of Somali courts to investigate and prosecute pirates. The Security Council also called on U.N. member states to adopt legislation to facilitate prosecution of suspected pirates off the coast of Somalia.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“The failed rains along with ongoing conflict, entrenched poverty, and the lack of a functioning health care system outside the capital city have delivered a crippling blow to extremely vulnerable populations still struggling to recover after the 2011 famine.”
Intensifying Drought In Somalia Heightens Risk Of Severe Famine
05 December – Source: PR Newswire – 577 Words
Governments and other key global partners are convening in Mogadishu today to discuss plans for sustaining humanitarian support for Somalia. In response to a recent alert that parts of Somalia could face severe famine in 2018, Action Against Hunger urged the international community to sustain large-scale levels of assistance to save the lives of acutely malnourished children and meet the urgent survival needs of communities devastated by extreme drought and conflict.
“We face a critical window of opportunity,” said Action Against Hunger’s East Africa Regional Director, Hajir Maalim. “The surge in humanitarian assistance in Somalia this year successfully averted famine, but the drought is intensifying—and expected to worsen in 2018. If current levels of aid are reduced or compromised, Somalia could quickly spiral into catastrophe.”
According to a new report from the Somalia Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU), more than 3.1 million people across Somalia are now in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, and acute malnutrition is a major public health emergency threatening the lives of 1.2 million children.
Four consecutive seasons of failed rains have wiped out crops and livestock, leaving communities without food or income. Rising prices for basic commodities are pushing the poorest families deeper into debt and jeopardizing their ability to meet their daily survival needs. In the past year alone, drought has displaced an estimated 948,00 people from their homes.
Data from Action Against Hunger nutrition assessments in 2017 among displaced populations in Mogadishu indicated that 30 percent of children were acutely malnourished, signifying a very critical emergency. Results from the organization’s assessments in November 2017 in Hudur district in Bakool also indicated a nutrition emergency, with rates of acute malnutrition at 17.2 percent among displaced children.
Action Against Hunger’s field teams have also documented extreme water shortages among communities in Bakool, with many people unable to access more than 7.5 liters of water per day, which is below the minimum humanitarian standard for survival needs in emergencies. When famine was declared in Somalia in 2011 under similar conditions, the world was slow to rally a large-scale response, and an estimated 250,000 people died. Despite significant efforts from the government of Somalia and humanitarian partners over the past year, the extended, severe drought has caused a sharp deterioration in food insecurity and a huge increase in needs.
The failed rains—along with ongoing conflict, entrenched poverty, and the lack of a functioning health care system outside the capital city—have delivered a crippling blow to extremely vulnerable populations still struggling to recover after the 2011 famine. “Famine never happens out of the blue,” said Maalim. “Today, the warning signs are in plain view. We must learn from the past and take action—both now and over the longer term—to prevent the worst.”