December 15, 2017 | Morning Headlines

Main Story

U.S. Military Orders Additional Probe Into August Somalia Raid

14 December – Source: Reuters – 266 Words

The head of U.S. forces in Africa has ordered an additional investigation into an August raid in Somalia by Somali and American forces, the U.S military said on Thursday. Last month, the U.S. military said it did not kill any civilians when it accompanied Somali forces on a deadly raid in the village of Bariire.At the time, it described the dead as “enemy combatants” and that they were members of al Shabaab, the al-Qaeda linked insurgent group. However, eyewitnesses have told Reuters that 10 civilians were killed and that the military had been drawn into a local clan conflict.

In a statement, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) said it had referred the incident to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service after media reports alleged misconduct by U.S. personnel to “ensure a full exploration of the facts given the gravity of the allegations.” “AFRICOM takes all allegations of misconduct seriously and will leverage the expertise of appropriate organizations to ensure such allegations are fully and impartially investigated,” the statement said.

The United States has stepped up operations in Somalia this year after President Donald Trump loosened restrictions on the military’s operations in March. A Navy SEAL was killed in Somalia in May, the first U.S. combat casualty there since Somali militiamen shot down U.S. Black Hawk helicopters in 1993. The United States has also ramped up its use of air strikes, conducting twice as many strikes this year as last year. Somalia has been riven by civil war since 1991. It now has a weak, internationally-backed government, supported by African peacekeepers.

Key Headlines

U.S. Military Orders Additional Probe Into August Somalia Raid (Reuters)
Somaliland’s New President Announces Members Of His Cabinet (Radio Dalsan)
Two Soldiers Killed In An Armed Clash In Mogadishu (Dhacdo.com)
Turkey Condemns Attack On Somali Police Academy (Anadolu Agency)
Official Source: Saudi Arabia Condemns Suicide Bombing Attack inside Police Training Camp In Mogadishu (Saudi Press Agency)
EXCLUSIVE-U.S. Suspends Aid To Somalia’s Battered Military Over Graft (Reuters)

NATIONAL MEDIA

Somaliland’s New President Announces Members Of His Cabinet

14 December – Source: Radio Dalsan – 121 Words

A day after officially taking over power, Somaliland’s new President Muse Bihi Abdi, announced his cabinet members. The appointed cabinet members comprise of 23 Ministers and Assistant Ministers, including some who served in the former President Silanyo’s government.

Spokesman of Somaliland’s state house Mr. Hussein Ige Deyr, read the list of the new cabinet members, and among the most notable members are Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Sa’ad Ali Shire, who held the same post in the previous government, Minister of Internal Security Mr. Mohamed Kahin Ahmed, Minister of Planning and National Development Mr. Awale Ibrahim Shirwa’ and Minister of Defense Mr. Ahmed Yussuf Abdalla. President Abdi and his new cabinet are expected to promote development and good governance in Somaliland.

Two Soldiers Killed In An Armed Clash In Mogadishu

14 December – Source: Dhacdo.com – 120 Words

At least two soldiers attached to the National Intelligence Agency (NISA) are confirmed dead in an armed clash in Mogadishu’s Kaaraan district overnight. The clashes erupted after the security forces attacked the home of former NISA officers organized as a clan militia, who also killed two NISA officers in the past month.

Security officers said the clashes erupted after the rogue officers refused to surrender sparking a deadly clash that saw two of their colleagues killed. Three others were arrested while several others managed to escape. The former NISA soldiers went into hiding after killing two soldiers and confiscating their weapons. They were hiding in Kaaraan where they were finally found. The incident comes amid increased clashes involving security forces.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Turkey Condemns Attack On Somali Police Academy

14 December – Source: Anadolu Agency – 222 Words

Turkey on Thursday denounced a suicide attack on the Police Academy in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu that claimed the lives of at least 17 people. “We strongly condemn this vicious terrorist attack that aims to undermine the security and stability of Somalia,” said the Foreign Ministry on its website. “We wish God’s mercy upon those who lost their lives in the attacks, convey our condolences to the families who lost their loved ones, and wish a speedy recovery to the wounded. “Turkey will continue to stand by the Somali people and its Government in the fight against terrorism and support international efforts to this end.”

The suicide bomber infiltrated police checkpoints and blew himself up on Thursday amid parade rehearsal for Dec. 20, the anniversary of Somalia’s national police force. “We can confirm that at least 17 people were killed and 17 others wounded after a suicide attack targeted General Kahiye Police Academy,” Abdullahi Hamid, state minister for the office of the prime minister, told local media.

Somali militant group al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack. Thursday’s suicide attack came two months after a truck bomb attack in central Mogadishu that killed more than 400 people. In September Turkey opened its largest overseas military training academy in Mogadishu, a facility with the capacity to train more than 1,500 troops at a time.

Official Source: Saudi Arabia Condemns Suicide Bombing Attack inside Police Training Camp
in Mogadishu

14 December – Source: Saudi Press Agency – 79 Words

An official source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s strong condemnation of the suicide bombing attack inside a police training camp in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.

The source offered the Kingdom’s condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and people of the Federal Republic of Somalia, wishing a speedy recovery to the wounded. The official source reaffirmed the Kingdom’s solidarity with the Federal Republic of Somalia against terrorism and extremism.

OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE

“The weakness of Somali forces has deadly consequences. The insurgency is striking with ever larger and more deadly attacks in the capital Mogadishu and major towns. A truck bomb killed more than 500 people in October and a suicide bomber killed at least 18 at a police academy on Thursday.”

EXCLUSIVE-U.S. Suspends Aid To Somalia’s Battered Military Over Graft

14 December – Source: Reuters – 1309 Words

The United States is suspending food and fuel aid for most of Somalia’s armed forces over corruption concerns, a blow to the military as African peacekeepers start to withdraw this month. African Union (AU) troops landed in Mogadishu a decade ago to fight al Shabaab Islamist militants and Somali forces are supposed to eventually take over their duties. But the United States, which also funds the 22,000-strong peacekeeping force, has grown frustrated that successive governments have failed to build a viable national army. Diplomats worry that without strong Somali forces, al Shabaab could be reinvigorated, destabilise the region and offer a safe haven to other al Qaeda-linked militants or Islamic State fighters.

The U.S. suspension of aid came after the Somali military repeatedly failed to account for food and fuel, according to private correspondence between the U.S. and Somali governments seen by Reuters. “During recent discussions between the United States and the Federal Government of Somalia, both sides agreed that the Somali National Army had failed to meet the standards for accountability for U.S. assistance,” a State Department official told Reuters last week, on condition of anonymity. “We are adjusting U.S. assistance to SNA units, with the exception of units receiving some form of mentorship, to ensure that U.S. assistance is being used effectively and for its intended purpose,” the official said.

The U.S. suspension comes at a sensitive time. The AU force – with troops from Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda – is scheduled to leave by 2020. The first 1,000 soldiers will go by the end of 2017. The State Department official said Washington would continue to support small, Somali special forces units mentored by U.S. personnel and would work with the Somali government to agree criteria that could restore support to other units. “It is true that some concerns have been raised on how support was utilised and distributed. The federal government is working to address these,” Somali Minister of Defence Mohamed Mursal told Reuters.

Documents sent from the U.S. Mission to Somalia to the Somali government show U.S. officials are increasingly frustrated that the military is unable to account for its aid. The documents paint a stark picture of a military hollowed out by corruption, unable to feed, pay or arm its soldiers – despite hundreds of millions of dollars of support. Between May and June, a team of U.S. and Somali officials visited nine army bases to assess whether the men were receiving food the United States provides for 5,000 soldiers. “We did not find the expected large quantities of food at any location … there was no evidence of consumption (except at two bases),” the U.S. team wrote to the Somali government.