18 Nov 2011 – Daily Monitoring Report
Key Headlines:
- President Sharif met with his Sudanese counterpart (Source: Radio Mogadishu Radio Bar-kulan Kulmiye SONNA)
- MPs distribute aid to IDPs in Banadir (Source: Radio Bar-kulan)
- Al Shabaab fighters sentenced to various jail terms in Somali prisons (Source: Radio Mogadishu Somalia Report)
- Kenya army in new battles as advance resumes (Source: Daily Nation)
- Sudan reiterates support for strong stable Somalia (Source: Sudan News Agency SUNA)
- Somali Islamist rebels battle AU troops in Mogadishu (Source: AFP)
- China says military action not final solution to Somali piracy (Source: Xinhua)
- AU seeks for more troops in Somalia (Source: Daily Nation)
SOMALI MEDIA
President Sharif met with his Sudanese counterpart
18 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Radio Bar-kulan, Kulmiye, SONNA – 111 words
The president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed met with his Sudanese counterpart, Omar Al-Bashir in Khartoum and discussed diplomatic relations between the two governments. The meeting between the two presidents in Khartoum is intended assess and improve diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The president and his delegations is expected to return home after they complete their diplomatic mission, which started in Nairobi where president Sharif met his Ugandan and Kenyan counterparts.
MPs distribute aid to IDPs in Banadir
18 Nov – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 102 words
Members of Parliament yesterday distributed aid to IDPs at Bulsho refugee camp in Wardigley district, Banadir region. The effort was spearheaded by some MPs who funded the food distribution drive. The food distributed included rice, sugar and flour, said Amir Mohamed Jaketi one of the MPs who was involved in the distribution of the aid.
Al Shabaab fighters sentenced to various jail terms in Somali prisons
18 Nov – Source: Radio Mogadishu, Somalia Report – 67 words
The military court has sentenced al Shabaab fighters to different sentences including the death penalty. Other al Shabaab suspects were released after the prosecution failed to prove their case. Judge Hassan Mohamed Hussein “Mungab” issued a death sentence to Tahliil Isse Hayow who was found guilty of murdering businesswomen around ex-control Afgoye in Mogadishu, while the other three were each sentenced to a one year prison term.
Fresh fighting reported in Mogadishu
18 Nov – Source: Shabelle, Radio Bar-kulan and Hiiraan Online – 46 words
Heavy fighting between al Shabaab and TFG forces backed by AMISOM has been reported in Yaqshid and Heliwaa districts in Mogadishu. The number of casualties in the fighting is not yet known. Officials have not yet commented on the fighting in Yaqshid and Heliwaa districts
http://www.shabelle.net/
Puntland government releases journalist on bail
18 Nov – Source: Raxanreeb, NUSJOS – 405 words
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), the Media Association of Puntland (MAP) and Somali journalists in Nairobi welcome the release of Mr. Mahad Abdi Ali, a Somali Chanel reporter from custody by the Puntland government and demand the immediate withdrawal of the decision to suspended the two television networks and call for to guarantee the safety and the security of Somali journalists in Puntland.
Mr. Mahad Abdi Ali was released on Wednesday afternoon around 4:30pm from Garowe Central Police Station on bail granted by our affiliate, Media Association of Puntland, after the Puntland police raided the houses of , Mr. Mahad Abdi Ali, Reporter and Cameraman and Ms Saido-Kiin Ahmed Jama, a reporter, both Somali Chanel Reporters in Garowe. (…) The raid comes after the Puntland Ministry of information issued a warning statement against the Television networks, accusing them to have violated the ban.
http://www.raxanreeb.com/?p=
Three Somali Sheikhs arrested over militia link
18 Nov – Source: Somali National news Agency SONNA, Standard Media – 122 words
Three Somali Sheikhs have been arrested at the Hagadera refugee camp over allegations they are sympathisers of al Shabaab.
The three were interrogated at Dadaab police station on Thursday. They were accused of allegedly preaching extremism at the refugee camp. Police said they were picked up from Block C of the camp in the ongoing operation to crack down on al Shabaab militants.
“We acted on intelligence that the three were either followers of the militant group or sympathisers. They are undergoing interrogation,” said a senior officer at the province. Authorities gave refugees at the Dadaab refugee camp 21 days to surrender their weapons or face the law. Local administration said they had intelligence a number of refugees at the camp are hiding guns.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Kenya army in new battles as advance resumes
17 Nov – Source: Daily Nation – 374 words
Kenyan troops on Thursday took up positions outside a key al Shabaab stronghold as they prepared to launch a fresh offensive to capture Kismayu.
After weeks of relative inactivity, residents reported that troops in the central sector of the operation had reached the edge of Afmadow Town. If the town is taken, the soldiers will then push south towards Kismayu and link up with others approaching from Bur Gabo in the south.
Military spokesman, Major Emmanuel Chirchir, said the troops had encountered pockets of resistance from the militants as they positioned themselves outside Afmadow. “We have now gone beyond Busar where we received some resistance from al Shabaab and are heading to Afmadow.
“As we speak, our men are at a place called Hayo, a short distance of about seven kilometers from Afmadow,” Major Chirchir said. Kenyan troops had engaged in a fierce gunfight at Busar on Wednesday, he said.
“Our troops and the TFG fighters attacked al Shabaab bases in Busar yesterday. We killed 12 of them and did not suffer any casualties,” he said. Afmadow’s capture will open the way for a march on Kismayu port, a key objective of the Kenyan operation.
http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-
Sudan reiterates support for strong, stable Somalia
18 Nov – Source: Sudan News Agency SUNA – 281 words
President of the Republic Field Marshal Umar al-Bashir, has called for support for Somalia to build a strong army that is capable to impose security, the sovereignty of the state and to expand stability in the country, stressing that the Somali army is capable to do so. He referred to the situation of the African Union forces in Somalia.
In a press statement Thursday evening at the Guest House, following the talks held between the Sudanese and Somali sides in the framework of the visit of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmad, President Al-Bashir said that the talks focused on establishment of a strong army in Somalia to impose sovereignty of the state and security. He said that the consultations also tackled the situation of the African Union troops in Somalia and their performance, indicating that the Somali Army is the single body that is capable to deal with the security situation in Somalia.
President Al-Bashir indicated that the talks included the security situation and the military and humanitarian aid in Somalia, saying that the security situation necessitates moving forward to the imposition of the control of security. He said that the food and the humanitarian conditions needs further efforts to benefit the rain season for improving the situation of the Somali people and help them overcome the difficult conditions in Somalia which are being followed up by the whole world.
He said that the visit of President Sheikh Sharif to Sudan came within the framework of continuous consultations between the two countries and the concern of Sudan the Somalia issue since its beginning 21 years ago. The Somali president would leave home on Friday at the end of his visit to Sudan.
AU seeks for more troops in Somalia
17 Nov – Source: Daily Nation – 320 words
The African Union has renewed efforts to increase the number of troops under its command in Somalia, a day after Kenya said it was willing to deploy forces for the bloc’s mission.
The AU’s Peace and Security Council held talks in the Ethiopian capital with Kenyan and other regional officials on ways to defeat Somalia’s Islamist rebels and help stabilise the war-torn horn of Africa state.
AU spokesman El Ghassan Wane urged the United Nations to increase support for the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom), which he said faced “a challenging task.”
“We are asking the UN to increase its support to the mission and make it more effective on the ground,” he said. The 9,700-strong Amisom requires additional troops, funding and equipment. Out of the AU’s 54 members, only Burundi and Uganda have supplied troops. Kenyan has also pledged top avail troops for the mission “in case a request is made.”
“We would go there to keep peace within the context of AMISOM. Kenyan troops would be under the command, the uniform and the hats of Amisom,” Foreign minister Moses Wetangula told the BBC on Thursday.
AU spokeswoman Nissa Roguiai told AFP earlier that the Addis Ababa meeting would address Ethiopia’s possible troop deployment.
“It’s only discussions, no consultations will be made. We’re waiting for a commitment,” she said. However, no details were announced at the end of the meeting.
http://www.nation.co.ke/News/
Tanzanian al Shabaab under arrest in Somalia
16 Nov – Source: The Citizen – 679 words
Ten Tanzanians have been arrested in Mogadishu fighting alongside al Shabaab, Home Affairs minister Shamsi Vuai Nahodha said in Dar es Salaam yesterday. This is the first official public confirmation linking Tanzanian nationals to the terror group, which is fighting both the Somali transitional government and an African Union peacekeeping force. Three weeks ago, Kenya also sent in its army to fight the militants after the abduction of several people on Kenyan soil blamed on al Shabaab.
Mr. Nahodha told journalists that security agencies were investigating reports that a number of businessmen in the country, including some of Somali origin, have been recruiting Tanzanian youths on behalf of the group.
“We have information to the effect that al Shabaab recruiting agents are working in the country. We have information on people trying to convince Tanzanian youths to join al Shabaab,” he said. The minister also linked the development to the massive illegal immigration of people from the Horn of Africa travelling southward, saying some of the illegal immigrants might have connections with the terror group.
Mr. Nahodha said, however, that the government had taken a number of measures in response to the security threat. “The various security organs are working closely to counter the threat,” he said.
Shabaab beaten in fire fight
18 Nov – Source: The Standard – 1070 words
Troops of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG) backed by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) have forced al Shabaab out of a major stronghold near the border town of Kolbio, with sustained ground and air attacks.
Reports from the area said the Al Qaeda-linked terror group came under heavy bombardment and fire from Kenyan jets and troops, forcing them to scamper out of Kolbio, its environs, and Badade town.
Confirmation of how many were injured on both sides was not immediately available and Kenya’s military is yet to comment on the reports. Al Shabaab fighters were reportedly attacked from four directions on Wednesday night, scattering their forces and making them scamper for safety.
Reports from inside Somalia indicate that the militants are fleeing towards Afmadow, one of their remaining major strongholds, which the TFG and KDF are planning to attack soon in their march to the port city of Kismayu.
Residents of Hulugho along the Kenya-Somalia border reported the sound of heavy gunfire during the fight. “The fighting was long and continued to fade as the night grew. We could hear heavy gunfire from here,” said Hussein Bishar, a resident of Hulugho border town in Ijara. He spoke to The Standard on telephone.
UAE renews support to all military operations and critical measures aimed at ending piracy off the Coast of Somalia
18 Nov – Source: Emirates News Agency WAM – 829 words
The United Arab Emirates renewed its strong support for all military operations and critical measures aimed at improving the process of pursuing and prosecuting those responsible and involved in piracy acts, considering these measures as a strong deterrent for preventing this phenomenon from continuing.
In an intervention made by Permanent Representative of the UAE to the United Nations Ahmed Al-Jarman before the Meeting of the Contact Group on Combating Piracy off the Coast of Somalia on Thursday at the UN Headquarters, he added : “At the same time, the UAE emphasizes that such measures are not sufficient to eliminate totally and permanently these serious acts at sea, and the international community is required to adopt a comprehensive cooperation strategy that ensures the total elimination of this phenomenon, which constitutes a form of organized crime that threatens countries and is subject to international laws”.
UAE looks forward to chair the eleventh meeting of the Contact Group on Combating piracy in 2012.
Though the United Arab Emirates is satisfied at the positive results achieved by the international community since the ninth meeting of the Contact Group in the area of reducing the incidence of acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships and tankers off the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, the phenomenon of piracy and its negative consequences continue to constitute a major threat not only to Somalia and other countries in the region, but also to international maritime traffic and trade as a whole. Pirates continue to develop their methods and tactics of armed robbery relying on modern techniques that helped them to expand their operations on the high seas, which is harmful to international security, peace and stability, stressed Al-Jarman.
The UAE, which has legislated laws to criminalize acts of piracy, kidnapping, smuggling in all its forms, money laundering and financing of terrorism and organized crime, is keen to strengthen its active participation in regional and international efforts aiming at combating acts of piracy and armed robbery of ships and tankers as part of its comprehensive national strategy, he said.
http://www.wam.org.ae/servlet/
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Ranks of Somali terror group swelling with foreign fighters, including Americans, official Says
18 Nov – Source: Fox News – 890 words
About 750 to 1,000 foreign fighters, including American citizens, are now swelling the ranks of Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Somalia, a senior Kenyan military official tells Fox News. The group, known as al Shabaab, has taken advantage of the Arab Spring to further cement its relationship with the Al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen, the Kenyan military official added.
Amplifying the point, Macharia Kamau, Kenya’s ambassador and permanent representative to the Kenya Mission at the United Nations, said that the two Al Qaeda affiliates appear to be on the verge of a fully integrated operation.
“We have the bodies to prove it in Mogadishu (the Somali Capital),” Kamau told Fox News, referring to the suicide car bombings. “Unquestionably, the training capabilities are international and the funding behind these training capabilities is international.”
Fox News has learned that in addition to training recruits in Somalia, Al Qaeda in Yemen, which is behind the last two major plots against the U.S. involving aircraft, has begun sharing bomb-making techniques with al Shabaab.
This is significant because the Yemeni Al Qaeda affiliate’s Saudi bomb maker, Ibrahim al-Asiri, is considered a top target by U.S. intelligence because he has developed explosives that defy traditional airline security screening. Al-Asiri was behind the underwear bomb in 2009 and the cargo printer bombs last fall that were designed to bring down cargo planes over the eastern seaboard of the U.S.
Kamau said there was no convincing evidence that efforts to deter U.S. citizens from joining Al Shabaab have been successful. At least two dozen Americans, mostly of Somali descent, have joined Al-Shabaab since 2007. An Alabama native, Omar Hammami, who is under indictment in the U.S. for allegedly supporting Al Qaeda, is the public face of Al-Shabaab for the West through online videos and lectures.
Kenyan officials say the presence of Americans on the ground in Somalia is making conditions worse. There are now at least three documented cases of American suicide bombers in Somalia, and a fourth case is suspected. A month ago, Kenya began an aggressive military push into Somalia to contain al Shabaab.
“American citizens make the situation even more complex because you are bringing a level of competence and training that normally is not found in some of these small communities in some of these failed states,” Kamau said.
Somali Islamist rebels battle AU troops in Mogadishu
18 Nov – Source: AFP – 306 words
Somalia’s Islamist rebels attacked government and African Union troop’s positions in the war-torn capital, killing four civilians and wounding 12 others, officials and witnesses said Friday.
Heavy fighting broke out late Thursday around four positions held by AU-backed government forces and included heavy machinegun fire and mortar rounds, with reports that civilian houses were caught in the crossfire.
“Terrorists launched desperate attacks on our military positions on Thursday night, but they were repelled with heavy losses, after targeting three positions in the south and one in the northern part of the city,” said Colonel Ahmed Ibrahim, a Somali government military official.
“They are very weak, but are trying to pretend that they are still a fighting force by such attacks,” he said, adding that two government soldiers were wounded.
However, witnesses said the fighting was so intense that people in many parts of the city could hear the sound of the battle.
“Four civilians were killed in the Yaqshid area last night after a mortar struck their houses, the fighting was very heavy and so everybody was worried,” said Habibo Mumin, a witness.
Medical sources said that at least 12 people were wounded, with six admitted to Mogadishu’s Medina hospital.
China says military action not final solution to Somali piracy
18 Nov – Source: Xinhua – 451 words
A Chinese diplomat said here on Thursday that a fundamental settlement to the Somali piracy issue hinges on the country’s political stability, economic development and social tranquillity.
Military action can only mitigate the scourge of Somali piracy, said Wang Min, China’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, when addressing the tenth plenary meeting of the contact group on piracy off the coast of Somalia.
He said China welcomes the progress made by the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia in implementing the Kampala Accord, and hopes that the relevant parties in Somalia will strengthen coordination and cooperation, resolve their disputes through dialogue and negotiations, and implement the “roadmap ending the transition” without delay.
“We call on the international community to remain focused on the situation in Somalia, continue to adopt a holistic and multifaceted strategy to provide support to the country, tackle both the symptoms and root causes of the problem, and follow through on its commitments to provide assistance to Somalia,” the Chinese diplomat said.
He said the Chinese Navy started to dispatch escort warships to the Gulf of Aden and the Somali waters since January 2009. By the end of October this year, China has dispatched ten batches of 26 warships to engage in escort missions for 4,228 vessels in 383 batches.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/
Concern in Kenya over cost of Somalia operation
18 Nov – Source: AP – 615 words
As hundreds of Kenyan soldiers hunt al-Qaeda-linked militants in Somalia, university students are growing angry that their government can afford a military operation but not rises for thousands of university lecturers.
Hundreds of University of Nairobi students began protesting after some 7,000 lecturers went on a week-long strike. Police fired into the air to disperse the students, some of whom had prepared for exams earlier this week only to be told they were being postponed. Lecturers make around $800 a month in Kenya, and their salaries have not been raised in three years.
Kenya’s Higher Education Minister Margaret Kamar said she sympathizes with the lecturers, who decided Thursday to postpone their strike for two weeks to allow for negotiations. But the financial resources simply aren’t there, she says.
“We have sat down and discussed with the prime minister and finance minister, we cannot add anything because of our boys in Somalia,” Kamar said.
Hundreds of Kenyan troops moved into Somalia last month to hunt down the al-Shabaab militants, who have threatened to strike inside Kenya in retaliation. Military budgets in Kenya are not publicly released, and the government has not said how much the operation will last or how long it will take.
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS
Somalia war a result of failed diplomacy
17 Nov – Source: Business Daily Africa – 404 words
It is not surprising that Kenya has for the first time in her 48 years of peaceful independent history sent soldiers to a foreign country. The build-up to this unfortunate move has been in the making for a while now within Kenya’s diplomatic circles. Once a foreign policy giant in this region, Kenya’s image and respect has been falling and the unmitigated consequences are here.
In even greater dire straits is the al Shabaab, a rag-tag militia group, which has by a stroke of poor judgment literary cast itself to the dustbins of history sooner than anticipated and at the time when its support base was crumbling.
By drawing Kenya into their conflict they made a military, political and tactical blunder of gigantic proportion. Like the infamous Islamic Courts Union, the al Shabaab has engineered its untimely demise and this may be the last we hear about it.
The 2007 post-election violence put Kenya’s political, diplomatic, and economic stability to test. The country was hard-hit. Though it sustained some semblance of stability on the political and economic front, its foreign and international image was dealt an irreparable damage. Kenya had come to be viewed as an island of peace and stability.
This changed and it became exposed as a vulnerable country and one that may not be able to effectively defend its boundaries, thereby inviting the mischief of militia groups in the region and disrespect from neighbouring states.
The coalition government formed after the pos-election violence failed to notice the urgency and importance of reinventing Kenya’s foreign policy in view of her violent experience. The opportunity to rebrand and repackage its image abroad was lost. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lost focus and abdicated its responsibility amidst corruption claims and mismanagement.
The first invasion of Kenya was when it was claimed that Ugandan forces were invited to support the police in quelling the post-election violence. But the government denied this as should be expected.