March 22, 2018 | Morning Headline
AFRICOM: US Airstrike In Somalia Kills 2 Militants
21 March – Source: VOA News – 287 Words
A U.S. airstrike in southern Somalia this week killed two al-Shabab militants and wounded three others, according to the U.S. Africa Command. AFRICOM said in a statement Wednesday that the attack took place near the town of Mubarak, a small agricultural town southwest of the capital, Mogadishu. Most U.S. airstrikes in Somalia occur in the region. AFRICOM did not identify the individuals targeted in the Monday morning strike but said it was conducted in coordination with the federal government of Somalia. It also said one vehicle was destroyed in the operation. The attack was the sixth airstrike conducted by the U.S. in Somalia this year. The attacks have killed 17 militants in total.
Recently, U.S. strikes have increasingly targeted low-level al-Shabab operatives who are involved in smuggling weapons, bombers and vehicle-borne explosive devices into the main cities, such as Mogadishu. The first airstrike this year on January 2 destroyed one of al-Shabab’s car bombs, according to AFRICOM. The deputy governor of the Lower Shabelle region, Abdifatah Haji Abdulle, told VOA Somali that they are still assessing Monday’s strike in order to identify those targeted. He told VOA Somali that the occupants were al-Shabab officials but said details will be released after assessment is completed.
Key Headlines
- AFRICOM: US Airstrike In Somalia Kills 2 Militants (VOA)
- Somali President Mourns Former Djibouti Prime Minister (Hiiraan Online)
- IGAD Ministers Meet in Nairobi to Discuss the Status of Somali Refugees (Halbeeg News)
- AU Mission’s Deputy Force Commander Roots For Stronger Intelligence Gathering And Information Sharing Modalities In Somalia (AMISOM)
- Massive Death of Cattle Threatens Food Security in Somalia (Prensa Latina)
- United Arab Emirates (UAE): Somalia’s New Scapegoat (Wardheer News)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali President Mourns Former Djibouti Prime Minister
21 March – Source: Hiiraan Online – 148 Words
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo send his condolences to former Djibouti Prime Minister, Barkat Gourat Hamadou, who died on Monday at the aged of 88. Mr. Hamadou, Djibouti’s longest serving Prime Minister, passed away while receiving treatment in hospital in Paris, France. The President described Mr. Hamadou as a great leader, who had a clear vision for growth and development of his country. “ The government and people of Somalia send condolences to their brothers & sisters in Djibouti, we pray that God comforts and strengthens, the family and friends of the late Barkat Gourat Hamadou,” Farmaajo said.
Mr. Farmaajo credited the former Prime Minister, with the efforts to mediate between Somalis, during Somali reconciliation conferences held at ARTE in Djibouti. Mr. Mahadou, who was serving Djibouti as Prime Minister for 23 years, resigned from the office in 2001 over health issues. He was succeeded by Mr. Dileita Mohamed Dileita.
IGAD Ministers Meet in Nairobi to Discuss the Status of Somali Refugees
21 March – Source: Halbeeg News – 114 Words
Ministers from Intergovernmental Authority On Development (IGAD), will tomorrow meet in the capital city of Kenya, Nairobi, to discuss durable solutions for Somali refugees. In a statement by IGAD, the trade bloc said, the ministers will talk about the integration of the refugees. “An updated report and another one, mapping the current and planned humanitarian and development is linked to Nairobi – Plan of Action, will be presented and discussed at the meeting,” reads the statement. The statement said that the meeting will bring together six ministers from member states of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the international community and other stakeholders. Over million Somalis are displaced within East and Horn of Africa region.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
AU Mission’s Deputy Force Commander Roots For Stronger Intelligence Gathering And Information Sharing Modalities In Somalia
21 March – Source: AMISOM – 431 Words
The third intelligence and information sharing conference, aimed at forging closer working ties between various intelligence actors in Somalia, concluded in the capital Mogadishu today, after three days of deliberations.
The Deputy Force Commander of the AU Mission in Somalia, Maj-Gen Charles Tai Gituai called for more efficient intelligence sharing modalities among the actors, in order to maximize results, during the opening of the conference on Monday. “Intelligence must be collected and used in a way that ensures operational efficiency without threatening the legitimacy and impartiality necessary for the peace mission to carry out its work effectively,” he said in his opening remarks.
The conference explored access to non-traditional information sources, discussed enhancement of intelligence sharing and dissemination, and emerging threats from terror group Al-Shabaab, even as the militants find themselves extremely weakened from the onslaught from the Federal Government, AU and partner forces. “Intelligence is fundamentally important to a peace mission, to give decision makers multi-dimensional situational awareness through coordinated analysis of information, by the different components of a mission”, Maj-Gen Gituai told participants, who included intelligence officers drawn from AMISOM’s sectors, Somali security forces and key international security partners.
Massive Death of Cattle Threatens Food Security in Somalia
21 March – Source: Prensa Latina Agency -203 Words
The United Nations Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO) warned today that the mass death of cattle due to intense drought threatens livelihoods and food security in Somalia. The UN specialized agency with headquarters in this Italian capital stressed that the absence of rain has caused the death of up to 60 percent of the herds in some areas of this nation of the African Horn.
In its report ‘World Information and Warning System’ dedicated to Somalia: Pastoral homes face extreme food insecurity, the FAO points out that more than a year of severe dry weather affected the availability of fodder and water in most of the pastureland. Situation that tends to aggravate in front of meteorological forecasts that indicate precipitations below the average of April to June, for which reason the recovery of the pastures and the conditions of the animals is not probable. The livestock sector represents 40 percent of the gross domestic product of that nation and 65 percent of the population is dedicated to livestock. Last year FAO came with treatments for parasites, vaccines and other injuries to 38.3 million animals, also provided food for more than 900 000 and delivered more than 53 million liters of water.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“However, the federal government must take seriously its responsibility for domestic problems including the security without using the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia and Al-Shabab as scapegoats. Additionally, Somalia’s foreign policy should be based on rational calculation rather than emotional, ”
United Arab Emirates (UAE): Somalia’s New Scapegoat
18 March – Source: Wardheer News – 822 Words
Ethiopia was widely seen as Somalia’s scapegoat for a long time, and now even the United Arab Emirates appears to join the club. The last two weeks were full of confusion for Somalia. It resulted after the tripartite agreement signed between UAE’s DP World, Ethiopia, and Somaliland without consulting with the Somali Government of Somalia (FGS). According to the agreement, Somaliland took 30%; Ethiopia acquired 19% while DP World became the major shareholder with 51%. However, FGS rejected the agreement over the Port of Berbera arguing that it violated “the Somali constitution and unity.”
Back in February 8, 2017, when the current government headed by President Mohamed Abdullahi “Farmaajo” and Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre came to power, Somalia’s relations with UAE deteriorated. What happened? Let us look back briefly at the historical diplomatic ties between the two countries. Both countries have long diplomatic relations, and also they are Member States of the Arab League.
Their relationships are mainly based on economic collaboration. The UAE has provided opportunities for Somali businessmen to trade from Dubai to Mogadishu, but their diplomatic relationship has not lasted long. It has been fragile for the last years. What brought the two countries’ diplomatic ties from sweet to bitter? Here, are two reasons: First, the UAE has worrisome concern over the Somali-Turkey relationship, thus, The UAE sees this diplomatic ties as a threat both to its geopolitical security and economy. Nevertheless, Turkey and the UAE are geopolitically keen to have influence in the Horn of Africa. Somalia has also been keen to exploit the advantages of its strategic location at the mouth of the Red Sea, in an area that has been geopolitically important to the superpowers, and Arab powers including the UAE and Saudi Arabia to obtain economic aid. Second, during the Qatar-Gulf Crisis, the UAE and its alliance tried to convince Somalia to be on their side but Somalia decided to remain neutral and nonaligned. This decision by Mogadishu did not go well with the UAE.