May 11, 2018 | Morning Headlines
US, Somali Raid On Al-Shabaab Seizes 3 Commanders: Officials
10 May – Source: ABC News – 247 Words
U.S. and Somali commandos seized three men thought to be commanders with the Al-Shabaab extremist group during a deadly raid in a village in Lower Shabelle region, Somali intelligence officials said Thursday. Five people thought to be banana farmers were killed in the raid late Wednesday and several others were captured, Moalim Ahmed Nur, a traditional elder in the village, told The Associated Press.
A Somali intelligence official said the forces targeted a key hideout and coordination center for the Somalia-based Al-Shabaab. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. The U.S. Africa Command did not immediately comment on the raid. The U.S. has stepped up military efforts against al-Shabab, the deadliest Islamic extremist group in sub-Saharan Africa, under the Trump administration.
That stepped-up military involvement, however, has come with some allegations by Somalis that civilians have been killed. People who described themselves as relatives of the people killed in Wednesday’s raid expressed bewilderment. “They were not armed nor were they al-Shabab members,” said Ibrahim Ahmed, who said he was a family member of one man killed.
Key Headlines
- US Somali Raid On Al-Shabaab Seizes 3 Commanders: Officials (ABC News)
- Somali President To Visit Qatar (Halbeeg News)
- Mohamed Mursal Inaugurated As The Lower House Speaker (Hiiraan Online)
- Explosion In Somalia Town Near Mogadishu Kills Seven Soldiers: Official (Reuters)
- Kilifi Family Identifies One Soldier Killed In Dobley Al Shabaab Attack (The Standard)
- EU Is A Trusted And Predictable Partner For Somalia- Deputy Ambassador (Goobjoog News)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali President To Visit Qatar
10 May – Source: Halbeeg News – 118 Words
Somali President, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, will be travelling to Qatar this week, Halbeeg News has learnt. President Farmajo has received an official invitation from the leaders of the Gulf nation as sources close to the presidency confirmed. The President and his delegation will jet off to Doha on 13th of this month.
An advance delegation left for Doha on Thursday, according to reliable sources. The delegation is scheduled to pave way for President Farmajo’s visit to Qatar. President Farmajo is expected to sign agreements on trade and economy and discuss ways of strengthening the bilateral relations with the Gulf nation. This will be the second visit of President Farmajo to Qatar since he assumed office in February 2017.
Mohamed Mursal Inaugurated As The Lower House Speaker
10 May – Source: Hiiraan Online – 139 Words
Mohamed Mursal Sheikh Abdirahman was inaugurated as the Speaker of the Lower House of Parliament on Thursday in Mogadishu. In an elaborate ceremony at General Kahiye Police Academy attended by government officials and foreign dignitaries, Abdirahman was sworn in as the 11th Speaker of Parliament. Mursal was elected Speaker on April 30 after winning the race in the third round following the withdrawal of two candidates.
A career politician, Abdirahman’s curriculum vitae boasts of both diplomatic and Cabinet ministerial positions. He served as the Water and Energy Minister under Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke’s administration and was also Somalia’s ambassador to Turkey in 2011. Mursal was appointed the Defense Minister by PM Khaire and served as the Minister for six months before resigning to contest in the speakership race. He will guide preside over parliamentary business for the next three years.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Explosion In Somalia Town Near Mogadishu Kills Seven Soldiers: Official
10 May – Source: Reuters – 103 Words
An bomb targeting soldiers in southern Somalia killed seven on Thursday, a government official said, the second such incident in two days. The incident took place in the town of Wanlaweyn in the Lower Shabelle region, about 90 km (55 miles) northwest of the capital, Mogadishu, when a pickup carrying the soldiers was hit.
“Seven soldiers including their commander died and two others were wounded. They were all onboard a pickup when the bomb exploded,” said Ali Nur, deputy governor of the Lower Shabelle region. An explosion in the same town on Wednesday killed at least five. Al Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab took responsibility.
Kilifi Family Identifies One Soldier Killed In Dobley Al Shabaab Attack
10 May – The Standard – 338 Words
A family in Kambe, Kilifi, has identified one of the Kenyan soldiers killed in an attack by Al Shabaab insurgents in Dobley town of Somalia on Sunday. The family said Henry Matano, 51, was among the 12 soldiers killed in a landmine explosion. The soldiers based at Nyali Barracks in Mombasa were returning to Kenya after completing a duty in Somalia.
Rachel Hare, Matano’s widow, said she last spoke with her husband on Saturday evening although they could not communicate well due to poor mobile phone network connection. “It is God’s plan, but my worry is how will I be able to educate our five children,” said Ms Hare, who described her husband as a loving and caring man who had big plans for his five children. She said her husband joined the military in 1989 and had served diligently for the last 29 years.
Yesterday sources also indicated that two others families in Mombasa, including one from Mwakirunge in Kisauni, claimed their kin were killed in the explosion that has already been claimed by Al Shabaab.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“The endorsement by International Financial Institutions during the Spring Meeting in Washington last month on Somalia’s reform process towards debt relief exemplified the progress Somalia is making,”
EU Is A Trusted And Predictable Partner For Somalia- Deputy Ambassador
10 May – Source: Goobjoog News – 442 Words
The European Union is committed to supporting Somalia in realizing stability and progress, EU Deputy Ambassador Fulgencio Garrido-Ruiz aka Pencho has said noting Somalia can draw significant lessons from the EU’s progress over the last 60 years.
Speaking during the EU Day celebrations in Mogadishu Wednesday, the EU envoy expressed optimism over Somalia’s recovery and stability adding the Horn of African nation was on its way to ushering a new era. “Somalia can count on the European Union to be a predictable long term and trusted partner,” Pencho said. “We have stood with Somali friends in the past; we stand with you today and you can count on us tomorrow and much beyond.”
Remarking that the EU set out on an ambitious path towards peace and stability over half a century ago, the EU envoy said the reform process in Somalia is clear testimony the country was on a similar path.
He added the EU chose to stand united to actualize its dream of peace and stability as envisioned by the former French Minister Robert Schuman. The Schuman Declaration, as it came to be known, was built on the idea of merging economic interests between then rivals France and Germany and would later herald a political and economic union that is the EU today. “Just as 60 years ago an ambitious and remarkable project was launched in Europe to bring peace, stability and prosperity, we believe that Somalia today is on the way of ushering into a new era,” Pencho added.