June 5, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
SNA Kills Four Al-Shabaab Fighters, Captures One After Al-Shabaab Dawn Attack In Bardhere
05 June – Source: Halbeeg News – 186 Words
At least four Al-Shabaab fighters have been killed and one fighter captured alive, after fierce fighting between Somali Army and Al-Shabaab early on Tuesday morning in Bardhere town, a military official has confirmed. Heavily armed Al-Shabaab fighters launched a dawn attack on military base in Bardhere town in Gedo region of Southern Somalia.
Col. Mahad Ali Warsame with Somali National Army (SNA) said, the fighters raided the base from different directions. “Al-Shabaab fighters attacked our base shortly before dawn prayer,” said Mr. Warsame. He said the military repulsed the attack after one-hour long of fighting. “The fighting ended at 6:00 am and Al-Shabaab fighters fled after they were defeated and suffered casualties,” said Mr. Warsame.
The military official confirmed the deaths of four Al-Shabaab fighters and one soldier.” We killed four Al-Shabaab fighters during the combat and on our side, we lost one comrade,” he affirmed. One of Al-Shabaab fighters was captured during the attack on SNA base, according to Colonel Warsame.
Key Headlines
- SNA Kills Four Al-Shabaab Fighters Captures One After Al-Shabaab Dawn Attack In Bardhere (Halbeeg News)
- President Farmaajo Holds A Meeting With Galmudug Chief Minister (Radio Dalsan)
- Two People Killed In Gunfight In Somalia’s Capital (Mareeg News)
- US Plans Major Drawdown Of Special Forces In Somalia Africa (The East Africa)
- Somali Refugees Turn Plastic Waste Warriors In One Of World’s Biggest Camps (Reuters)
NATIONAL MEDIA
President Farmaajo Holds A Meeting With Galmudug Chief Minister
05 June – Source: Radio Dalsan – 101 Words
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo and the Galmudug Chief Minister Mohamed Shakir Ali Hassan presently in Baidoa, held a separate meeting. The two officials discussed the current situation in Galmudug especially the political crisis between the leadership which is hindering the regional government’s work.
According to reports obtained by Radio Dalsan, the talks discussed how to resolve the political crisis, and the role the federal government can play. Meanwhile, Mohamed Hashi Abdi, Galmudug Vice President, MPs and Ministers in Adaado released a communique stating that, President Ahmed Duale Haaf and his delegation at the National Security Conference do not represent Galmudug state.
Two People Killed In Gunfight In Somalia’s Capital
04 June – Source: Mareeg News – 116 Words
A deadly gunfight has broken out between government soldiers in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, leaving at least two people dead. The clash flared up in the city’s Dharkenley district, after security forces in charge of the stabilization in the capital city exchanged gunfire over disagreement, resident said.
Residents stated that two civilian people killed had lost their lives by stray bullets during the skirmish. The gunfighting has reportedly subsided, shortly after dozens of other security forces with government officials intervened on both sides. The situation returned back to normal as locals resumed their daily life activities. The incident comes a day after Somali Military Chief General Abdiweli Jama Gorod, warned of clashing between government soldiers in Mogadishu.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
US Plans Major Drawdown Of Special Forces In Somalia, Africa
04 June – Source: The East Africa – 452 Words
The United States is considering a sharp reduction in its special forces operations in Somalia and other African countries, the New York Times reported on Monday. As many as half of the US counter-terrorism troops based on the continent could be withdrawn over the next three years, the report states.
About 6,000 American soldiers are currently assigned to several African countries, according to the US Africa Command (Africom). Some 500 of those commandos, trainers and logistics specialists are based in Somalia, where they assist African Union and Somali national forces in carrying out attacks on Al-Shabaab.
US military action in Somalia mainly consists of drone strikes that are said to have killed dozens of Shabaab militants in the past year. But some US troops operate on the ground in an advisory capacity, and a steep reduction in their numbers could have negative consequences for the 11-year-long war against Al-Shabaab. The contemplated reduction in US troop levels in Africa is mainly a product of two factors, the Times reports
One is the political furore that erupted following the killing of four US soldiers last October during a counter-insurgency operation in Niger. A Pentagon investigation into that attack “exposed a risk-taking culture among commandos,” the Times reported on Monday. And that finding strengthened US Defence Secretary James Mattis’s inclination to reduce counter-insurgency missions in Africa, the newspaper said.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“The sprawling refugee camp at Dadaab is no different. Situated 475 km (300 miles) east of Kenya’s capital Nairobi, Dadaab is home to more than 200,000 refugees, largely from Somalia, who depend on aid – much of it packed in plastic.”
Somali Refugees Turn Plastic Waste Warriors In One Of World’s Biggest Camps
05 June – Source: Reuters – 1034 Words
Somali refugee Adow Sheikh Aden, 32, was mocked when he started gathering empty plastic water bottles, broken buckets and old jerry cans around one of the world’s largest refugee camps. Everyone used to laugh and say I am mad because I am collecting rubbish. Here it is not normal to do such things,” said Aden at the Dadaab refugee camp in eastern Kenya’s Garissa County, near the Somali border.
“But then I explained I am helping to keep our environment clean and our community healthy, and also I am selling the plastic to earn money so that I can manage my life and my family better,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Having fled war in Somalia, Aden is part of a small band of refugees who have taken up the fight against the plastic waste generated in Dadaab – and also earns an income from it. Dadaab’s waste recycling project, set up by the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) just over a year ago, has only eight refugee staff. But initial results are promising, and the plan is to grow, aid workers say.
In a cement-and-iron building equipped with a plastic shredder and compressor, the refugees have recycled about six tonnes of plastic waste so far, generating some 160,000 Kenyan shillings ($1,580) in revenue. Nelly Saiti, KRCS project officer, said plastic recycling has huge potential as a sustainable business for refugees, and could be a model for other large camps such as Bidi Bidi in Uganda, Kakuma in Kenya and Nyarugusu in Tanzania.
“We are collecting just a fraction of the plastic waste that is recyclable in Dadaab, and so a lot more revenue can be made from this,” she said. The next step is to train refugees in entrepreneurship so they can take control of the project, reducing their dependence on aid, she added.
One million plastic drinks bottles are purchased every minute globally, while some 500 billion disposable plastic bags are used worldwide every year, says the United Nations. It is running a campaign for World Environment Day on June 5 to raise awareness of the urgent need to beat plastic pollution. Nearly a third of plastic packaging escapes waste collection systems, and at least 8 million tonnes of plastic leak into the oceans each year, smothering reefs and threatening marine life.
Plastic also enters water supplies and the food chain, where it could harm humans in the long term, the United Nations says. Action is gearing up around the world – from countries banning plastic bags to companies vowing to cut their usage of plastic – yet still more efforts are needed to both reduce and recycle plastic, say environmentalists. The sprawling refugee camp at Dadaab is no different. Situated 475 km (300 miles) east of Kenya’s capital Nairobi, Dadaab is home to more than 200,000 refugees, largely from Somalia, who depend on aid – much of it packed in plastic.
As Somalia descended into civil war, Dadaab was established by the United Nations in 1991, and has since mushroomed, with more refugees streaming in, uprooted by drought and famine as well as ongoing insecurity. Many have lived here for years. The settlement – spread over 30 square km (7,415 acres) of semi-arid desert land – has schools, hospitals, markets, police stations, graveyards and a bus station.
TOP TWEETS
@HarunMaruf: Photo exclusive: Ibrahim Mohamed, one of the Al-Shabab militants who attacked Bardhere town earlier this morning was captured by Govt forces. At least four militants and two Govt soldiers were killed during the fighting.
@DrBeileh: Great to be chairing the @SomaliaFGC meeting this morning. Good governance central to all sustainable fiscal & economic reforms. We are committed and grateful to all our partners. #Somalia.
@DailyMonitor: The United States is considering a sharp reduction in its Special Forces operations in Somalia and other African countries #MonitorUpdates
@taakulosom: The drought affected #IDP settlements of Ali Awed and Jameecadka Caynaanshe were initially without any clean source of #water. But now thankfully the #drought affected communities have a clean source of water enough for the entire community thanks to #funding from @shf_somalia
@josamantar: Energy poverty in #Somalia is real; 85% of Somalis lack access to electricity. To combat this, I created@SamawatEnergy — a female-founded, Somali-owned startup that provides affordable solar solutions to residents & small businesses. Help us help them this Eid! #LightUpSomalia
IMAGE OF THE DAY
President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo and the Regional State Presidents at the National Security Conference in Baidoa.
Photo: @Goobjoognews