August 22, 2018 | Morning Headlines
Two Soldiers Killed In Fighting Near Baidoa
21 August – Source: Caasimada Online – 166 Words
A fierce gun battle broke out between government forces and Al Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab fighters near Baidoa town, about 250 kilometers southwest of Somali capital Mogadishu. The clash flared up when heavily armed militants launched an ambush attack on army bases manned by government soldiers in Daynunai area near the town, a policeman Nour Hussein said.
Hussein says two soldiers were killed in an ambush attack carried out by Al-Shabaab fighters near Baidoa town. He said that military forces repulsed the attack. Al-Shabab has been waging an insurgency in Somalia for more than 10 years.
A 22,000-strong African Union force is in the country to help the government fight the al-Qaeda-linked militants. The group has been driven out of many urban areas since 2011, however, it still controls territory in rural areas and carries out gun attacks and bombings on military and civilian targets. Somalia has been gripped by violence and lawlessness since the toppling of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in the early 1990s.
Key Headlines
- Two Soldiers Killed In Fighting Near Baidoa (Caasimada Online)
- Somaliland Responds To Puntland Remarks On Tukaraq Conflict (Hiiraan Online)
- Somali PM Extends Wishes To All Muslims On The Occasion Of Eid Al Adha (Halbeeg News)
- Somalia Hires US Lobbyists To Help Get More Aid (Daily Nation)
- The Favorite Eid Gift For Somalia’s Children: Toy Guns (Quartz Africa)
- “I Nicknamed Her ‘Action Against Hunger’ Because They Saved her Life” (Action Against Hunger)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somaliland Responds To Puntland Remarks On Tukaraq Conflict
21 August – Source: Hiiraan Online – 129 Words
The Somaliland administration has responded to recent remarks by the Puntland administration on the Tukaraq conflict. A statement from the office of Somaliland’s Ministry of Defense, Omar Abdirisak, said they consider the outcome of recent IGAD/UN-brokered negotiations that called for the restoration of peace in the area. The statement accused the top Puntland leadership of attempting to extend their term in office through incitement of war in peaceful areas in the region.
It further noted that Somaliland was committed to respecting peaceful co-existence, but cautioned against any aggression. Somaliland’s remarks come days after some Puntland officials held a press conference in Garowe to deny any peaceful settlement in the Tukaraq conflict. Puntland vowed to maintain its military mobilization unless Somaliland withdraws from the disputed region of Sool region.
Somali PM Extends Wishes To All Muslims On The Occasion Of Eid Al Adha
21 August – Source: Halbeeg News – 241 Words
Somali Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire on Tuesday sent his wishes to Somali Nationals and all Muslims as the country marked Eid Al Adha. The prayers of Eid Al Adha started in the wee hours of Tuesday as Muslims across the world flocked to mosques and open grounds to offer prayers. Leaders of the government joined thousands of the city resident to mark the second major religious festival of Islam.
Addressing the nation after the prayers, Mr. Khaire extended warm wishes to the public. “I would like to congratulate all Somalis and Muslims on the occasion of Eid Al Adha, May the blessings of the Almighty be with all always,” said Mr. Khaire. On the other hand, head of African Union Mission in Mission, Francisco Caetano Jose Madeira has extended best wishes to all Muslims, on the occasion of Eid-al-Adha, one of the pillars of Islam. Madeira urged all Muslim faithful to reflect on Allah’s bountiful blessings by deepening the spirit of peace, brotherhood, good neighbourliness and caring for the less fortunate in society.
“As you celebrate this important day, which also marks the end of Hajj, may you grow in faith and emulate the actions of Prophet Mohamed. May peace and prosperity be upon you,” Madeira said. Eid is an Arabic word that means feast or festival, and Adha means sacrifice. Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Adha to reflect on Prophet Abraham’s unwavering obedience when he was asked to sacrifice his son.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somalia Hires US Lobbyists To Help Get More Aid
21 August – Source: Daily Nation – 409 Words
The government of Somalia is paying a US lobbying firm Sh40 million ($400,000) through the end of this year to help it gain renewed funding for the country’s army and to lift the Trump administration’s ban on Somalis’ travel to the US. The agreement with the Sonoran Policy Group (SPG) was signed earlier this month by Somalia’s United Nations Ambassador Abukar Osman and by Christian Bourge, executive director of the lobbying firm based in the state of Arizona.
SPG, which previously lobbied in Washington on behalf of the Kenyan government, includes principals who have held posts in the Trump administration. In a disclosure form recently filed with the US Justice Department, SPG says it is “delighted to have the opportunity to leverage our disruptive global diplomacy, marketing, branding and communications as well as public affairs subject matter expertise on behalf of the Federal Government of Somalia.”
Specifically, the firm commits to arrange talks with White House officials and lawmakers aimed at ending a partial US suspension of funding for the Somali National Army. Concerns over rampant corruption within the Somali government and military led the US last year to freeze food and fuel aid to most of the country’s armed forces. Somalia’s contract with SPG also calls for the lobbyists to help “reverse the inclusion of Somalia in the travel-ban countries.” The US Supreme Court upheld in June the Trump administration’s ban on visits to the US by nationals of five Muslim-majority countries, including Somalia, as well as by citizens of North Korea and Venezuela.
The Favorite Eid Gift For Somalia’s Children: Toy Guns
21 August – Source: Quartz Africa – 361 Words
Millions of Muslims across the world are marking Eid al-Adha, an Islamic holiday that commemorates the end of the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. Like any celebration, the festival of sacrifice is a time for sharing, helping the poor and needy, reconnecting with friends and family, and most importantly, eating.
For children in Somalia, it’s also another day of coming to terms with the civil war that devastated their nation. Many kids, ecstatic about the occasion, urge their parents to buy them their favorite Eid gift: toy guns. Yet instead of brightly colored pretend weapons, many of the toy guns touted across markets in Somalia are ultra-realistic, and with their silver and black colors, eerily resemble real firearms.
And so on the beaches of the capital Mogadishu, the neighborhood alleys of Hargeisa, and outside the restaurants of Kismayo, children caper about carrying with them toy bazookas, AK-47s, and M16s. Toy guns are everywhere. Even three-year-old prince George was recently seen playing with a plastic pistol on a day out with family.
But the difference between Somalia and other places is that the Horn of Africa nation has unraveled for decades, thanks to the destabilizing force of guns. The war has completely devastated the country, scattering millions of Somalis across the world. The recruitment of child soldiers is still rampant, attacks on entrepreneurs and change makers widespread, and terrorists continue to strike safe spaces.
OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE
“Finally, she was transferred to the Action Against Hunger supplementary feeding program for another two months before she was discharged. When she returned home, Anzal continued to be closely monitored by Action Against Hunger Community Health Workers to ensure that there was no possibility of relapse.”
“I Nicknamed Her ‘Action Against Hunger’ Because They Saved her Life”
20 August – Source: Action Against Hunger – 790 Words
“Hey, Action Against Hunger, come here!” Xukun Muhumed calls out to her bubbly 21-month-old daughter Anzal. Her curious eyes gaze at the unfamiliar sight of a car parked nearby, and then she runs toward her mother, giggling. It is hard to tell that this cheerful child is the same Anzal of five months ago.
At 16 months, Anzal could not do many of the things other children of her age could do, like hold her head steady on her own. After she developed diarrhea, vomiting, and a fever, her appetite was poor and her neck became too weak to support the weight of her head. Xukun, her mother, was devastated but determined. “I was pregnant with my last born then, but was ready take my daughter anywhere to save her life,” says the 28-year-old mother of six. Anzal’s father, however, felt differently. He had no hope that she would recover, and was resigned to losing his little girl to malnutrition.
Anzal and her family live in Aato, a village 25 miles west of ElBarde, a town in southwest Somalia. Her father Mohamud, 31, is a religious teacher at a local school and the sole breadwinner for the family of eight – they survive on his salary of less than 30 dollars a month. As the disease progressed, Anzal refused to breastfeed because she had sores in her mouth. As the ailment took a turn for the worse, her parents brought her to a religious leader for remedy.
“Unfortunately, her condition was not getting any better. I was then advised to take her to the Action Against Hunger team, who were coming in a few days to visit our village,” Xukun says. Zukun and Anzal arrived at the Action Against Hunger Outreach Center in Aato. After assessing her and seeing how severe her case was, the nurse recommended that Anzal should be referred to the Action Against Hunger Stabilization Center in ElBarde.
Anzal’s mother was ready to take her daughter to the Stabilization Center with our team, but her father Mohamud – who did not believe that a medical intervention would change anything – rejected that proposition. “I told them not to take her away, I can bury her here. I was hopeless,” he says dejectedly. “I just lost my herd of 30 goats to the drought and here I was about to lose my daughter.” In vain, the Action Against Hunger team tried to convince him to take Anzal into the Stabilization Center. One week later, the team came again to conduct another checkup.