October 24, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report.
PM Khaire Calls For Reforms And Accountability In SNA
23 October – Source: Goobjoog News – 229 Words
Prime Minister Hassan Khaire has called on the leadership of the Somali National Army (SNA) to streamline its operations and chart a road-map to defeat Al-Shabaab. Speaking during a visit to the defense headquarters, the PM said the military must first be accountable noting his government was committed to providing the necessary resources. The PM directed military chiefs present to expedite reforms in the military.
The remarks come amid accusations of corruption against the military. The United States of America, for instance, withdrew fuel and food support to SNA last December owing to allegations of graft among senior military officers. The US accused the military of inability to account for the fuel and food aid. “We did not find the expected large quantities of food at any location … there was no evidence of consumption (except at two bases),” the U.S. team wrote to the Somali government, a report from a joint mission of US and Somali officials said ahead of the suspension.
The Prime Minister, who earlier admitted existence corruption within the army, urged the soldiers to remain diligent and committed to their work in defeating Al-Shabaab. “The terrorist groups are exploiting the religion, and our religion does not allow children to be killed,” said the PM. Mr. Khaire also praised the army for their great role of protecting the dignity and sovereignty of the Somali people.
Key Headlines
- PM Khaire Calls For Reforms And Accountability In SNA (Goobjoog News)
- A Plane Carrying Medical Supplies Barred From Landing In Las Anod (Radio Dalsan)
- The Death Toll From Inter-Clan Fighting In Northern Somalia Rises To 50 (Shabelle Media Network)
- Make Somalis In Northeastern Pay For Non-locals Killed By Al-Shabaab — Leaders (The Star)
- Clean-up Begins As Somalia’s Stadium Mogadishu Sees Army Exit And Footballers Enter (Inside World Football)
- Somalia’s Zero-sum Politics Will See No Winners (ISS Today)
NATIONAL MEDIA
A Plane Carrying Medical Supplies Barred From Landing In Las Anod
24 October – Source: Radio Dalsan – 141 Words
A plane carrying medical supplies dispatched by the Federal Government of Somalia has been denied access to land at Las Anod Airport in Sool region, where deadly fighting between members of two sub-clans of the Dhulbahante clan is ongoing.
The Oceane Airlines was transporting medical supplies aimed to treat tens of people injured in the fighting in Dhumay village near Las Anod. The medical supplies were dispatched by the Federal Government in response to the medical needs of victims of the bloody confrontation that has claimed lives of nearly 70 people.
Somaliland authorities, who control the town of Las Anod, are said to be responsible of barring of the plane from landing in the town. Some of the injured people in the clashes were transported to Galkayo hospital in northern Galkayo. The Somaliland administration is yet to comment on this incident.
The Death Toll From Inter-Clan Fighting In Northern Somalia Rises To 50
24 October – Source: Shabelle Media Network – 213 Words
Fighting between clans in Somalia’s breakaway Somaliland region has claimed lives of more than 50 people, a local witness and an official in neighboring Puntland state said on Tuesday: “There has been fierce clan fighting in the past two days. Over 50 people have been killed, but the victims’ corpses have not been buried because the clashes are still going on,” Ahmed Ismail told Reuters from Dhumey village.
“The injured are dying of blood loss because there are no hospitals here,” he said, adding that some had been taken to hospitals further away. Dhumey is in an area controlled by Somaliland, but which has been claimed by Puntland for years. “We understand 51 people died and 120 others were injured in the fighting, with clans engaging in heavy fire exchanges for the second day running,” Abdullahi Ali Hirsi, the Interior Minister of Puntland, told the media.
“It is unfortunate that other clan militias, equipped and paid by Somaliland, have sided with one of the sub-clans in the conflict. We call for a ceasefire and urge the clan elders to stop the war and participate in a peace conference to be hosted by Puntland.” Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991 and operates as an independent state. However, it is yet to win international recognition.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Make Somalis In Northeastern Pay For Non-locals Killed By Al-Shabaab — Leaders
24 October – Source: The Star – 420 Words
Leaders from Garissa, Mandera and Wajir have said residents should be required to compensate families of non-local victims of al Shabaab. In this way, residents are less likely to be tempted to help terrorists and deny important information to security agencies, they said.
On Tuesday, participants in a conference on countering violent extremism and radicalism passed various resolutions,including the one on compensating victims. The two-day meeting ended yesterday in Mandera Town. “We are faced with a very serious crises that strikes at the very heart and soul and threatens the spirit of our existence as a county,” Mandera governor Ali Roba said as he read resolutions. “As we leave this conference, let act on the recommendations.”
One resolution said all three counties of Mandera,Wajir and Garissa should be required to contribute an equal amount to compensate families of slain terror victims. It is not clear if the resolution is practical or enforceable, or whether county assemblies would support it. The counties are poor. “Let it be a lump sum amount, Sh1 million and above so residents feel the pinch to deter those who aid terrorists,”said Mandera governor Ali Roba who read the resolutions.
The conference called for an inclusive approach to countering violent extremism, radicalisation and ethnic clashes. Security agencies alone and force cannot end the problem, participants said. The leaders agreed to “aggressively sensitise” the public on the effects of violent extremism and radicalisation. They pledged to encourage hate public to provide timely intelligence so that terrorism can be prevented and attacks responded to.
The Northeastern leaders — politicians, elders and community figures — resolved to work with the national government on an all-inclusive, structured amnesty, disengagement, rehabilitation and reintegration of al Shabaab youth. Women and youth should help prevent violent extremism, they said. A joint committee will be formed and request Interior CS Fred Matiangi to give amnesty to young men who have joined the militants.
They also asked for financing so they can hold frequent meetings in their areas to tackle emerging problems. The security personnel were also asked to have a service charter ensuring there is quick response, In the past they were blamed for for being slow to react. The conference also called for security personnel to “change tack” in Somalia. Al Shabaab says it is trying to drive Kenya and other foreign forces out of Somalia. It was also agreed that security information shared by civilians must be treated with utmost confidentiality so as not to put sources in danger.
Clean-up Begins As Somalia’s Stadium Mogadishu Sees Army Exit And Footballers Enter
October 24 – Source: Inside World Football – 344 Worlds
The return of Somalia’s national stadium to football usage took a symbolic step forward this week with members of the government and the football federation leading a clean-up operation at the venue. The Somali Minister for Youth and Sport Khadija Mohamed Diriye was joined by Somali Football Federation (SFF) President Abdiqani Said Arab, his deputy Ali Abdi Mohamed and a host of volunteers as they continued work on cleaning the stadium, which was recently vacated by African Union Peacekeepers after being used as a military base.
The stadium, which last hosted a game in 1988, was a base for the African Union Peacekeepers during the Somali Civil war and had fallen into disrepair over that time as the situation in the country remained unstable. SFF President Abdiqani Said Arab is looking ahead to a return of the stadium to football use. “The cleaning process, led by the Minister of Sport, is meant to pave the way for the near-future renovation of the stadium,” he said.
“The cleaning process is now in its final stage, as all the trees which grew in the facility have now been removed. We are looking forward to seeing Stadium Mogadishu hosting football matches in the near future, the government is drawing up a special programme for the facility and I am thankful to the Minister for Youth and Sport Khadija Mohamed Diriye for such great work”
The Minister for Youth and Sport was also optimistic about the future of the stadium, saying: “For many years, Stadium Mogadishu has experience the most difficult times in its history. “The terrible conditions that Stadium Mogadishu underwent left much sorrow in the hearts of millions of Somalis, but now we are pleased as the facility is back into the hands of the people and will be used for the purpose it was built for” The cleaning campaign saw participation by volunteers including government officials, local footballers and members of a Somali expatriate Football team, who are in the country on an invitation tour to play friendly matches with four Somali Premier League teams.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“Former United Nations Special Representative for Somalia Michael Keating aptly summarised this dynamic when reflecting on his tenure in Somalia, noting that ‘for 20 to 30 years there’s been intense competition for power and influence and control, including for resources and revenue, over a pie that big’. His advice is for Somali leaders to shift from contesting the existing limited resources and instead focus on growing the overall pie through economic development and security improvements, so there is ultimately more to go around.”
Somalia’s Zero-sum Politics Will See No Winners
23 October – Source: ISS Today – 927 Words
The announcement by Somalia’s Federal Member States in September that they’ve suspended cooperation with the Federal Government of Somalia has thrown the country into internal crisis. Amid numerous complaints, the member states are unhappy with resource and power allocation within Somalia’s federal structure. They also accuse President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed’s administration in Mogadishu of a lack of cooperation, and even outright interference in their local affairs.
While the dispute has played out differently in each of the member states, the ramifications have been most profound in Galmudug. Internal divisions in the Galmudug Interim Administration have been elevated by the dispute, with factions taking opposing sides in the debate. The roots of Galmudug’s crisis are complex, but the current rift stems from mediations last year between the Galmudug Interim Administration and Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama (ASWJ), held under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).
In December 2017, a 14-point agreement was signed that integrated ASWJ into the Galmudug Interim Administration, uniting a state administration that had been divided since its formation in 2014-15. The integration of ASWJ proceeded in a positive manner, but it also created new divisions. The December agreement was based on a power-sharing arrangement, enticing ASWJ in part by allowing its leader Sheikh Mohammed Shakir to become chief minister. ASWJ also secured other key positions, while the state assembly and security outfits were expanded to include ASWJ members. But an IGAD representative involved in the mediation process told the Institute for Security Studies in Mogadishu that the creation of the chief minister position was the key dynamic, and ‘is how we unlocked it [the negotiations]’.
This was an important development, as ASWJ had previously rejected the Galmudug Interim Administration’s formation, feeling marginalised by the process. Given the military strength of the ASWJ’s position on the ground, it was imperative to come to an understanding in order to unite the administration, especially after previous integration agreements had floundered.
While the ASWJ-Galmudug Interim Administration reconciliation was a positive story, it produced new losers in the administration concerned about diluting their status in the new arrangement. This has led Galmudug to be divided between a faction in Adado, worried about becoming marginalised as the Galmudug Interim Administration was temporarily based here, and a second in Dhusamareb, the presumptive new capital following the ASWJ agreement.
A series of attempted no-confidence motions have flown back and forth between Galmudug’s Speaker of Parliament Ali Gacal Asir, who has remained in Adado, and its President Ahmed Dualle Haaf, now based in Dhusamareb and supported by the ASWJ. The Adado faction even went ahead with plans to elect a new Galmudug Interim Administration leader on 20 October, further adding confusion to the status of the administration.
TOP TWEETS
@sntvnews1: Somali Prime Minister, @HassanAKhaire forms a ministerial committee tasked to work on the process to address concerns of regional states.
@DeeqAfrika: The best part about today at the #MTS2018 was the kids session and learning about breadboard, senses, censors and how one can automate and even make robots. I wish my own daughter Aysha was here too . SO COOL!! #MogadishuTechSummit #Mogadishu.
@Tuuryare_Africa: The only free ambulance service in#Somalia‘s capital is under threat of closure.@AaminAmbulance has a fleet of 16 ambulances but can now only afford to operate 10 on a regular basis in #Mogadishu, which suffers regular bomb attacks.https://www.bbc.com/news/
@AbdirahmanCumar: Somalia’s zero-sum politics will see no winners https://issafrica.org/iss-
@unicefsomalia: One Day. One Focus: Ending Polio. Today is#WorldPolioDay! Join UNICEF & @WHOSom in recognizing the tremendous efforts #Somalia has made in protecting its children from polio over the years. A lot has been achieved, but more remains to be done. For every child, #EndPolio!
@HarunMaruf: Picture of what’s purported to be Mahad Moallim Jajab’s dead body is circulating on social media; he was killed by men wearing army uniform believed to be Al-Shabaab who tracked him down to a house in Zone-K, Mogadishu. Mahad was operational Cmdr, not deputy leader of IS faction.
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Mogadishu Mayor Abdirahman Omar Osman and other panelists at the Mogadishu Tech Summit.
Photo: @MogTechSummit