April 13, 2012 | Morning Headlines.
The government congratulates Somali Armed Forces on 52nd anniversary
12 Apr – Source: TFG – 191 words
Somali government officials have honored the 52nd anniversary on Thursday which marks the establishment of Somali Armed Forces whose foundation was laid on April 12, 1960.
President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali sent out messages of appreciation to the brave servicemen and women who dedicated their lives to the protection of the nation and its people.
Key Headlines
- Somali president says his government will help Puntland fight al Shabaaab (Shabelle)
- Ministers gathered in Addis Ababa to discuss Somalia security (Radio Kulmiye)
- Banadir governor: Some TFG officials involved in theater blast (Mareeg Online)
- Al Shabaab militants fleeing to Northern mountains officials say (Al Shahid)
- Analyst says Somali pirates have new weapons from Libya (Reuters)
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali president says his government will help Puntland fight al Shabaab
12 Apr – Source: Shabelle – 164 words
TFG president Sheikh Sharif Sheik Ahmed said on Thursday that his government is ready to help the Puntland administration based in northern Somalia to assure its security.
“There is a military plan set up to launch offensive against militants who are regrouping in Galgala mountains in north east Puntland. God willing we will defeat them”, the Somali president told reporters in Mogadishu.
Ahlu Sunna calls for humanitarian aid for displaced families in Galgadud region
12 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 123 words
Ahlu Sunna administration in central Somalia region has called for an immediate humanitarian aid for the recently displaced people in the region following clashes between them and al Shabaab.
Hundreds of families, mainly women and children, are facing humanitarian crisis in remote areas of the region after fleeing their homes to escape the recent clashes in the region, according to Ahlu Sunna officials, Omar Sheikh Mohamed.
Ministers gathered in Addis Ababa to discuss Somalia security
12 Apr- Source: Radio Kulmiye- 106 words
Defence ministers from 18 African countries are gathering in Addis Ababa to discuss Somalia’s peacekeeping operation and security developments.
The meeting which was hosted by the prime minister Males Zenawe is one of the most influential security conferences in the region; TFG minister of defence Hussein Arab Isseh is attending the meeting as he is expected to deliver a message from the Somali government.
Al Shabaab bans chewing, selling Khat in southern Somalia regions
12 Apr – Source: Shabelle – 124 words
The Islamist militants of al Shabaab in Somalia yesterday banned chewing and trading of the popular narcotic green leaves of Khat from many of their stronghold regions in southern war-torn horn of Africa country, locals said.
According to a resident who spoke anonymously, militants loyal to al Shabaab ordered days ago to people in some districts in Gedo, Bay and Bakol region of south and western Somalia to refrain from the use, sale and consumption of Khat.
Somali armed forces day marked in Beledweyne
12 Apr – Source: Bar-kulan – 158 words
Somalia’ armed forces day was marked yesterday in the central Somali town of Beledweyne for the first time in five years. The day, April 12 is always celebrated in commemoration of the establishment of the national Armed Forces in 1960 and today’s event marks the 52nd anniversary of the Somali Armed Forces.
Officials from the regional authority, military personnel and civil society leaders in the region attended the event in Beledweyne town. TFG troops in the city staged a military parade in honour of the day.
Banadir governor: Some TFG officials involved in theater blast
12 Apr – Source: Mareeg Online – 191 words
The governor of Banadir administration for the TFG Mohamud Ahmed Nur ( Tarsan) disclosed on Thursday that some TFG officials are involved in the deadly suicide bomb blast at the national theater in Mogadishu last week.
While chatting on the paltalk, a social networking with many Somali youths living outside the country, the governor cast suspicion on some officials in Somali government. He said: “there is a suspicion that TFG members could behind the attack.”
REGIONAL MEDIA
Al Shabaab militants fleeing to Northern mountains, officials say
12 Apr- Source: Al Shahid- 183 words
Al Shabaab militants are fleeing to Somalia’s Northern Mountains after being pushed out of central Somalia, officials said. The officials say they are gathering in Puntland’s Galgala Mountains and the Golis range that borders Somaliland.
Abdirahman Farole, the President of the semi-autonomous Puntland says al Shabaab fighters and commanders have been arriving over the past few days.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Analyst says Somali pirates have new weapons from Libya
12 Apr- Source: Reuters- 390 words
Somali pirates have acquired sophisticated weaponry and are likely to use them in bolder attacks on shipping, a senior maritime security analyst said on Thursday.
“We found that Libyan weapons are being sold in what is the world’s biggest black market for illegal gun smugglers, and Somali pirates are among those buying from sellers in Sierra Leone, Liberia and other countries,” said Judith van der Merwe, of the African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism.
Somalia conflict keeps Ethiopia’s Dolo Ado refugee camp busy – audio slideshow
Fleeing conflict, drought and famine in Somalia, about 130 people arrive daily at the Dolo Ado refugee camp in south-west Ethiopia. The number represents a significant decrease compared with last summer, but – as clashes continue between al Shabaab and Ethiopian troops across the river border – humanitarian agencies are worried that increased fighting or drought could once again turn a manageable trickle of arrivals into a flood.
Danish navy frees hostages from pirates off Somalia
12 Apr – Source: Reuters – 255 words
The Danish navy captured 16 Somali pirates and freed 12 captives when it intercepted a “mothership” vessel off the Horn of Africa, it said on Thursday. The Danish warship Absalon, serving in NATO’s counter-piracy mission Ocean Shield, stopped the vessel off the east coast of Somalia on Wednesday, boarded it without resistance, arrested the suspected Somali pirates and found the hostages.
“The operation was carried out without use of armed force,” the Danish navy command said in a statement.
Somali pirates release Panama-flagged ship amid ransom reports
12 Apr- Source: Reuters- 373 words
Somali pirates have released a Panama-flagged vessel they seized two months ago allowing it to continue on its way to the breakaway enclave of Somaliland, the ship’s agent and a government official said on Thursday.
Pirates hijacked the MV Leila in February near Oman, seizing the ship with its cargo of goods and cars, and then sailing it to the semi-autonomous region of Puntland in Somalia.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“In partnership with a local woman I created the first sexual-violence crisis centre in Mogadishu. Last month the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) formed a sexual-violence task force, so there is some very new recognition of the crisis in Somalia. This is because, now that some areas have been seized from the Shabab, these women can actually be reached. The last I heard there had been 2,200 cases of sexual violence reported in and around Mogadishu.”
The worst place in the world to be a woman
12 Apr- Source: Economist Blog-884 Words
My interest in Somalia grew out of the fact that it’s considered to be one of the worst places on Earth to be a woman. It has near-universal female genital mutiliation. Women are locked out of healthcare, so the figures on infant mortality and death during childbirth are unknown, but certainly terrible. It has widespread domestic violence and, on top of that, 20 years of complete instability in which women were forced to flee their homes. In south-central Somalia you also have the impact of the Shabab [an Islamist militia].