April 21, 2015 | Morning Headlines.
Update: Ten Killed As Bomb Targets Bus Carrying UN Employees
20 April – Source: Hiiraan Online – 168 Words
A bomb tore apart a bus carrying UN employees in northern Somalia on Monday, killing at least ten people and wounding seven others in a rare attack in Garowe, Puntland, the semi-autonomous region, officials told Hiiraan Online. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the blast in Garowe town which sent shockwaves across a region. The vehicle was carrying employees of the United Nations Children’s Fund to the office when a bomb planted under a seat was detonated by remote control, according to the police. In a statement issued after the blast, UNICEF confirmed four of its staff were killed in the explosion. United Nations representative for Somalia Nicholas Kay condemned the ‘appalling’ attack, as the Somali president sent condolences to the families and relatives of the victims of the blast. Puntland, has been fighting a stubborn insurgency by the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabab group which sent fighters to the region to topple the region’s government.
Key Headlines
- KDF Should Stay In Somalia Until Their Job Is Done – MP (The Star Kenya/All Africa)
- Update: Ten Killed As Bomb Targets Bus Carrying UN employees (Hiiraan Online)
- President: We Grieve With The UN Family And Condemn The Horrific Brutality Of Al-Shabaab (Goobjoog News)
- Puntland Names Committee After UN Bus Attack (Garowe Online)
- Somali Minister For Planning Reaches Adado (Goobjoog News)
- San Diego Police Shot Somali Suspect Over Robbery (Somali Current)
- On The Enemy Side? Riddle Of Missing KDF-Trained Youth (Standard Digital)
- Terror Suspect Out On Sh 2 Million Bond Faces Fresh Charges (The Star Kenya)
- Kenya Needs To Target Terrorists Not Its Muslims (Chicago Tribune/Bloomberg)
- Minnesota Has ‘A Terror Recruiting Problem’ (Business Insider)
PRESS STATEMENT
UN Special Representative For Somalia Condemns Terrorist Attack On UN In Garowe
20 April – Source: UNSOM – 235 Words
The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, expressed outrage at today’s terrorist attack that resulted in the death of four UNICEF staff and two guards. Several others were injured. “I am shocked and horrified by what took place today in Garowe. The complete disregard for the lives of people working on the humanitarian and development needs of the people of Somalia is despicable,” said SRSG Kay.
At about 8:00 this morning, an explosion took place targeting a UN vehicle in Garowe, Puntland, Somalia. It is suspected that a suicide bomber was used in the attack. Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility. “This was a blatant act of terrorism and a desperate attempt to derail Somalia’s path towards peace and stability,” said SRSG Kay. “I commend the swift response of Puntland’s security forces and medical staff and all of the United Nations team in Garowe,” said SRSG Kay. “I would like to express my gratitude to the Puntland government and people for the support and concern they have shared with us.
SRSG Kay offers his deep condolences to the families and friends of those who have been killed as a result of this barbaric act and wishes a swift recovery to those injured. He expresses his appreciation to United Nations staff in Somalia for their continued dedication under difficult circumstances.
AU Special Representative Condemns Attack On The UN Convoy In Garowe
20 April – Source: AMISOM – 156 Words
Mogadishu – April 20th, 2015; The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia and Head of AMISOM,Ambassador Maman Sidikou has condemned the gruesome attack on a UN Vehicle in Garowe resulting in the loss of innocent humanitarian workers for which the terrorist group Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility.
Ambassador Sidikou said that Al-Shabaab is targeting the lives of unarmed humanitarian workers performing their duty of helping the people of Somalia and that such an attack amounted to a crime against humanity.
The AU Special Representative said the African Union and the international community at large will not be deterred by Al-Shabaab’s desperate attempts to derail progress made on both the political and security fronts in Somalia. He also condoles with the families, relations and friends of those who lost their lives and prays for quick recovery of those injured.
NATIONAL MEDIA
President: We Grieve With The UN Family And Condemn The Horrific Brutality Of Al-Shabaab
20 April – Source: Goobjoog News – 412 Words
President of the Federal Republic of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud today condemned in the strongest possible terms, the attack on a United Nations convoy in Garowe, Somalia. Speaking from Aqaba, Jordan, where he and other members of the Federal. Government are attending a conference on eradicating terrorism in East Africa. The President said, “I am horrified at this brutal attack targeting the United Nations. I send my deepest sympathies to the families of those who were killed or injured this morning. Those involved will be in my prayers- remembered for their faithful work in support of a peaceful and prosperous Somalia. “I offer my heartfelt condolences to Mr. Ban-Ki Moon, Mr Nicholas Kay, and the leaders of those countries whose citizens were involved. “This attack is not just targeted at the United Nations, but in attacking UNICEF, al-Shabaab has also attacked Somali children. It is an attack against the future of our country and I condemn it in the strongest possible terms…This attack confirms what I have always said, Al-Shabaab is not interested in the future of Somalia; it is only interested in pushing its own extremist agenda for its own perverted purposes. It strikes out at innocent people, indiscriminately killing sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers. I, and the Federal Government, stand in solidarity with the United Nations family at this time. We grieve as they grieve. I assure the United Nations that an immediate investigation has begun, and we welcome their participation in the investigation…I urge full cooperation with Puntland security forces and recognise their steadfast work in ridding Puntland of these terrorists. There can be no mistake, as the Somali National Army and our international partners bring back Somalia under the control of the Federal Government, Al-Shabaab is lashing out; thrashing in its death throes. We must be alert and watchful and report any suspicious behaviour that we witness to law enforcement authorities and security agencies. If we want a land free of violence and death, we must work together to bring peace,” the President concluded.
Puntland Names Committee After UN Bus Attack
20 April – Source: Garowe Online – 251 Words
Somalia’s northeastern state of Puntland has named a ministerial-level committee set to investigate the attack on a bus carrying United Nations staffers in the state capital of Garowe, Garowe Online reports. Among the 5-member committee are Security Minister Hassan Osman Mohamud Allore, Information Minister Abdiweli Hirsi Abdulle, State Minister for Health Abdulahi Jama Ali, Puntland Police Chief Gen. Mohamed Saed Jaqanaf and Intelligence head Col. Abdullahi.
Puntland Vice President was quick to tour the scene of the attack, calling the broad day light incident ‘futile, brutal and inhumane’ that would not derail the peace and stability of the region. “We strongly condemn this brutal and inhumane attack. The government gives assurances that such rampages will not hurt existence and stability of Puntland,” Vice President Amey told journalists on the scene of the UN bus attack. Al-Shabaab has taken responsibility for attack. Puntland Defence Forces are battling Al Shabaab fighters in the rugged terrain of Galgala and hideouts along Golis Mountain Ranges. On Saturday, militants launched raid on Police compound in the Gulf of Aden port city of Bossaso.
Somali Minister For Planning Reached In Adado
20 April – Source: Goobjoog News – 92 Words
High delegation led by minister for planning and international cooperation, Abdirahman Aynte reached Adado town on Monday. The minister and his delegation were highly welcomed at Adado airport by some government officials and traditional elders. Ministers for interior affairs and minister of state for presidential affairs Abdirahman Odawaa and Mahad Mohamed Salad are currently in Adado town for official talks. Meanwhile, Somali central state formation conference is ongoing in the presidential palace of Himan and Heb State.
San Diego Police Shot Somali Suspect Over Robbery
20 April – Source: Somali Current – 573 Words
A suspect of Somali origin is being held in police cells after deadly store robbery early Thursday that ended with a police shootout that left the suspect wounded at City Heights in San Diego, police said in a statement. “Ahmed Hassan Mumin, 30, a resident of San Diego was taken to a hospital and has been booked into jail on charges of murder, armed robbery and attempted murder of two police officers,” police officials said soon after the fracas. Officers stated that they were investigating the Thursday robbery incident at Clairemont Arco station that left a customer dead when they encountered the suspect early Saturday.
Investigators had identified a potential suspect on Friday and believe he was in the area of Winona Avenue near Wightman Street. A surveillance operation was underway when police received a 911 call about 12:50 a.m. that an armed prowler was trying to break into several apartments nearby, said police homicide Lt. Paul Rorrison. Several officers began a search of the Bandar Salaam apartment complex, and at 2:50 a.m. two officers prepared to search a community room there. As the detectives approached the door, the suspect began shooting through the door, narrowly missing both officers, Rorrison said.
The detectives both returned fire, and at least one round struck Mumin in the torso, police said. “The suspect surrendered and was taken to Scripps Mercy Hospital in Hillcrest. His condition is not alarming,” police spokesman Rorrison said. Speaking in Somali through an interpreter, 83-year-old Ugaso Elmi , a resident in the area, said she heard the shots and knew immediately they were gunfire outdoors. “I decided to stay indoors,” she said. Two detectives were hurt when the gunfight broke out, but their names had not been released. They have been on the force for 25 and 12 years. “In the robbery Thursday, Mumin is suspected of fatally shooting Eric Schade, 48, of San Diego, who had stopped by the gas station to ask for a light. The robber entered the gas station on Balboa Avenue about 3:40 a.m. and demanded both Schade and the clerk get on the ground. The clerk told police he got down and gave the robber cash, and heard the robber demand again that Schade comply. Then the gunshot rang out,” a local paper reported Friday.
Though surveillance footage of the robber was released to the public, it was unclear how detectives connected Mumin to the crime. Records in the police book show Mumin was issued a security guard license by the state six years ago, and the license was to expire two years later. No disciplinary actions were listed under the license. A man going by the suspect’s name was interviewed by federal authorities in 2009 at the Philadelphia International Airport soon after he had arrived from Somalia, via Djibouti and London, as it appears in the 2010 U.S. Homeland Security threat assessment report for the San Diego area. A naturalized U.S. citizen, he told authorities he had been in Somalia caring for his ailing grandmother until her death. “I know of a person whose family member recruits for Al Shabab here in San Diego” he told the authorities then, according to the Times of San Diego. San Diego, and particularly the neighborhood of City Heights, is home to a thriving Somali community, one of the largest in the United States.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
On The Enemy Side? Riddle Of Missing KDF-Trained Youth
20 April – Source: Standard Digital – 1, 712 Words
Nairobi, Kenya – As the government moves ahead with an expensive project to build a controversial security fence on sections of Kenya’s 700 km border with Somalia to keep out terrorists, it has a bigger headache. Thousands of youths recruited six years ago to fight alongside Somali troops are now battle- hardened men in the early 30s. Quite a number have returned home bitter after the government failed to pay the Sh 255,000 ($3000) per month it promised them when they accepted the offer in 2009.
It is not clear how the figure was arrived at, but for youths who had never imagined earning six-figure salaries, the chance to take home the monthly equivalent of the salary of the Inspector General of the National Police Service, minus the benefits, proved too good to resist. With the total number of youths recruited estimated at 4,000, this would have amounted to Sh1 billion per month (Sh12 billion a year) in 2009 when the process started. The generous figure is just zeroes shy of what a Major-General in the Kenya Defence Forces earns monthly.
Kenyan soldiers attached to the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) were being paid Sh84,296 ($1,028) as allowances on top of their salaries in 2012, when the Kenyan youths were fighting in Somalia. Most of the youths were Somalis from Garissa, Wajir, Mandera and Isiolo. They were recruited when Yusuf Haji was Defence Minister and MP for Ijara, under the Grand Coalition Government of President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Haji is now the Garissa Senator. Up to 148 people, a majority of them students, were massacred at the Garissa University College two weeks ago by a Kenyan cell of Al-Shabaab.
The youths who went missing, were trained at a military base at Archer’s Post in Samburu, and the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) training facility at Manyani in Taita-Taveta between 2009 and 2011, to fight alongside former Somalia Transitional Federal Government (TFG) troops after they were promised lucrative terms. Others were trained in Uganda, Ethiopia and Djibouti. They were also promised insurance running into millions of shillings for them and their families, prime plots in Ras Kamboni and Kismayu and permanent resettlement as part of the deal to fight rising threats from the Islamic Courts Union and its allies led by Al-Shaabab. Because of the secretive nature of the Government’s defence spending, it is close to impossible to ascertain if any funds were set aside for the purpose, but it is clear that very little, if any, trickled down to the youths, who quickly became frustrated, bitter and vengeful.
The Standard has interviewed some of the fighters who have since returned to Northern Kenya and are still angry about the Government’s unfulfilled promise. The Government is unable to trace the former youths and a significant number remain in Somalia, with some believed to have joined Al-Shabaab and returned home to form “sleeper cells” and await orders to carry out terror attacks. In April 2009, donors at a UN-sponsored conference pledged over $250 million to improve security in Somalia. The funds were for Amisom and the Somali police.
Terror Suspect Out On Sh2 Million Bond Faces Fresh Charges
20 April – Source: The Star, Kenya – 126 Words
A Muslim cleric arrested for allegedly funding the al Shabaab terror group will be detained for 30 more days for investigations. Hassan Omar was not charged at MIlimani Law Courts on Monday after the prosecution requested more time for a probe. Omar, who was arrested last Friday is facing a separate charge of being found in possession of two hand grenades and committing a terrorism act alongside his wife Fardosa Abdi. They were allegedly found with the grenades on April 1, 2014 at Madina Apartments in Eastleigh Section 7. They were released on Sh20 million bond each over the pending case. Resident magistrate Ben Nzakyo ordered Omar held at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison until May 20.
Kenya Needs To Target Terrorists, Not Its Muslims
20 April – Source: Chicago Tribune/Bloomberg – 637 Words
Kenya’s plan to close the Dadaab refugee camp, about 50 miles from the Somali border, is intended to reduce the chance of attacks by al-Shabaab, the Somalia-based militant group that recently murdered more than 140 people at a Kenyan university. It’s likely to have the opposite effect. Kicking almost 400,000 displaced Somalis back into a mostly lawless, poverty-wracked land will create more misery — and thus more terrorist recruits.
It will also make an ugly backdrop for President Barack Obama’s planned July visit to Kenya and give the lie to Obama’s contention that U.S. cooperation with Kenya and other African nations in fighting al-Shabaab has been a model effort against terrorism. Since 2011, when Kenyan troops joined the fight against al- Shabaab in Somalia, the Islamic extremists have conducted more than 100 attacks in Kenya, killing at least 400 people. Although the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta has sought to blame these on Somali infiltrators, al-Shabaab is by now well established within Kenya itself. Five of the suspected gunmen who shot up Garissa University College on April 2, for instance, were Kenyan. And Garissa is the capital of Kenya’s North Eastern Province, home to many Kenyan Muslims of Somali descent and one of the country’s most neglected and underdeveloped areas. In fact, most of the college’s students are from elsewhere; the northeast, in addition to having the country’s highest unemployment and second-worst access to electricity, has the fewest students in tertiary education.
Al-Shabaab has made no secret about its strategy to exploit Kenya’s inequalities and divisions. The government’s discrimination and harsh repressive measures against Kenya’s Muslims, who make up 11 percent of the population, have only made al-Shabaab’s job easier. Muslims are underrepresented in government and discriminated against, too; to get a national identity card for access to government services, they must overcome extra hurdles. Many of these grievances were cataloged in a landmark 2008 report commissioned by the government, which has yet to do anything about them. Most urgently, it needs to curb the excesses of the security forces — the single greatest reason that Kenyan al-Shabaab recruits give for joining — and investigate and punish those who have committed them. Harsh security tactics– collective punishments, human-rights abuses, even “disappearances” and assassinations of Muslim community leaders — have become commonplace.
Minnesota Has ‘A Terror Recruiting Problem’
20 April – Source: Business Insider – 346 Words
Six people have been arrested in two states in connection with a terrorism investigation in Minnesota, where investigators have been tracking youths who have traveled or tried to travel to Syria to fight with militants, including the Islamic State group, authorities said. Mohamed Farah, 21; Adnan Farah, 19; Abdirahman Daud, 21; Guled Omar, 20; Hanad Musse, 19; and Zacharia Abdurahman, 19, were arrested on terror-related charges, according to a criminal complaint cited by local television station KARE. They are all from Minnesota.
“We have a terror recruiting problem in Minnesota,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said during a Monday morning press conference. “The problem will not go away unless we address it head-on,” he added. “It’s not a Somali problem, it’s not an immigrant problem. It’s our problem. It’s a Minnesota problem.” Ben Petok, a spokesman for the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office, said earlier that the arrests were made Sunday in Minneapolis and San Diego and that there is no threat to public safety, Petok added.
Authorities say a handful of Minnesota residents have traveled to Syria to fight with militants within the last year. At least one Minnesotan has died while fighting for the Islamic State. Since 2007, more than 22 young Somali men have also traveled from Minnesota to Somalia to join the militant group al-Shabab. Four Minnesotans have already been charged in connection with supporting terror groups in Syria, including the Islamic State group.
OPINION/ANALYSIS/CULTURE
“I am one of the teachers asking teachers not to return. We do not want you to be killed”
KDF Should Stay In Somalia Until Their Job Is Done – MP
20 April – Source: The Star, Kenya/All Africa – 293 Words
The government should not be deterred by those calling for the withdrawal of troops from Somalia, Kitui South MP Dr. Rachel Kaki Nyamai has said. Speaking at Kanziku area of Kitui South, the legislator said that Kenya government must not withdraw its troops from Somalia until they finalize the task that took them there in the first place. Dr. Nyamai, who had attended a burial ceremony of Kitui County’s eleventh victim of the Garissa University College terrorist attack, said that parliament is demanding answers to the many incidences of terrorist attacks and threats facing the country.
She said that there have been many deaths in the country and parliament must be given answers by those claiming to know the masterminds in the requested 30 days. She blamed the police for not doing enough to prevent attacks and urged government teachers who have refused to return for duty in north eastern part of Kenya not to return. “I am one of the teachers asking teachers not to return. We do not want you to be killed” she said. “It is more annoying that those who claim to know the attackers are not foreigners but Kenyan citizens” she added. Dr. Nyamai complained that her calls to the police to investigate the claim that South Kitui game reserve in her constituency hosts terrorists have not been taken seriously.