April 3, 2014 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

Italy government contributes 28 vehicles to Somali Police

02 Apr- Source:Radio Mogadishu/ Somalicurrent/SNTV- 86 words

Government of Italy contributed 28 vehicles to Somali federal government police in a bid of reinforcing the performance of the Somali police unit. In a handing over ceremony held in the capital of the Somalia Mogadishu, Somali Prime minister Abdiwali Sheikh Ahmed thanked Italy government for their generous support for Somalia. Italy ambassador to Somalia and also European Union official Andrew Mazelle also attended this handing over ceremony. Prime minister Abdiwali Sheikh also stated that his government is committed to work on the security and extremism.

Key Headlines

Somali president in Brussels for EU-Africa summit (Hiiraan Online)
Italy government contributes 28 vehicles to Somali Police (Radio Mogadishu)
Parliamentary Speaker meets with SWS3 President in Baidoa (Radio Shabelle)
Somalia-Somaliland aviation talks gets underway in Turkey (Somaliland Informer)
Security meeting held in Galkayo (Radio Shabelle)
Somalia government makes gains but al Shabaab defiant (New Vission)
Somalis yearn for a musical renaissance (Al Jazeera)
Nairobi’s Little Mogadishu (Anatolia News Agency)
Kenyan Muslim groups threaten protest over Islamist shooting (Reuters)

SOMALI MEDIA

Somali president in Brussels for EU-Africa summit
02 Apr- Source: Hiiraan Online- 221 words

Somali President Hassan Sheik Mahmoud is in Brussels where he is attending the European Union and African heads of states summit which kicked off in Brussels today. Some African presidents boycotted the meeting while some others including Omar Al Bashir were not invited. President Hassan is amongst 80 heads of states who gathered in Brussels today for the two-day summit which will discuss various issues such as economic growth, security, education and other key sectors. Somali president is expected to address the summit, to brief the 80 heads of states on the latest developments in Somalia. Including the recent security operations by Somali forces and AU peacekeepers who ousted the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab militants from more lands in south-Central Somalia.

Italy government contributes 28 vehicles to Somali Police

02 Apr- Source:Radio Mogadishu/ Somalicurrent/SNTV- 86 words

Parliamentary Speaker meets with SWS3 President in Baidoa

03 Mar- Source: Radio Shabelle- 72 words

The Speaker of the Somali Parliament Mohamed Sheikh Osman Jawari hosted a meeting with the newly elected president of the 3-region south western state. Also present at the meeting were delegates, intellectuals and other politicians and was held at Hotel Bakin in Baidoa. Mr Jawari urged them to resolve the political differences in Baidoa and other areas of the Bay region through peaceful dialogue to form their rightful administration.

Somalia-Somaliland aviation talks gets underway in Turkey

02 Apr- Source: Somalilandinformer- 174 Words

Delegations from the government of Somalia and those from Somaliland republic are currently meeting in the Turkish city of Istanbul to further have discussions regarding the future responsibility of the country’s air traffic control. The resumption of talks follows previously held talks between the two sides in Turkey that the overall control of the country’s air space control must be taken back by the two authorities. Somali Minister of Air and Land Transport Hon. Said Jama Qorshel briefed the state run media that both sides are having serious dialogue on avenues that Somaliland and Somalia will regain the airspace traffic control after decades of her air controlled by the International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO. Both sides stated that the talks will bear fruit and that it will pave the way for both sides to resolve misunderstanding about who to take the control of the airspace. The last meeting that the two sides held their Turkish hosted summit ended that the two sides will jointly manage the air space and share revenues on equal basis.

Diaspora women fund renovation of Garbaharey hospital

02 Apr- Source: Radio Ergo- 234 words

Somali Diaspora women are funding the renovation of Gedo region’s largest hospital in Garbaharey. Lul Mohamed Aden, the spokesperson of a group of diaspora women who hail from the region, said about $400,000 would be spent on construction and renovation work at the hospital, to enable much needed medical services to be brought to local people. “Gedo region which consists of eight districts is a very large region and has a big population. We want to help our people back here,” Aden told Radio Ergo’s local reporter. Building work began on the hospital 23 years ago, but was stopped because of the civil war. Between then and now, the only services available at a smaller facility in the town were mother-and-child health and TB services. Aden has recently returned to Garbaharey for the first time since fleeing the country at the start of the civil war in the early 1990s. She lives in Britain, while other members of the group are from USA, Finland and Australia. They raised funds among their friends and families. The women said as the security in Somalia had been improving they felt it was a good time to help their people back home to get the services they desperately need. “The health needs here in Gedo are overwhelming,” Aden said. The plans are to construct 40 wards in the hospital in order to cater for the various medical needs.

Security meeting held in Galkayo

02 Apr- Source: Radio Shabelle- 63 words

The president of the Galmudug state Abdi Hassan Awaale Qeybdiid met today with community members and civil society groups in Galkayo. Mr Qeybdiid mentioned that his administration is intensifying its operations to strengthen the security of Galkayo and prevent any insecurity acts in any of Galmudug towns. The meeting was held Wednesday after recent rumors went round that al Shabaab members are finding their way into Galmudug.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Somalia government makes gains but al Shabaab defiant

02 Apr- Source: New Vision- 793 words

Somalia’s government is celebrating the capture of a string of towns from al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab rebels, but the Islamists say they will retaliate and warn the “war is far from over.” The offensive by African Union forces backing Somali government troops began last month, with al Shabaab fighters largely fleeing in advance, escaping unscathed to strike back in guerrilla attacks. “The enemy is facing defeat on multiple frontlines… the aim is to liberate those areas where Al-Shebab generate income, train militants and recruit,” Somali Interior Minister Abdullahi Godah Bare told AFP.

Somalis yearn for a musical renaissance

03 Apr- Source: Aljazeera- 497 words

Just before the weekend, a crowd of about 20 people gather around silver-haired Jiim Sheikh Muumin at a sandy white beach on the edge of the Somali capital. Jiim, as everyone refers to him, is a well-known Somali musician and actor and the crowd of mainly young men has gathered to hear him sing. Thirty years ago, Somalis would have paid a fortune to watch him perform at Mogadishu’s national theatre – let alone rub shoulders with him at Liido beach. Before the civil war, he was a rock star with a big Afro and bell-bottom jeans.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Nairobi’s Little Mogadishu

02 Apr- Source: Anatolia News Agency- 398 words

The call to prayer emanating from the minarets of several local mosques competes with honking taxis and shouting street hawkers selling anything from Islamic DVDs to the latest Bollywood movies. Welcome to Eastleigh, a residential neighborhood in capital Nairobi known as “Little Mogadishu” due to its large Somali population. It is here that enterprising Somali refugees first set up shop after fleeing the fighting back home following the 1991 ouster of strongman Siad Barre. Hundreds of people push and shove along the muddy sidewalks outside four-storied shopping malls bearing names like “Bangkok,” “Dubai” and “Emirates.”

Kenyan Muslim groups threaten protest over Islamist shooting

02 Apr- Source: Reuters- 105 words

Two prominent Kenyan Muslim rights groups threatened on Wednesday to stage street protests in the port city of Mombasa unless the government met a Saturday deadline to say who had killed a prominent Islamist. The ultimatum was issued a day after the drive-by shooting of Abubakar Shariff, also known as Makaburi, who the United States and U.N. Security Council accuse of supporting the Somali militant group al Shabaab. Mombasa-based Muslims for Human Rights (Muhuri) and Haki Africa have in the past both accused Kenya’s Anti-Terror Police Unit (ATPU) of carrying out extra-judicial killings of well-known Muslims, a charge the police have always strongly denied.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“Kenya-Somalia cooperation should be guided by a common post-al Shabaab vision. The group’s capacity has been significantly degraded, but they are not yet done. A combination of African troops under AMISOM and the Somali National Army has pushed the group from most of their territories. This combined momentum against the group could potentially turn the tide and presents an opportunity for peace and stability in Somalia.”

Kenya and Somalia must work together on post al Shabaab security

02 Apr – Source: African Arguments – 903 words
Last week’s attack on a Likoni church in the coastal city of Mombasa, and the subsequent Eastleigh blast in Nairobi, are grim reminders of the precarious state of Kenya’s security. If the current situation is not judiciously handled, it could easily be exploited and then morph into a sectarian conflict. Kenya’s handling of the war on terror and, broadly, its fight against al Shabaab provide clues for a better understanding of the Likoni church attack and the recent escalation of violence in Kenya. For al Shabaab – the alleged perpetrator of the Likoni attack – just like al Qaeda, there is a logic to targeting places of worship. They intend to drive a wage between faiths and ignite a conflict between Muslims and non-Muslims. Al Qaeda did it in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Egypt and Mali. At the national level, however, Kenya is playing into al-Shabaab’s hands. In 2012, a year after the intervention in Somalia, a draconian anti-terrorism bill was passed. Kenyan law enforcement has used the bill as a blank check against any communities that it does not entirely trust – especially Kenyan Somalis. While marginalization of Somalis is nothing new, the new law provides a degree of legitimacy for it.