August 13, 2013 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

Mogadishu Mayor seeks parliament’s assistance to settle land disputes

12 Aug – Source: Shabelle – 91 words

The Mayor of Mogadishu Mohamud Ahmed Nur (Tarsan) met several parliamentarians to solve the rising land disputes in the capital Mogadishu. The mayor requested the lawmakers to help in resolving the existing land cases in Mogadishu involving locals. He also raised the existing disputes between individuals and the Banadir administration over the ownership of properties. The mayor has been under the spotlight over the past few days after his administration claimed the ownership of private property. However, Mr. Tarsan is seeking the assistance of Mps to solve the recurring disputes.

Key Headlines

Somali parliament speaker travels to Uganda (Radio Mogadishu)
Somalia deal raises concerns about oil risks (Financial Times)
Security forces conduct search operation in Mogadishu (Radio Dalsan)
President Silanyo Sacks Head of Somaliland Diaspora Agency ( Somaliland Press)
Court allows al Qaeda suspects to appeal jail term (Standard Media)
Somalia’s Al-Shabaab Praises US ‘Martyrs’ in Video (ABC News)

SOMALI MEDIA

Somali parliament speaker travels to Uganda

12 Aug – Source: Bar-kulan/Radio Mogadishu – 87 words

High level delegation led by the Somali Federal Parliament speaker Pro Mohamed Osman Jawari has flown to the Ugandan capital, Kampala on Monday. The Somali speaker and his delegation received an official invitation from Ugandan government. Reports add that Mr Jawaari will meet his Ugandan counterpart during the visit. The two Parliament speakers are expected to discuss wide range of issues including relations of the two houses. Uganda was the first African country under African Union mandate to deploy peacekeeping troops to the war-ravaged horn of Africa nation.

Mogadishu Mayor seeks parliament’s assistance to settle land disputes

12 Aug – Source: Shabelle – 91 words

Security forces conduct search operation in Mogadishu

12 Aug – Source: Radio Dalsan – 88 words

Somali security forces have launched massive search operation on Monday to tackle insecurity incidents in the capital, Mogadishu. The operation which targeted some villages in Heliwaa neighborhood started early morning involving the security agencies of the federal government of Somalia and the African Union Mission in Somalia. According to local residents, the security forces arrested dozens of people mostly teenagers in suspicion of having links with al Shabaab rebels. The operation came after the residents have complained about growing insecurity accidents in their neighborhood in the past weeks.

President Silanyo Sacks Head of Somaliland Diaspora Agency

12 Aug – Source: Somaliland Press – 103 words

Somaliland President Ahmed Mohamed Mahmud (Silanyo) has on Monday issued a presidential directive # JSL/M/XILQ/249/1-1963/082013 relieving the former head of Somaliland Diaspora Agency Mr. Mahmoud Abdurrahman Ali of his duties with immediate effect. The Presidential directive further states that Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation Hon Mohamed Bihi Yonis will temporarily head the Diaspora Agency until further notice. President Silanyo thanked Mr. Mahmoud Abdurrahman Ali for his servitude to the people and the republic of Somaliland. The former Somaliland Diaspora Agency Mr. Mahmoud Abdurrahman Ali declined to attend a dinner hosted by President Silanyo for members of Somaliland Diaspora last month.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Court allows al Qaeda suspects to appeal jail term

12 Aug – Source: Standard Media – 143 words

The High Court in Malindi has allowed three foreign al Qaeda suspects serving a year at Shimo la Tewa to appeal the sentence imposed by a lower court. Their lawyer, Yusuf Abubakar, argued that his clients, who are wanted in Belgium on terror charges, ought to be set free after paying a fine. He further said that the crime of illegal entry into Kenya for which they were convicted “has the option of a fine” and slapping a custodial sentence on them was excessive. On Friday, Justice Christine Meoli ordered Ben Abdalla Ismail (French), Mustapha Bouyabaren (Belgian) and Rachid Benomari (French) to file their appeal within 14 days following an application by Yusuf. The lawyer argued his clients should have been fined and deported. Belgium’s judicial authorities say the trio belong to al Qaeda, have links with Somalia’s al Shabaab and were indicted along Hassan Kafi.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Somalia deal raises concerns about oil risks

12 Aug – Source: Financial Times – 847 Words

The signing of the new Somali government’s first oil contract with an untested company linked to a British peer raises concerns about whether the dash for oil wealth will destabilise the east African country. Last week, Michael Howard, a former leader of Britain’s ruling Conservative party and chairman of Soma Oil and Gas Exploration , signed a contract in Somalia with Mogadishu to collect data on onshore and offshore oil . It was the first such contract by any international company. In exchange for collecting data, Soma has the right to apply for up to 12 oil blocks in an area seen by oil majors as one of the final frontiers for the commodity. The company, which has not undertaken a seismic survey before, was incorporated in the UK last month with capital of £0.001.

Somalia’s Al-Shabaab Praises US ‘Martyrs’ in Video

12 Aug – Source: ABC News – 134 words

The Islamic extremist from Minnesota smiles as he compares Somalia to Disneyland, urging other Muslims to come and “take pleasure in this fun.” But Troy Kastigar, one of three fighters featured in a nearly 40-minute Internet video recently released by the Somali extremist rebel group al-Shabab, was killed in 2009, not long after leaving Minneapolis to join the militants’ bloody campaign to seize power in Somalia. At the time al Shabab held sway in large parts of the capital, Mogadishu, and was fighting African Union troops sent to back the transitional government there. Although the al Qaeda-linked al-Shabab has previously made videos to seek out potential recruits, the latest video focuses on the tragic stories of a trio praised by the narrator as the “Minnesotan martyrs” whose “decisive moment” came when they were killed in combat.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“In Somaliland 75% of young people are jobless and migration is high. Daihei Mochizuki, from IOM Somalia tells us why effective policies must see both issues as interrelated”

Going against the drain: migration and youth unemployment in Somaliland

12 Aug – Source: The Guardian/Somaliland press – 836 Words

Somaliland is actually one of three governments (Somaliland, Puntland and the federal government of Somalia) the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) serves in this region. Despite the known challenges and insecurity in the region, our work in Somaliland focuses developmental assistance on irregular migration and youth unemployment. There is good reason for this: according to Somaliland’s National Development Programme, youth unemployment stands at 75%, much higher than Somalia’s national average. Somaliland’s relative stability attracts youths from all over Somalia – despite there being few opportunities for formal employment. To be able to design suitable programmes, we’ve first had to find out who makes up this 75%. The figure comes from an assessment made by Somaliland National Youth Organization (Sonya) in which they interviewed 800 youths between the ages of 15 and 30: their sample included rural and urban youths, male and females and students and non-students.