December 1, 2017 | Daily Monitoring Report
Lithuania Establishes Diplomatic Relations With Somalia
30 November – Source: Ministry of Foreign of Lithuanian – 202 Words
On the margins of the ongoing African Union – European Union summit in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia Yusuf Garaad Omar on 30 November signed a Joint Communiqué on the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. In the meeting, Linkevičius presented Lithuania’s participation in Operation Atalanta – the European Union’s counter-piracy operation off the coast of Somalia and briefed about the departure on 29 November of Lithuanian soldiers to take part in the operation. The Foreign Ministers also discussed Somalia’s internal challenges, the country’s future prospects, and security situation in the region.
Lithuania has participated in the EU’s counter-piracy operation off the coast of Somalia since 2013. The Lithuanian soldiers will protect the vessel of the United Nations World Food Program sailing in the Indian Ocean and carrying food to Somalia. It is already the fourth rotation of Lithuanian soldiers, who will participate in the operation with about 1,000 forces from EU member states and partner countries, as well as ships and aircraft, until March 2018. Somalia became the 184th country with which Lithuania has established diplomatic relations. Currently, the United Nations has 193 member states.
Key Headlines
- Lithuania Establishes Diplomatic Relations With Somalia (MFA.it)
- Somalia: 2nd Minister In New HirShabelle Cabinet Quits (Garowe Online)
- Galmudug and ASWJ Reach A Preliminary Deal In Djibouti (Dhacdo.com)
- UN Trains Somali Health Workers On Containing Cholera Malnutrition (Xinhuanet)
- It Is Up To Somalia To Combat Al-Shabab (Washington Times)
NATIONAL
Somalia: 2nd Minister In New HirShabelle Cabinet Quits
30 November – Source: Garowe Online – 150 Words
The Minister of State for Security and Rehabilitation in the newly appointed cabinet of HirShabelle state Mr. Muhsin Mohamed announced his resignation on Thursday, citing personal reasons, Garowe Online reports. Mr. Mohamed is the second state minister to step down, a day after Minister of State for Posts and Telecommunications Ismail Mr. Mohamed Ulosow resigned over what he described lack of consultation.
Both ministers were members of 57 members cabinet appointed on Wednesday, November 29 by the President of HirShabelle Mohamed Abdi Waare, who is currently facing new challenges from Parliament. HirShabelle which is the last Somali Federal Member State established at end of 2016, has been beset by political turmoil, and power-sharing disputes in the past few months. The regional Parliament has kicked out the state’s first President Ali Abdullahi Osoble in August this year, following a no-confidence motion filed by MPs accused him of incompetence and poor leadership.
Galmudug and ASWJ Reach A Preliminary Deal In Djibouti
01 December – Source: Dhacdo.com – 144 Words
Galmudug and Ahlu Sunna Wal Jama’a (ASWJ) have reportedly reached a preliminary agreement in Djibouti capital city following days of talks. Galmudug Deputy President Mr. Mohamed Hashi Abdi “Arrabey” said the two sides agreed on the following issues: a) ASWJ recognizes Galmudug as the regional state in the region, b) it accepts to join Galmudug and its represented members in the regional assembly and, c) members of its group also be appointed as the Governor of Galgadud, chairmanship of the High Court and commanders of the intelligence and police forces.
The two sides will officially sign a deal that will be unveiled to the media. If the agreement materializes, President Haaf is set to move to Dhusa-marreeb, which is the designated capital of the State. A unified Galmudug can play a big role in the fight against Al-Shabaab. These talks were brokered by IGAD.
INTERNATIONAL
UN Trains Somali Health Workers On Containing Cholera, Malnutrition
01 December – Source: Xinhuanet – 124 Words
The World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday it had concluded a five-day training of 24 Somali health workers on management of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) with medical complications. Ghulam Popal, WHO Representative in Somalia, said participants were also trained on the management of cholera in severely malnourished children in accordance with the UN agency’s guidelines and technical recommendations.”More than 1.4 million children in Somalia are still under the threat of acute malnutrition,” Popal said in a statement issued in Mogadishu.
The cascade training which marked the participation of 24 health workers from 12 nutritional stabilization centers in Somalia was aimed at improving the quality of services in nutrition stabilization centers and reducing the mortality rate resulting from the mismanagement of SAM cases.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“Ultimately, al-Shabab — like al Qaeda, ISIS, and Boko Haram — is at war with its fellow Muslims who do not agree with and do not want to live by their radical version of Islam. Involving the U.S. military only puts us in the middle of their civil war — U.S. troops should stop terrorists from killing Americans, not from killing each other. And as brutally violent as al-Shabab is, it is not targeting America as al Qaeda did on Sept. 11, 2001.”
It Is Up To Somalia To Combat Al-Shabab
30 November – Source: Washington Times – 661 Words
According to U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), there have been 18 airstrikes to date this year in Somalia — more than four times the average for the previous seven years. At the same time, the number of U.S. forces in Somalia has more than doubled. The target of the U.S. military in Somalia is al-Shabab, an Islamist militant group allied with al Qaeda and now considered the deadliest terrorist organization in Africa. The Islamic State (ISIS) has also established a small presence in Somalia and a break-away group of al-Shabab has pledged allegiance to ISIS, but the two groups are more in competition with each other for influence in Somalia — which demonstrates that radical Islam is not monolithic.
Certainly, al-Shabab is a threat to the Somali government and the civilians killed by its attacks. The worst attack was in October when a truck bomb packed with several hundred kilograms of military grade, homemade explosives was used to kill more than 300 people and injure hundreds more in the city center of Mogadishu — making it one of the deadliest terrorist attacks anywhere in the world. According to the U.S. mission in Somalia, “Such cowardly attacks reinvigorate the commitment of the United States to assist our Somali and African Union partners to combat the scourge of terrorism.” But an amorphous “scourge of terrorism” — especially in Somalia — is not a direct threat to America that warrants the sacrifice of U.S. lives — such as U.S. Navy SEAL Senior Chief Kyle Milliken, who was killed on a mission in Somalia in early May. Yet, every radical Islamist everywhere in the world is not a direct threat to the United States. ISIS is primarily a threat in Iraq and Syria. Boko Haram is a threat in Nigeria. al-Shabab is a threat in Somalia. As such, it is up to those countries and their neighbors — who are most imperiled and have the most to lose — to take primary responsibility for combating the terrorist threats in their own backyards.
More important, we must recognize that the threat that al-Shabab really represents is the civil war raging within Islam. Ultimately, al-Shabab — like al Qaeda, ISIS, and Boko Haram — is at war with its fellow Muslims who do not agree with and do not want to live by their radical version of Islam. Involving the U.S. military only puts us in the middle of their civil war — U.S. troops should stop terrorists from killing Americans, not from killing each other. And as brutally violent as al-Shabab is, it is not targeting America as al Qaeda did on Sept. 11, 2001.
Indeed, since 9/11 there hasn’t been a successful attack by a foreign terrorist organization. The real threat has been lone wolf and largely homegrown terrorism. According to the Global Terrorism Index, since 2006, 98 percent of all deaths from terrorism in the U.S. have been from attacks carried out by lone actors, resulting in 156 deaths. And according to the New America Foundation, of those accused of jihadist related terrorism crimes in the U.S., more than 80 percent of them were either U.S. citizens or U.S. legal residents, and about half were American born citizens. The data does not bear out the logic that killing would-be terrorists overseas in places like Somalia will make us inherently safer. So continuing to pursue such a strategy is folly. In 1993, the U.S. military was in Somalia on a humanitarian intervention mission that was neither vital nor important to U.S. national security. The mission resulted in the tragic deaths of 18 U.S. Army Rangers. Today, the U.S. military is in Somalia to help Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo wage a war against al-Shabab — a war neither vital nor important to U.S. national security. If the first time was simply a tragedy, the second time is foolhardy.
TOP TWEETS
@engyarisow: Somali Government introduces electronic payment system so that soldiers will be paid their salaries via bank accounts in order to implement public finance management that can bring good governance, confidence and accountability.
@MinisterMOFA:#Somalia establishes diplomatic relations with#Lithuania on the margins of #AUEUSummit2017 in #Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
@DalsanFM:Somalia Marks Milad-Un-Nabi Celebrations –http://radiodalsan.com/en/
@DalsanFM: Galmudug & ASWJ Ink A Power Sharing Deal To End Impasse – http://radiodalsan.com/en/
@Goobjoognews: FIRST 2,400 troops from Puntland integration into Somali National Army –
@movementatm: We are excited to announce the ATM Fellowship application is now open. Please share widely with your networks! Apply here (http://theatm.org/what-we-do/
@PDWilliamsGWU: #Somalia: #AMISOM has a new exit strategy. But can troops actually leave? My piece for@monkeycageblog
@SahraCabdi: These lost and found Somali tapes are now nominated for a Grammy award
@HarunMaruf:At least six Somali regional security forces were wounded in an explosion in Bosaso, #Puntland, Thursday; three of the victims have sustained serious injuries: reports
#Somalia
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Photo: @MinisterMOFA
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia Yusuf Garaad Omar and Lithuanian, Foreign Affairs of Minister Linas Linkevičius at the African and European Summit in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.