December 19, 2013 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Somali leaders condemn the killing of Syrian and Somali doctors
18 Dec- Source: Radio Bar-kulan/Radio Mogadishu/Radio Dalsan/Simbanews- 228 words
Somalia’s outgoing Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon has strongly condemned the killing of three Syrian doctors and three Somali nationals in the outskirts of Mogadishu on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon sent his condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives in the attack.
He strongly condemned the merciless attacks against innocent people and said that such actions have no place in the Islamic faith and Somali culture.
“Such merciless attack against innocent people has no place in our Islamic faith and Somali culture. I condemn such attacks in the strongest possible terms.” He said in a statement.
He called on the security agencies to carry out full investigations into the incident and to bring the perpetrators behind the attack to justice.
Meanwhile, Somalia’s newly appointed prime minister designate Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed has also condemned the attack against the Syrian and Somali doctors.
“Such abhorrent attacks against innocent people have no place in our religion and humanity,” he said in a press statement.
These statements follow the early condemnations by both Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, AMISOM and the United Nations Special Representative for Somalia, Nicholas Kay who vehemently condemned the attack.
Three Syrian doctors and their Somali colleague were on Wednesday gunned down by unidentified gunmen on their way to Afgoye from Mogadishu.
Two of their bodyguards were also killed in the attack.
Key Headlines
- AU Special Representative condemns attack on international aid workers (AMISOM)
- Somali woman faces 5 years prison term in the US (Radio Bar-kulan/Radio Shabelle)
- Somali lawmaker died in Mogadishu (Radio mogadishu)
- Handcraft seminar concludes in Beled-Hawo town (Radio bar-kulan)
- Bitter splits ahead of Puntland election (Aljazeera)
- Somali leaders condemn the killing of Syrian and Somali doctors (Radio Bar-kulan/Radio Dalsan)
- Guantanamo Prison Commander Previously Ran U.S. Detention in Somalia(Human rights first)
- Somaliland: International immigrants Day Observed (Somalilandpress)
- Kenya: Two shot dead in Wajir gun attack (StandardMedia)
- Dinsor residents reject new al-Shabaab radio station (Sabahi Online)
- Gunmen in Somalia kill three Syrian three Somali doctors (AFP)
PRESS STATEMENT
AU Special Representative condemns attack on international aid workers
19 Dec- Source: AMISOM- 174 words
The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Mahamet Saleh Annadif has condemned the ambush attack in the outskirts of Mogadishu which killed six people and injured two.
The attack happened when unidentified gunmen ambushed a vehicle transporting four Syrian and two Somali doctors to a nearby hospital. Three Syrian doctors, two Somali doctors and their bodyguards were killed while two other doctors from Syria and Somalia suffered injuries. They are now being treated at Mogadishu’s Medina Hospital.
Ambassador Mahamet Saleh Annadif referred to the incident as a cowardly and senseless assault. He said; “We strongly condemn this callous attack on innocent civilians and such attacks will not deter our collective efforts to continue supporting the people of Somalia.”
The AU Special Representative condoles with the family and friends of the deceased whilst reaffirming AMISOM’s commitment to supporting the Federal Government of Somalia in ensuring the safety and sanctity of the lives of both Somali and international personnel.
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali leaders condemn the killing of Syrian and Somali doctors
18 Dec- Source: Radio Bar-kulan/Radio Mogadishu/Radio Dalsan/Simba- 228 words
Somalia’s outgoing Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon has strongly condemned the killing of three Syrian doctors and three Somali nationals in the outskirts of Mogadishu on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon sent his condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives in the attack.
He strongly condemned the merciless attacks against innocent people and said that such actions have no place in the Islamic faith and Somali culture.
“Such merciless attack against innocent people has no place in our Islamic faith and Somali culture. I condemn such attacks in the strongest possible terms.” He said in a statement.
He called on the security agencies to carry out full investigations into the incident and to bring the perpetrators behind the attack to justice.
Meanwhile, Somalia’s newly appointed prime minister designate Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed has also condemned the attack against the Syrian and Somali doctors.
“Such abhorrent attacks against innocent people have no place in our religion and humanity,” he said in a press statement.
These statements follow the early condemnations by both Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, AMISOM and the United Nations Special Representative for Somalia, Nicholas Kay who vehemently condemned the attack.
Three Syrian doctors and their Somali colleague were on Wednesday gunned down by unidentified gunmen on their way to Afgoye from Mogadishu.
Two of their bodyguards were also killed in the attack.
Somali lawmaker died in Mogadishu
19 Dec- Source: Radio mogadishu- 54 words
Somali lawmaker Hassan Mohummad Ali aka Sokorlin died on wednesday night in Mogadishu.The death of the Somali MP came after long illness. Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Speaker of Parliament, Mohamed Sheikh Osman sent their condolences to the family of the MP, expressing his sympathy to his loved ones.
Somali woman faces 5 years prison term in the US
19 Dec- Source: Radio Bar-kulan/Radio Shabelle/Hiiraan Online- 132 words
A Somali woman in the United States may receive a five year prison term after she was found guilty of raising money for Al Shabaab rebel group in her native country of Somalia.
Saynab Hussein, a 24 year old nursing student admitted that she had raised money for some of the Somali men who travelled from Minnesota to Somalia in order to fight alongside Al Shabaab fighters in 2008.
She was first charged with raising money for terrorists when she was 19 years old in 2009. She denied the allegations saying that she did not know anybody who raised money for the group.
However, she later admitted that she had raised the money and personally participated in fundraising activities. She is due to be sentenced at the end of January next year.
Somaliland: International immigrants Day Observed
19 Dec- Source: Somalilandpress- 289 words
The International immigrants Day was observed in Somaliland today with a simple ceremony held at the headquarters of the Migration Response Center (MRC) in Hargeisa.
The Minister of Resettlement Hon Ahmed Abdi Kahin speaking at the function said, “The numbers of refugees coming to Somaliland has been steadily increasing for the last few years. Somaliland has been working closely with NGOs and local government in a bid to assist both Somaliland citizens and refugees to avoid catastrophic famine and mass internal migration that have b een seen in some parts in Ethiopia and Somalia.
The Director of Migration Response Center (MRC) Mr. Muse Yusuf Farah said his office has been coordinated with key actors in the Somaliland Government such as the Somaliland Ministry of Resettlement, Ministry of Interior as well as with UNHCR, IOM officials and the Mixed Migration Task Force (MMTF).
Handcraft seminar concludes in Beled-Hawo town
19 Dec- Source: Radio bar-kulan- 133 words
A four-day handcraft seminar has been completed for 30 teachers and managers in the southwest Somali town of Beled-Hawo in Gedo region.
Senior district officials and members from the district’s education sector attended a ceremony to mark the completion of the seminar which was held in Sayid Mohamed Abdulle Hassan College.
Abdullahi Shafi’i, the manager of Sayid Mohamed Abdulle Hassan College who spoke at the gathering said that the main objective of the seminar was to enhance the skills of the handcraft trainers and workers in the town.
Bulle Aden Qallo’ow, the coordinator of organizations in the area said that many families in the region depend on the work of crafts as their primary source of income and urged organizations to improve the skills of handcraft workers.
Somaliland: Anti-piracy support is continuous, says General Osman
18 Dec- Source: Somaliland Informer- 363 words
The Commander of the Coarstguards, Brigadier General Ahmed aw Osman, explains that the support that the country gets from the international community in fighting piracy is one that is continuous in every level and stage in its bilateral relations with the EUNAVFOR SL/Somalia. He was speaking to local press on Tuesday, the 17th of December 2013.
While elaborating on the meeting that the VP H.E Abdirahman Abdillahi Ismael Seyli’i had with the western anti-piracy fighters aboard one of their battleships, the Brig. General said that it was part and parcel of normal briefs in the ongoing relations that sees technical and capacity building support the SL navy receives from the donors.
He explained that the battleship, just as the others that hosted the President before, were amongst the EU NAVFOR Atalanta Operation Fleet; and to be precise, it’s EUCAP NESTOR Fleet. He elaborated that this time round the VP boarded one that was manned by French servicemen and that it was a follow-up docking to the earlier one manned by the British that met the president.
The commander said that they pledged to steadfastly continue their support, which he stressed was of a monumental nature with a vast programme.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Bitter splits ahead of Puntland election
19 Dec- Source: Aljazeera- 985 words
As presidential elections approach in Puntland, the candidates in the running have accused one another of failing Somalia’s semi-autonomous region.
The international community is closely watching Puntland’s January 8 election, worrying that increased instability in the region could damage Somalia’s efforts to recover from decades of chaos and civil war. The region is hosting hundreds of thousands of Somalis who have fled from the country’s southern regions.
Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, who until last year was Somalia’s prime minister, has warned of “a huge political, security and economic collapse” in the region if its incumbent President Abdirahman Mohamed Farole is re-elected.
Ali, who is also running for president, has accused Farole of corruption, financial mismanagement and political shortsightedness. He says these ills have allowed the region to fragment into disgruntled fiefdoms, caused government workers to go without pay for months on end and worsened already high unemployment rates. “To re-elect Farole means courting a huge political, security and economic collapse for Puntland. It is insanity,” said Ali, who works as an associate professor at Niagara University in Lewiston, New York.
Kenya: Two shot dead in Wajir gun attack
19 Dec- Source: StandardMedia- 201 words
At least two people were Wednesday night shot dead and four others wounded in a gun attack near Baraza Park in Wajir town. Police say a gunman entered into the market and shot at the victims indiscriminately before escaping. Police suspect the attack is linked to business rivalrism in the area between the locals and those from upcountry. Those targeted in the attacks sell khat in the area. The injured are admitted at a local hospital for treatment. Wajir town has suffered a series of similar attacks since 2011 when Kenya sent its military to Somalia to pursue Al Shabaab attackers.
Dinsor residents reject new al-Shabaab radio station
18 Dec- Source: Sabahi Online- 654 words
A new radio station broadcasting in the town of Dinsor in Somalia’s Bay region is attempting to recruit supporters to al-Shabaab’s ideology, but local residents say they are refusing to tune in.
Al-Shabaab launched the FM radio station December 10th and immediately started broadcasting programmes that encourage citizens to partake in terrorist activities and promote the idea that al-Shabaab is following a righteous path, Dinsor residents told Sabahi.
Yasin Owdinle, a 50-year-old traditional elder, said al-Shabaab has started a media war in Dinsor. “When I found out that al-Shabaab added a new FM station to the airwaves, I turned on the radio to listen to what it was broadcasting, only to discover that all of them were giving sermons calling on the people to take part in the jihad,” he told Sabahi. “This is in contrast to the independent radio stations we used to listen to a year ago that brought us world news.”
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Guantanamo Prison Commander Previously Ran U.S. Detention in Somalia
19 Dec- Source: Human rights first-706 words
When Col. John Bogdan took the witness stand Wednesday morning in the military commission hearing at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, he’d been called to testify about the strict limits he’s imposed on defense attorneys’ visits with their death penalty clients. The attorneys representing the five defendants accused of masterminding the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks claim Bogdan’s rules make their jobs unreasonably onerous.
But as he reviewed his history with the U.S. military, Bogdan mentioned that he’s previously run U.S. detention operations in two other countries: Iraq and Somalia. The judge quickly steered him back to his role at Guantanamo.
Gunmen in Somalia kill three Syrian, three Somali doctors
18 Dec – Source: AFP World News – 384 words
Fighters in Somalia shot dead three Syrian doctors and their three Somali colleagues Wednesday as they travelled to a hospital outside the capital Mogadishu, an AFP reporter said.
Their bullet-riddled bodies were carried into Mogadishu’s Medina hospital after the attack on road leading from the capital to Afgoye, a town some 30 kilometres (20 miles) northwest of the capital. Doctors at the hospital said the foreigners killed were Syrians.
One Syrian doctor was also wounded in the attack, which took place as the group travelled down the road towards Afgoye, a former stronghold of the Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab insurgents, before they were driven from the town in May 2012.
However, a senior Shebab official said they did not carry out the attack, although their fighters have often carried out shootings, bombings and suicide commando raids against government and international targets, including aid workers.
The region is awash with guns and multiple armed men and militia forces operate in the area, one of the most dangerous places in the world for aid workers. Somalia has been riven by civil war since the collapse of the central government in 1991.
The Shebab have been driven out of Somalia’s major towns by a UN-mandated African Union force (AMISOM).
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“To remain true to its nature, the EU needs the capabilities to protect its values in its neighborhood and beyond.”
To Secure Peace, Be Ready for Battle
18 Dec- Source: Wall Street Journal- 874 words
Off the coast of Somalia, men and women from across Europe are proving the old adage that no news can be good news. Stories of piracy used to make front pages around the world. Today they don’t. That is because attacks over the past year have dropped by 95%.
This is no accident. National frigates are working together under the EU’s Operation Atalanta to protect the shipping lanes needed for so much of Europe’s trade with the rest of the world, and for vital food aid to Somalia. We are also tackling the underlying problems, not just the symptoms. The EU is training the Somalian army, supporting the rebuilding of its shattered institutions and providing development aid to lay the foundations for long-term prosperity.
Somalia provides an example of a wider truth. An effective and coherent security and defense policy is a necessity, not a luxury, for Europe. Possessing the capacities for crisis prevention and peacekeeping are vital if we are to build a more peaceful world order.
“Al-Shabaab is a more efficient enforcer and less corrupt, than the government of Somalia. It gives long-marginalised clans administrative jobs, hands them business licences, thus cobbling together a new support base that is solidly in its corner.”
Why Al-Shabaab will strike again, and isn’t about to die any day soon
18 Dec- Source: Daily Nation/Africa Review- 695 words
Could Al-Shabaab carry out another Westgate-type terrorist attack in Nairobi, or stage a similar outrage in Kampala?
This was one of the questions at the back of the mind of a couple of folks at a meeting of Somali intellectuals and civil society activists held by the African Union’s Somalia mission, Amisom, in Kigali this week.
One of the reasons Kigali was chosen for the meeting was to show the Somalis that no matter how far a country descends into hell, it can rise and shine again — as Rwanda has largely managed to do. Secondly, to help imagine what genocide might look like on a Somalia scale if they don’t get their act together.
Top tweets
@HLooyaan Interesting report from @CrisisGroup on upcoming elections in #Puntland #Somalia http://bit.ly/1cC8YXl
@mashanubian UN special envoy Kay strongly condemned killing of 6 inclu 4 doctors during attack on medical convoy outside Mogadishu #Somalia
@Aynte@maktabadda just screened an amazing video on the relaunch of #Somalia National Library. Should be on website
@Abdi_AlSheikh UN seeks $13bn to support crisis-hit countries including Somalia – Midnimo Information Centerhttp://dlvr.it/4Xb8FZ #Somalia
@auveenwoods Doctors Without Borders pulls out of #Somaliadue to attacks http://www.turkishweekly.net/
Image of the day
Somali men carry a body of a Syrian doctor for transport to Madina hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, Wednesday Dec. 18, 2013. A Somali official says suspected al-Qaida-linked militants have ambushed a convoy carrying doctors near Somali capital, killing six people, three of them foreigners. Photo: AP /Farah Abdi Warsameh/Hiiraan Online