February 12, 2014 | Morning Headlines.

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Head of AMISOM meets Somali Government Ministers, pledges continued support

11 Feb – Source: AMISOM – 226 words

The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Mahamat Saleh Annadif held a series of meetings with several government ministers, during which plans for AMISOM and the future of Somalia were discussed.

Today Ambassador Annadif met with Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister, Farah Sh. Abdulkadir Mohamed as well as the Minister of Gender and Human Rights, Khadijo Mohamed Diriye at the AMISOM Headquarters in Mogadishu.

At the meeting with the Gender Minister, Ambassador Annadif applauded efforts by the Federal Government of Somalia in working towards the empowerment of women. “I recognise the steps taken by your ministry in ensuring that Somali girls and women are safeguarded and empowered. AMISOM will continue to support such efforts towards gender empowerment, as well as promotion of human rights,” he said.

Yesterday, Ambassador Annadif met with the National Security Minister, Abdikarim Hussein Guled. The discussions focused on the planned operations by AMISOM, aimed at ensuring improved security in Somalia.

“2014 is a decisive year for AMISOM and we look forward to working even closer with the Federal Government of Somalia to ensure that elements of insecurity are eliminated,” said Ambassador Annadif.
Ambassador Annadif reiterated that the strong working relations between AMISOM and the Somali government would be further strengthened through meetings such as these, enabling the two entities to work together more effectively.

Key Headlines

PM officially declares all out war on al Shabaab in Somalia (Radio Mogadishu/Radio Dalsan)
Head of AMISOM meets Somali Government Ministers pledges continued support(AMISOM)
Ethiopian PM says they will fight with AlShabaab(Radio Dalsan)
Puntland military court gives life jail term on alleged Al Shabaab members(Radio Kulmiye)
Mandera officials refute allegations that al Shabaab controls town (Sabahi Online)
Pro-government militias promise collaborating with Ethiopian forces for defeating al Shabab(Al Shahida)
Debate intensifies over possible German army training mission in Somalia(DW News)

PRESS RELEASE

Head of AMISOM meets Somali Government Ministers, pledges continued support

11 Feb – Source: AMISOM – 226 words

SOMALI MEDIA

PM officially declares all out war on al Shabaab in Somalia

11 Feb – Source: Radio Mogadishu/Dalsan/Raxanreeb – 116 words

Somalia Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed has officially declared the start of new stage of the war on al Shabaab militant group which is linked to al Qaeda in Somalia, RBC reports. Somalia has been in civil wars and clan-based conflict which doomed for more than two decades but now Somalia Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, who is in office for only 70-days has said that this new assault will be the latest to liberate the countrywide from terrorists and put the regions back on the government’s control. “The new phase of the war against al Shabaab is aimed to regain whole Somalia regions and make sure the security,” he stated.

Ethiopian PM says they will fight with AlShabaab

11 Feb – Source: Radio Dalsan – 95 words

Ethiopian troops have been in and out of Somalia for many years, protecting its border
The federal government of Ethiopia has once again confirmed it will strengthen its fight against Alshabab militia group in Somalia. The prime minister of Ethiopia Hailemariam deseglen has praised the role of AMISOM forces in Somalia saying the contingent has achieved tangible developments since deployed in Somalia. Hailemariam was speaking during a press conference in Addisababa in which he highlighted the role of AMISOM in Somalia, the fight against Alshabab militants and the integration of Ethiopian armed forces into AMISOM.

Puntland military court gives life jail term on alleged Al Shabaab members

11 Feb – Source: Horn Cable TV/Radio Kulmiye – 116 words

The Puntland military court has sentenced life jail term on a man who alleged of being member of Al Shabab fighters in the mountainous area of Galgala on the southwest of port town of Bosasso. The court also sentenced two other alleged men for 10 years of jail for one and the other for five years while releasing a fourth man whom the court said was not found guilty. The four alleged men were arrested from Galgala area, where the Puntland security forces fought against Al Shabab militants which used the area as safe haven for them since the group’s defeat in the war against Somalia government forces backed by the African Union Mission in Somalia.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Mandera officials refute allegations that al Shabaab controls town

11 Feb- Source: Sabahi Online-1225 Words
A Kenyan parliamentary report presented last month has painted a dismal picture of the security situation in the north-eastern town of Mandera, saying unequivocally that security forces have surrendered the town to al Shabaab. As critical as the report is, it has drawn mixed reactions from citizens and officials in Mandera County. While citizens are asking for greater protection from the militant group, officials say their security efforts are not always visible because of the unique challenges they face in the triangular border area between Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. During a visit to Mandera last October in the wake of al Shabaab’s siege of Westgate mall, members of the joint parliamentary committee tasked with authoring the report established that ill-equipped home guards, not police officers, were the ones patrolling the town. Parliament resumedTuesday (February 11th) after the December break and will discuss the joint committee’s entire report on the Westgate attack, including the Mandera findings, from February 18th to the 20th, according to Majority Leader Aden Duale.

Pro-government militias promise collaborating with Ethiopian forces for defeating al Shabaab

11 Feb – Source: Al Shahid – 126 words

Ahlu-Sunna Waljama’a armed group, which controls part of Galgadud region in central Somalia promised that they will work closely to AMISOM especially Ethiopians so the undermine al Shabaab power in the resident. The Chairman of Ahlu Sunna council in central Somalia, Sheikh Ibrahim Sheikh Hasan Gureeye said that they are very interesting Ethiopian joining to African union peacekeeping forces (AMISOM) and work with them for their struggle against the al Qaeda affiliated group of al Shabaab.
Ahlu-Sunna group which joined armed conflicts in Somalia after al Shabaab turned into digging the graves of former well-known clerics has close links to Somali federal government for their joint interest of weakening the militants. Last month, more than 4,000 Ethiopian troops have been formally absorbed into the African Union force in Somalia.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Debate intensifies over possible German army training mission in Somalia

11 Feb – Source: DW News – 187 words

Members of the German armed forces may soon be sent to Somalia to take part in a training mission. The opposition is skeptical, saying the security situation in the east African state remains unstable.
Ahmed Omar’s recent visit to Somalia’s capital Mogadishu cost him dearly. According to local police, the deputy governor of Lower Shebell region in the south of the country lost an arm and a leg after a bomb exploded in his car on Monday (10.02.2014). A second car bomb exploded later injuring four people. For 20 years the east African country has been battling civil war, famine and chaos. Armed militias and warlords are fighting for power and parts of the country are controlled by radical Islamist al-Shabab militia. Attacks and raids are frequent. This unstable security situation led to the German federal government putting an end to its participation in a European Union training mission (EUTM) for Somali soldiers in 2013. Until December of that year, a 20-strong contingent of German military personnel had been located in Uganda to train Somali soldiers. In January 2014 the mission was relocated to Mogadishu.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“Nura Farah will on Thursday become the first author of Somali background to publish a novel in Finland. Her work Aavikon tyttäret (Daughters of the desert) tells the story of a Somali woman’s life in the desert as she dreams of becoming a poet, and her struggles to overcome traditional gender roles.”

Finland’s first Somali author: ’Somalia’s more than war and FGM’

11 Feb- Source: YLE-350 Words

The central character in the story is a woman called Khadija, who would like to be a poet. In Somali culture, poetry is the domain of men and as a woman, Khadija’s daily life revolves around animal husbandry, child care and long journeys to fetch water. “You get a big audience for yourself if you can speak beautifully,” says Farah. “In Somali culture people value eloquence.” Although the novel is set in the 1950s, the oral poetry tradition remains strong in modern Somalia. Farah is hoping that this tradition will become familiar to Finns, who she hopes will get to know Somali culture. “I especially wanted readers to take some poetry from my book, and that they might get to know something about desert life,” says Farah. “I hope that it’s not seen as simply a story about Somalis. This book isn’t just for Somalis; it can also be for Finns.” Farah was born in 1979 in Saudi Arabia, and moved to Somalia as a child. At the age of 13 she emigrated to Finland with her mother and siblings. Her new home was in the grip of a deep recession, and according to Farah there was a fair amount of racism.