January 11, 2013 | Daily Monitoring Report.
5 terrorists make their way into Uganda – Police
1 Jan – Source: New Vision – 366 words
The Police have received information that five terrorists are suspected to have sneaked into the country. The terrorists were identified as Ali Salah Adan, Naim A. Amur, Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, Abderraouf Jdey and Mohamed Nor Ali.
They are said to be active members of the Somali-based al Shabaab terror-cell that is planning to strike in the country, according to deputy Police spokesperson Vincent Ssekatte. The Police, supported by the other sister security agencies, have stepped up vigilance to avert the terror attack, Ssekate told journalists at the Central Police Station on Thursday.
The public has been urged to inform Police and local authorities about any suspicious or abandoned items like packages, bags, cars, boxes, unexpected gifts, flowers, flasks, mail and parcels, abandoned suitcases, dustbins, electronics; including, radios watches, cameras, mobile phones, television sets and any other items with loose wires attached.
Key Headlines
- Somali President Hassan Sheikh meets World Bank delegation (Markacadeey Online)
- Authorities in Lower Shabelle appeal for aid (Bar-kulan)
- 5 terrorists make their way into Uganda – Police (New Vision)
- Somali Police detain journalist summons another for questioning (Raxanreeb/Dalsan Radio)
- Somali men in new “terrorism” cases (World 4 Report)
- Security improving: AMISOM spokesman (Radio Kulmiye)
- Somali pirate ‘Big Mouth’ quits crime (Standard/BBC)
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali President Hassan Sheikh meets World Bank delegation
11 Jan – Source: Markacadeey Online – 147 words
Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud held discussions with high ranking World Bank officials in Villa Somalia regarding the way forward for Somalia and its engagements with the World Bank. The World Bank delegation led by Country director Ms. Bella Bird met with President Hassan, Minister of Finance Mohamud H.Suleyman, and other senior Somali government officials.
The president welcomed the World Bank officials to Somalia and clearly explained that after a 22 year of absence caused by conflict the government of Somalia is now ready to engage with the World Bank and other International financial institutions
“Somalia needs to reinstate operations with the World Bank Family, We believe the World bank can play an important role in the reconstruction of Somalia, as well as the rebuilding of our public financial institutions.” said the President.
Authorities in Lower Shabelle appeal for aid
11 Jan – Source: Bar-kulan – 115 words
Somali government officials in Lower Shabelle region have appealed to both local and international aid agencies to provide an immediate humanitarian aid to locals living along the coastal areas of the region.
Speaking to Bar-kulan, area regional governor Abdulkadir Mohamed Noor said people living coastal villages like Jazera, Gandershe, Dhanane and Jilib-marka are facing harsh living condition and called on aid groups to respond immediately to the growing humanitarian need in these areas.
He said the villagers, whose livelihood depends on fishing, are in need of immediate humanitarian support as they are facing acute food shortage, lack of water and health care. Noor added that most villagers could not support themselves with their aging fishing vessels.
Somali Police detain journalist, summons another for questioning
11 Jan – Source: Raxanreeb/Dalsan Radio – 211 words
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) protests the arrest of a broadcast journalist by the Somali Police on 10 January, 2013 without court orders and call for his immediate release. Somali police detained Abdi-Asis Abdinuur Ibrahim (Abdiasis Koronto) who works for Radio Ergo based in Nairobi and the Mogadishu based Dalsan Radio and stringer to Daily Telegraph on Thursday afternoon, after receiving a call from the CID chief, Gen. Abdullahi Hassan Barise ordering him to the CID headquarters.
The journalist was accused of interviewing a woman who said that she was raped by the members of the Somali army. The CID also questioned Omar Faruk, a Somali journalist who reports to Al Jazeera Arabic. After questioning, he was told that he was free to go.
“I received a phone call this afternoon from the number of the woman I interviewed, but, it was Gen. Barise, the CID chief and he told me to come to the CID headquarters.” Journalist Abdi-Asis Abdinur Ibrahim told NUSOJ via phone interview, “When I went to the CID, I saw the woman, who was the rape victim and the lady who introduced her to me. I was asked if I interviewed the lady and I said, Yes, then i was told that i was under arrest.”
Security improving: AMISOM spokesman
11 Jan – Source: Radio Mustaqbal – 80 words
The spokesman of the AMISOM in Somalia met with journalists on Thursday at his office. The spokesman told the journalists that AMISOM will winding up its operational phases and in the next one year, there would be no al Shabaab menace in Somalia.
AMISOM spokesman also said the mission will train Somali forces so that they can be well stable on the ground, urging those fighting alongside al Shabaab to voluntarily surrender and join the government and take part in rebuilding of the country.
Garowe police impound illicit drugs
10 Jan – Source: Bar-kulan – 80 words
Puntland police in Garowe on Wednesday night arrested several people and impounded consignments of illicit drugs including alcoholic drinks. Police said several people were arrested during a crackdown against illicit drug traffickers but have not yet released the exact number of suspects arrested.
Sources close to police say alcoholic drinks and rolls of marijuana were seized during the operation last night. Police said they will burn the drugs and promised to prosecute the suspects found in possession of the drugs.
Four ships owned by Somali government in Yemen on bail
10 Jan – Source: Radio Kulmiye – 142 words
Four ships owned by the Somali government which were transferred to Somalia on 2012 are currently in Yemen and their release is yet to be paid. Yemenis are asking for money to be paid by the Somali government otherwise Yemen would not release the ships.
Somali ambassador in Yemen Isma’il Qasim said that there is a need to salvage these ships otherwise they will sink. He said it is time for the Somali authorities to save the ships.
The amount to be paid by the Somali government will be 1,000,000 US dollars, He requested that the workers and other Somalis to confirm whether this money is a debt or not.
Somali army to launch attacks on militants in Gedo region
10 Jan – Source: Shabelle – 109 words
Somali Defence Ministry ordered urgent military operations against the remnants of al Shabab fighters who are still in some areas of Gedo region in South west Somalia, according to Somali military officials in the region.
Abdi Barre Abdi, a military official in Gedo region told Shabelle media network that top officials from the Somali defence ministry who visited the region recently, ordered the officials to flush al Shabaab out of that region by launching attacks on the positions they still control in the strategic region which borders both Ethiopia and Kenya. Somali defence minister Abdihakim Fiqi was also one of the officials who have recently been there in Gedo province.
Suspected murderous executed in Gawan village
10 Jan – Source: Bar-kulan – 98 words
Four suspected murderous were Thursday killed in Gawan settlement, about 230km from central Somali town of Galkayo in what appears to be a revenge attack. The four were being held in custody after they were accused of killing a middle-aged man on Monday at the same area.
Reports say gunmen believed to be the relatives of the slain man allegedly executed the suspects in custody a time negotiation were underway to broker blood-compensation for the deceased family to ease further tension in the area. The assailants escaped on foot shortly after the incident, according sources in the area.
REGIONAL MEDIA
5 terrorists make their way into Uganda – Police
11 Jan – Source: New Vision – 366 words
The Police have received information that five terrorists are suspected to have sneaked into the country. The terrorists were identified as Ali Salah Adan, Naim A. Amur, Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, Abderraouf Jdey and Mohamed Nor Ali.
They are said to be active members of the Somali-based al Shabaab terror-cell that is planning to strike in the country, according to deputy Police spokesperson Vincent Ssekatte. The Police, supported by the other sister security agencies, have stepped up vigilance to avert the terror attack, Ssekate told journalists at the Central Police Station on Thursday.
The public has been urged to inform Police and local authorities about any suspicious or abandoned items like packages, bags, cars, boxes, unexpected gifts, flowers, flasks, mail and parcels, abandoned suitcases, dustbins, electronics; including, radios watches, cameras, mobile phones, television sets and any other items with loose wires attached.
Somali pirate ‘Big Mouth’ quits crime
10 Jan – Source: Standard/ BBC – 278 words
A man named by the UN as a pirate kingpin has said he is renouncing crime, a community leader in Somalia has confirmed to the BBC. Mohamed Abdi Hassan, nicknamed “Afweyne” meaning Big Mouth in Somalia, told reporters after eight years in the business, he had agreed to stop. He made the announcement in Adado, a town in central Somalia where pirate hostages have often been held.
Successful pirate attacks off the Somali coast fell sharply last year. Analysts say this is because of the increased use of private security guards on ships and better coordination between naval patrols in the area.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somali men in new “terrorism” cases
11 Jan – Source: World 4 Report – 392 Words
Jury selection is underway in the terrorism trial of Mohamed Mohamud, a Somali-American accused of attempting to ignite a “weapon of mass destruction” at Portland’s 2010 holiday tree-lighting ceremony, The Oregonian reports Jan. 10. But an NPR report states: “There was no bomb—the defendant was the target of an FBI sting operation… His lawyers are expected to argue their client was entrapped…
The car bombing plot—the purchasing of the car, the gathering of explosives, the plan itself—was orchestrated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.” True, the guy came to the attention of the FBI when he started posting to online jihadist forums. But he was only 19 years old when he was arrested, and therefore could try “to convince the jury he was manipulated by the FBI.”
Good to see the media finally raising some skepticism about a specious terrorism case. Additionally, although no media account has mentioned this angle, we strongly object to calling a presumably conventional explosive a “weapon of mass destruction.” Much less one that didn’t even exist! What’s up with that?
Last month the New York Times reported that a trial is about to open in the case of three men “arrested” in Africa en route to Yemen in August. “They are accused of participating in weapons and explosives training with al Shabaab, a United States-designated terrorist group linked to al Qaeda, during a four-year period beginning in 2008. Court documents show no connection between the alleged crimes and the United States.”
Al Shabaab jihadist more whiner than martyr: Former Toronto resident complains ‘top dogs’ keep all the best ‘war booty’
10 Jan – Source: National Post – 664 words
Since becoming the most prominent foreign fighter in the Somali armed Islamist group al Shabaab, former Toronto pizza deliveryman Omar Hammami has turned into a remarkably whiny jihadist.
Over the past week, Hammami has issued long lists of complaints about the “top dogs” of al Shabaab, accusing them of behaving “like Hitler,” confiscating his car and keeping all the best “war booty” for themselves.
He blasted al Shabaab for its strategic blunders and for only striving to take over Somalia rather than to impose radical Islam on the world through a global jihad. “You must come to know some of the harsh realities,” he wrote.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“If piracy has historically been endemic off the Somali coast, it has turned into booming industry thanks to the chaos that has engulfed Somalia, private central authority since 1991. In the mid 2000s, pirates better equipped and venturing ever farther from the Gulf of Aden, had emerged as a serious threat to maritime another major axis towards the Cape of Good Hope to the destination Europe and the United States, prompting the international community to deploy naval protection.”
Somalia. A major pirate leader retires. Golden …
10 Jan – Source: MTAO Blog – 429 Words
More businessman than old salt Physically, “Loudmouth” is more of a businessman than the filibuster or old sea dog trimmed beard and eyeglasses Ray-Ban on the nose, it is Western dress, white shirt open collar and dark suit jacket. Two of the most spectacular catches of modern Somali piracy him yet assigned. That in September 2008 the Faina, a Ukrainian freighter loaded with weapons, including tanks, defense systems, anti-aircraft rocket launchers and ammunition.
And most importantly, two months later, that the Saudi supertanker Sirius Star, mastodon 330 meters long and carrying two million barrels of crude a cargo valued at $ 100 million. Both vessels were released in February and January 2009 after payment of ransom of several million dollars each.
Diplomatic passport! The Monitoring Group of the UN Somalia and Eritrea in June 2012 described “Afweyne” as “one of the most notorious leaders and influential network of Hobyo-piracy Harardheere” based in the central region of Mudug, one of the two main Somali pirate organizations.
The report accused the pirate leaders, including “Afweyne” benefit complicity and protection at a high level within the Somali authorities, revealing that he was traveling with a diplomatic passport Somalia. The authors specified that the Somali president had informed them that he had diplomatic status was granted in exchange for dismantling its network of piracy.
“As part of its on-going work in Somalia, Albany Associates partnered with UNESCO and the Centre for Law and Democracy to produce a legal review for the future of media and telecommunications in Somalia.”
Somali Media Law Review
10 Jan – Source: Albany Associates Notebook – 624 Words
As Mogadishu and other parts of South Central Somalia continue to stabilise, and with a new government formed in Mogadishu, now is the time for extensive discussions about the legal and regulatory framework for media and communications in Somalia. As part of that process, the Media Law of 2007 should be reconsidered, and the draft Somalia Communications Act of 2012 should be more broadly discussed and consulted.
UNESCO has established a comprehensive system for setting goals and measuring success of media development in any given country known as UNESCO’s Media Development Indicators (MDIs). A subset of the MDIs speaks to having ‘a system of regulation conducive to freedom of expression, pluralism and diversity of the media.’ The current Somali frameworks, and goals for the new framework, are benchmarked below against these MDIs.
Recommendations are made that would bring the Somali framework in line with international standards on freedom of expression and good governance and would promote democracy, increased competition, and further investment in the media and communications sectors.
Top tweets
@UNPOSomalia Mr. Surasena, held by #pirates since 2010, returns home in #Sri Lanka assisted by #UN #Hostage Relief Program @UNODC pic.twitter.com/vSJm6eaF.
@amisomsomalia Our PHOTOS of the DAY: ‘A Visit To The Frontline’ with the #Somalia National Army & #AMISOMhttp://on.fb.me/Xp3V6S #Africa @_AfricanUnion.
@OCHASom In addition to the $14m contribution from the UK, we need an additional $30m asap to activate funding to life-saving projects in #Somalia.
@sarakarnas #Somalia #piracy no longer as lucrative as it once was, and no. of successful hijacks down significantly – Adjoa Anyimadu on @BBCr4today.
@ActForSomalia Patriotism over politics. Principles over interests! Let us not be separated by political rhetoric, Let us stand proudly together. #Somalia.
Image of the day
Lieutenant General Katumba Wamala, Commander of the Land Forces of the Ugandan People’s Defense Force (UPDF), shaking hands with military officers after his visits to frontline positions occupied by UPDF soldiers, as part of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). Photo: AMISOM.