January 16, 2015 | Morning Headlines.

Main Story

Al Shabaab senior official surrenders to Somali government

15 Jan – Source: Dalsan Radio – 97 Words

Senior Al-Shabaab figure Hassan Dhubi surrendered to the Somali government on Thursday. The acting district commissioner of Luq , Bishar Adan Abdihakim, confirmed Dhubi’s surrender to the media. Abdihakim said the surrender of Dhubi indicates the failure of Al-Shabaab, and urged those still in the forest to follow his suit. His surrender comes a few weeks after former Al- Shabaab intelligence chief Zakariya Ismail Hersi was detained by Somali security forces in Elwak, near the Kenya-Somalia border. There has been no official comment from Somali government on the arrest.

Key Headlines

Al Shabaab senior official surrenders to Somali government (Dalsan Radio)
Himan & Heb state announces the official opening of state formation conference next week (Radio Goobjoog)
Thousands welcome Puntland Vice President in Buuhoodle today (Radio RBC)
Puntland forces launch security operations in Bosaso (Radio Bar-Kulan)
The first round of Kadis Inter-School Competition concludes in Mogadishu (Radio Goobjoog)
Somalia readies for fresh attack on Al-Shabaab (Daily Nation)
Regional MPs to meet over Great Lakes security (Capital FM)
Islamist rebels kill two police officers in north Somalia attack (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia provides medical aid to Somalia (International Islamic News Agency)

SOMALI MEDIA

Al Shabaab senior official surrenders to Somali government

15 Jan – Source: Dalsan Radio – 97 Words

Himan & Heb state announces the opening of the state formation conference next week

15 Jan – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 173 Words

The Himan and Heb administration in central Somalia have announced that the state formation conference, slated to take place in Adado town, will begin next week. Himan and Heb Interior Minister, Mohamed Haji Hussein, briefing the media said that the technical committee facilitating the conference and most of the delegates will be in Adado next week, and ready to kick off of the meeting.

“Within a week, the technical committee and most of the delegates will reach Adado, hence it will pave way for the official opening of the conference,” he said.The minister added that a substantial number of delegates are already in Adado, and the remainder are expected within a week.He declined to comments on some politicians’ opposition to holding the state formation conference in Adado. “We heard the complaints by some politicians, but we look at things on the bright side,” he said. Himan and Heb is making its final preparations to host a state formation conference for a regional administration comprising of Galgadud and Mudug regions.

Thousands welcome Puntland Vice President in Buuhoodle today

15 Jan – Source: Radio RBC – 147 Words

A large delegation led by Puntland Vice President Eng Abdihakim Abdullahi Haji Omar Amey went to Buuhoodle, the provincial capital of Cayn region, on Thursday. Traditional leaders, religious clerics and citizens of Buuhoodle welcomed the president and his delegation at the outskirts of the town. The vice president was later escorted to the town in a heavy security convoy. Vice President Amey addressed thousands, saying that he has come to attend the inauguration of a traditional leader Garaad Abdirizak Garad Sofe. The vice president is accompanied by Puntland lawmakers, cabinet members and other senior government officials.The delegation is expected to attend the inauguration of the traditional clan elder which is set to happen tomorrow.This is the vice president’s first visit to Buuhoodle since he was elected into office in January 2014.

Puntland forces launch security operations in Bosaso

15 Jan – Source: Radio Bar-Kulan – 80 Words

Puntland state police spokesman said that overnight security operations in the port town of Bosaso rounded up suspects who are believed to be linked to a bomb attack on the town’s police station last week. “The police have conducted several security sweeps in Bosaso, and [have] captured a few crooked and brainwashed individuals,” Bosaso Police Chief, Abdihakin Yusuf Hassan, told local media. Puntland police forces have been conducting 24 hour operations in and around Bosaso, and extra troops have been deployed to the outskirts of the region.

The first round of Kadis Inter-School Competition concludes in Mogadishu

15 Jan – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 102 Words

The first round of Kadis Inter-School Competition concluded at the Somali media academy in Mogadishu on Thursday.The competition, started in November 2014, was attended by 56 secondary schools in the Banadir region. 32 schools moved to the second round of the competition, which is expected to start on 22 January, 2015. The competition organized and co-aired by Goobjoog FM and Maandeeq Radio was sponsored by City University. Kadis Inter-School Competition is meant to build the capacity and the capabilities of students, and strengthen relations between schools.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Somalia readies for fresh attack on Al-Shabaab

14 Jan – Source: Daily Nation – 148 Words

Mr Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Sidee, the Governor of Lower Shabelle region in Southern Somalia, stated that the second phase of the Indian Ocean military operation against Al-Shabaab may start soon.Talking to the local media on Tuesday, Mr Sidee said that the time set by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud for Al-Shabaab militants to surrender to the government forces was over.“Al-Shabaab fighters were given amble time to abandon the indoctrination by terrorists,” said Sidee.

Over three months ago, President Mohamoud announced extension of pardon for the militants who surrender from October 1 to December 31.“The time for pardoning those who give up violence is now over and the Indian Ocean Operation is going to restart soon,” he said.In first phase of the military move dubbed Indian Ocean Operation against Al-Shabaab, the Somali National Army and the troops serving with Amisom captured several districts from Al-Shabaab.

Regional MPs to meet over Great Lakes security

14 Jan – Source: Capital FM – 426 Words

Members of Parliament from Great Lakes member states will meet in Nairobi next week to discuss political and security challenges in the region. Kenya’s Senate Speaker Ekwee Ethuro said the Fifth Ordinary Plenary Assembly of the 12 member International Conference on the Great Lake s Region is slated to be held between January 20 and 22. “Parliaments are Houses for debates when you have forums like this one, it’s basically to look at the situation within our region,” he added. “So the meeting is in two formats, the Executive which mulls over the main issues of the forum then there is the reporting back mechanisms and also there will be a meeting of the Speakers and then they will be the plenary sessions.” Angola, Zambia, Rwanda, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya are the member countries.

President Uhuru Kenyatta is expected to inaugurate the regional conference while Kenya’s National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi and his Senate counterpart Ethuro are among those listed to address the Assembly. The meeting will focus on the Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and South Sudan that have been affected by endless conflicts between the states and rebel militias. Ethuro says the forum will also discuss the political and security implications the Somalia militia Al Shabaab poses to the region. “Most of the issues we are talking about are really politically instigated conflicts, the issue of Al Shabaab is a global issue about terrorism and of course we will discuss it in terms of the political and security situation in our respective countries. As you can appreciate it we seem to be doing much better at handling Ebola than terrorism,” said the Senate Speaker who is the conference convener.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Islamist rebels kill two police officers in north Somalia attack

15 Jan – Source: Reuters – 369 Words

Islamist fighters have killed at least two officers at a police post in a northern Somali town, rebels and police said on Thursday, as the militants, driven out of areas further south, make more frequent attacks in the semi-autonomous north. African Union peacekeepers and the Somali army launched a campaign last year that has forced al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab rebels out of major strongholds in central and southern regions, but they still control many rural areas. Analysts say the group might have shifted extra fighters to Puntland, a semi-autonomous northern region that was relatively calm till recently, and in the last two weeks, Puntland troops have fought rebels in the area over several days. “Gunmen attacked us last night with grenades and gunfire. Two policemen died and three others were injured,” said Mohamuud Saciid, a Puntland police captain told Reuters, referring to Wednesday’s late night assault which he blamed on al Shabaab. Al Shabaab’s military operations spokesman, Abdiasis Abu Musab, confirmed the group was behind the attack in Bosasso port town, although he said three officers had been killed. Al Shabaab often gives a higher death toll than officials.

Residents worry that the attack, coming so soon after the fighting in the Galgala hill region, where Puntland security forces said they killed 20 militants, heralds the start of a new militant offensive in the area. “It seems al Shabaab is increasing in number these days after the Galgala hills war. Some al Shabaab fighters have come into the towns,” Bosasso resident Ahmed Nur said. He had heard of other attacks on police posts, he said. “We also see many forces deployed into the town. We cannot say al Shabaab is as strong as it is in Mogadishu. However, the mood is changing here,” he said. Despite the joint military campaign further south, al Shabaab has continued to strike with often devastating effect using hit-and-run bomb and gun attacks in the capital Mogadishu and in towns. The group, which wants to impose its strict interpretation of Islam on the nation, ruled southern and central Somalia for several years until the African Union forces drove them out of Mogadishu in 2011.

Saudi Arabia provides medical aid to Somalia

15 Jan – Source: International Islamic News Agency – 93 Words

Saudi National Campaign for the Relief of Somali people provided nearly 400 tons of medical assistance to the Federal Ministry of Interior in Somalia.The medical aid will be distributed among hospitals in the capital Mogadishu, and in the drought-hit regions, as well as the areas regained from the grip of al-Shabaab rebels in the south and center of the country.Somali Interior Ministry’s Director General Ismail Jamaali said on Thursday morning: “Two out of four aircraft arrived in Somalia, transporting medical supplies, which will be distributed to the most vulnerable groups in the country.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“I would be the first one to move away from [the oral tradition] but [not] completely. I go to the oral tradition quite often; it’s a treasure I borrow [from] and informs a great deal of the writing. “

Somali Author Nuruddin Farah Speaks Truth to Power [INTERVIEW]

14 Jan – Source: Ebony Magazine – 400 Words

The current images of Somalia are those of a country ravaged by a 22-year dictatorship and perpetual civil war. Yet through 12 books and countless essays centered on Somalia, author Nuruddin Farah has refuted those images of his homeland and solidified his place as one of Africa’s leading literary voices. EBONY spoke with the global activist and educator on how he keeps Somalia alive through his writing.

EBONY: Growing up in Somalia, books were not easily accessible. At what point did your interest in literature pique despite not having books at your fingertips?

Nuruddin Farah: Books for children specifically and books in general were not available. I had to read whatever books my older brother could lay his hands on. I was between 9 and 11 years old, and I had difficulties understanding many of the words. It was my brother’s idea to give me thick books, to decrease the amount of mischief I could get into.