July 13, 2018 | Daily Monitoring Report
Kenya Denies Troops Involved In Sugar, Charcoal Trade In Somali
13 July – Source: The Star – 526 Words
The UN Security Council has been cautioned against linking peacekeeping troops in Somalia to illegal charcoal and sugar trade without evidence. Defence Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo yesterday told the teams monitoring the peace process against accusing African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) soldier. She said they should stop finger-pointing, sensational and unsubstantiated allegations.
Omamo spoke during the UN Security Council’s Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia 21st Plenary Session at the UN headquarters in Nairobi. The Contact Group is probing terrorism financing in Somalia. “I note that the group has taken the initiative to grapple with questions relating to the financing of terrorism and is examining the charcoal trade and sugar smuggling as a source,” she said.
More than 200 delegates from 68 states and international organisations attended the three-day meeting. Foreign Affairs CS Monica Juma, her counterparts Ahmed Awad (Somalia) and Vishnu Lutchmeenaraidoo (Mauritius), the UN assistant secretary for political affairs Tayé-Brooke Zerihoun and secretary general of the Indian Ocean Commission Hamada Madi were present.
The Group’s Plenary Session theme was “Leaving a long-lasting legacy for the region.”
In November last year, the council’s Somalia and Ethiopia monitoring group report linked the Kenya Defence Forces, which is part of Amisom, to export and import of charcoal. However, the KDF spokesman Col David Obonyo dismissed the report as untrue. He said the soldiers were not in Somalia to trade, but to enforce Amisom’s mandate. Omamo warned that linking the troops to smuggling undermines the soldiers’ significant contribution in the fight against al Shabaab to restore stability in Somalia.
Key Headlines
- Kenya Denies Troops Involved In Sugar Charcoal Trade In Somali (The Star)
- We Will Not Allow Government Soldiers To Harm Civilians– Gen. Gorod (Radio Kulmiye)
- Jubbaland Authorities Give Cash To Al-Shabaab Defector In Kismayo (Halbeeg News)
- First Sentence Under New Law Over Genital Mutilation (Swiss.info)
- Police Repulse Suspected Al-Shabaab Attackers In Mandera (Daily Nation)
- Cash Aid Helps Rebuild Lives In Somaliland (NRC)
NATIONAL MEDIA
We Will Not Allow Government Soldiers To Harm Civilians– Gen. Gorod
13 July – Source: Radio Kulmiye – 141 Words
Somali Military Chief of Defence Force, Major General Abdiweli Jama Gorod, has sent out a strong warning to military officers over abuses against civilians, saying the force will neither tolerate nor take responsibility for the same..
General Gorod said: “In the past, people used to be proud of our officers but now when civilians see a military officer the run away due to fear of being abused. But now that must come to an end because we will not tolerate anybody harassing civilians at all..”
The commander warned Somali military officers and asked them to stop mistreating and looting from civilians and instead focus on the fight against the Al-Shabaab militia group. The comments by the Chief of Defence Force come after Somali National Army officers opened fire on civilians at a livestock market in Mogadishu city last week. The incident, which resulted in death and injuries of civilians, had not been publicly addressed by anyone. So far, no one was be held responsible.
Jubbaland Authorities Give Cash To Al-Shabaab Defector In Kismayo
13 July – Source: Halbeeg News – 235 Words
The authorities in Somalia’s southern regional state have given an unspecified amount of money to a man who recently defected from Al-Shabaab. The number of fighters from the militia group who are defecting from group has been on the increase in the recent past.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Ahmed Muse Hirsi, head of Jubbaland security forces said Adan Hudow Abdi who surrendered to Jubbaland, was rewarded with cash: “Abdi, who handed over his rifle to the authorities, was given cash. Whoever defects from Al-Shabab and surrenders his weapon will be given same prize,” Hirsi promised. He pledged that the Jubbaland state will continue rewarding the Al-Shabaab defectors.
Abdi, who was reportedly an official in the Al-Shabaab group, handed over his AK47 rifle and magazines to authorities in Kismayo town. The defection comes three months after another Al-Shabaab fighter who defected to Southwest state was given USD 15,000. The fighter arrived in Baidoa in a combat vehicle with a machine gun mounted on his back. He surrendered the vehicle and the machine gun to Southwest state authorities.
Somali forces, backed by continental troops, have stepped up the fight against Al-Shabaab fighters in south and central Somalia. Al-Shabaab militia group, which once controlled many towns in southern Somalia, wants to overthrow the Somali government.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
First Sentence Under New Law Over Genital Mutilation
13 July – Source: Swiss Info – 248 Words
A Somali woman from canton Neuchâtel has been sentenced to eight months’ prison over the genital mutilation of her two daughters, in the first Swiss case of its kind after a law change. The girls were six and a half and seven when the procedure was carried out between 2013-2015 in Somalia and Ethiopia.
The mother, who now lives in Neuchâtel in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, did not deny the charges. She was reported to the authorities by her estranged husband, who is also from Somalia. The judgement was based on a relatively new article in Swiss law which aims to prevent Swiss-based families from having their daughters circumcised, whether in Switzerland or abroad.
“I do not take it upon myself to be able to change things. But perhaps this judgement will contribute to eliminating the suffering of millions of girls,” said Nathalie Kocherhans, the judge at the regional court in Boudry, on Thursday. The fact that the woman did not live in Switzerland at the time of the genital mutilation was not a reason for acquittal, the judge added.
The court did however recognise that the Somali woman had been living in difficult circumstances. The woman, who is illiterate, has been under immense social pressure in her home country for the girls to undergo the procedure. This is why the sentence is mainly of a symbolic nature, the judge explained. But given the gravity of the offence, a short prison sentence was still necessary, she said.
Police Repulse Suspected Al-Shabaab Attackers In Mandera
12 July – Source: Daily Nation – 187 Words
Rural Border Patrol Unit on Thursday morning managed to repulse an attempted terror attack on their camp at Manza in Sheikh Barrow, Mandera County. Lafey deputy county commissioner Erick Oronyi told the Nation that the 7.30am attack found the Administration Police unit on high alert.
“The attackers started by hurling explosives into the camp before shooting at officers but luckily no one was injured,” he said. He said the all the security camps along the Kenya-Somalia border are always on high alert since Al-Shabaab militants are active in the area.
“We are always on high alert because the enemy is waiting for an opportunity to strike,” he said. Mr Oronyo said the officers had intelligence about the planned attack that caused no much damage. A source said the militants attacked in the morning hoping to find the police asleep.
Mr Oranyi said security operation is underway in the area along the border, adding that all security agencies have been activated: “All security agencies are on high alert and we are patrolling the area in search for the attackers whom we suspect have crossed into Somalia,” he said.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“Cash, like any other form of aid, is most efficient when combined with other kinds of humanitarian assistance. In Somaliland, we provide people with cash along with hygiene kits, life-saving aid like shelter, and aqua tabs to purify water.”
Cash Aid Helps Rebuild Lives In Somaliland
13 July – Source: NRC – 546 Words
Families have lost everything in the aftermath of Cyclone Sagar. Cash aid is the fastest way to help them. “I am 80 years old, and I have never seen a storm like this in my lifetime,” says Habane Abdi. He is a longtime resident of Somaliland´s Awdal region. He lives in one of over 50 villages in the region that were severely hit by the tropical cyclone Sagar between the 16th and 19th of May this year.
This past May set monthly records for rain and extreme weather all across Somalia. Cyclone Sagar – the country´s first ever storm of such magnitude – dropped a year’s worth of rain on the country in just a few days, and added a new dimension to the pre-existing humanitarian response actions taking place in the country. First drought, then a cyclone “After two years of severe drought, the cyclone has crippled the livelihoods of people who were recovering from the droughts,” says Ibrahim Omar, who leads the Norwegian Refugee Council´s (NRC) operation in Somaliland. “Sagar has destroyed crops and livestock. Lives were lost, and due to the flooding it has been difficult to reach out to people in need.”
The National Disaster Management Authority, NADFOR, estimated that 49 people have been killed, and over 70 are still missing. Nearly 168,000 people were directly affected by the cyclone and around 277 hectares of land have been destroyed. More than 10,000 people had to flee their homes to save their lives. Thousands of people are in dire need of support to rebuild their livelihoods.
Cash is smart aid; NRC has been a long-time advocate for cash aid in humanitarian crises. It has proven to be one of the most efficient and dignified ways to support people in need. Sagar has ruined livelihoods, destroyed homes, and contaminated waters, long term issues that compound existing hardships. With cash, families have been able to buy what they need right away.
Sahra Cige, 41, and her family of six have been among those worst hit in region. “The storm ruined our home and all of our belongings. For the first few days after the storm, all of us and our neighbours had to sleep in a school nearby,” she says. Sahra has been receiving cash assistance for two months as part of our emergency drought response funded by the Somali Humanitarian Fund (SHF). When the storm hit, the cash became their only way to access food.
TOP TWEETS
@NorwayInSomalia: Thanks to close cooperation between Norwegian and Somali Immigration Authorities, Norway will recognise Somali passports from 1stAugust 2018. These include diplomatic, service and ordinary passports issued by
Immigration and Naturalization Directorate of Somalia cc@Justisdep
@Eye_on_Somalia: #reliefweb Somalia: Cash aid helps rebuild lives in Somaliland https://ift.tt/2NM805G #Somalia
@ItalyinSomalia: First Somali-Italian Business Forum took place in Mogadishu on the 11th of July. A selected group of Italian companies meet their Somali counterparts in a BtB format to promote new partnership to support Somalia’s inclusive and resilient economic growth.
@GEEL_Somali: Over 20 Agribusiness SMEs supported by GEEL attended the Business to Business Networking Event with Italian companies showcasing products, technologies & services. Thank You @mocisom @ItalyinSomalia & Somalia Chamber of Commerce & industry for organizing &facilitating the event
@STN_KE: The Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of#Somalia (CGPCS) is seeking an expanded mandate to tackle piracy-linked crimes such as terrorism.
@Halbeeg_News: #Somalia: Jubbaland State gave unspecified amount of #money to recently defected #AlShabab fighter, Adan Hudow Abdi. the defector reportedly handed over his #AK47 rifle to #Jubbaland authorities
@taqwamedia3: Kenya Air Force Conducts Long-Range Airstrike in Somalia, an Early Sign KDF Could Strike Al-Shabaab Headquarters.Airstrike targeted the Al-Shabaaba rag tag terror group’s intelligence and militant operations coordination operations base situated a brief distance outside Jawaari.
@TedBlackwater: Kenya calls for commitment to eradicate piracy off coast of Somalia http://dlvr.it/QbPV5D
IMAGE OF THE DAY
Somali Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire chairs the weekly Cabinet meeting in Mogadishu, yesterday..
Photo: Dhacdo.com