March 20, 2014 | Morning Headlines.

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“We must show Somalis they are not alone,” President tells key international partners as military campaign gains new ground

19 Mar- Source: Office of the President- 359 words
Somali communities in newly liberated areas devastated by al Shabaab must receive immediate humanitarian assistance, His Excellency President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said today in a high-level meeting with Somalia’s most important international partners.
The President emphasized the need for immediate humanitarian assistance and praised the Turkish and UAE Red Crescent organizations for the aid being provided to communities in serious need.
“We must show the people they are not alone,” the President said. “The people need to see help coming rapidly and they need to know that more is on its way.”
Updating international partners on federal government support to the ever-expanding newly liberated areas, the President said:
“Government ministers have already visited newly liberated areas to assess the situation and establish short-term local community needs and this will continue in earnest. Cabinet ministers have also been allocated responsibility for different regions and some will be deploying on a more permanent basis to assist local communities and administrations.”
The UN’s Special Representative of the Secretary General, Ambassador Nick Kay, announced UNSOM was providing $3m worth of support to the Ministry of Interior’s stabilization programme.
“We send our very strong congratulations to the Somali National Army (SNA) and AMISOM for the recent military successes,” Ambassador Kay said. “This is the most significant and geographically extensive operation since AMISOM began. We really think it’s a turnaround for the country.”
Ambassador Mahamat Saleh Annadif, Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union, briefed the President on al Shabaab’s destruction of local infrastructure, including even water facilities and wells. AMISOM has been engaged in installing new water facilities as they and the SNA together seize more ground from the retreating terrorists.
The President noted that the security architecture in Mogadishu was strengthening with the recent establishment of the Joint Operations Centre, manned by AMISOM police and military, SNA and Somali police and the National Intelligence and Security Agency.
The high-level meeting also included His Excellency Farah Abdulkadir, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and the UN, AU, EU, UK, Swedish and Norwegian ambassadors.

Key Headlines

UN Special Representative for Somalia welcomes progress on military operations announces UN support to stabilisation efforts (UNSOM)
“We must show So malis they are not alone” President tells key international partners as military campaign gains new ground (Office of the President)
Somali Prime Minister jets off to Switzerland (Radio GoobJoog)
Al Shabaab mobilizes local communities to fight amid advancing heavily armed African forces( Dhanaan Media)
Dozens arrested after search operations in Somali capital (Hiiraan online)
Istarlin hospital in dire shortage of medical facilities (Radio Goobjoog)
France condemns attack against troops in Somalia (KUNA)

PRESS STATEMENT

UN Special Representative for Somalia welcomes progress on military operations, announces UN support to stabilisation efforts

19 Mar- Source: UNSOM- 240 words

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia, Nicholas Kay, has welcomed the military progress made by the Somali National Army (SNA) and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in south-central Somalia.

“I congratulate the SNA and AMISOM forces on regaining control of key towns and areas from al Shabaab. I pay tribute to the commitment and sacrifices made by Somali soldiers and their African brothers and sisters,” SRSG Kay said. “The UN will continue to support the joint operations in line with Security Council Resolution 2124 and the Secretary-General’s Human Rights Due Diligence Policy. It is important that international humanitarian law and human rights are fully respected.”

“Fighting has affected civilian populations. The UN and international partners have begun addressing humanitarian needs where access is possible and needs are assessed,” he added.

“Somalis living in areas now under Government control should quickly receive what they need: better security and justice, services such as health and education and a decent livelihood,” SRSG Kay noted.

He welcomed contributions made by international partners to the Government’s efforts to ensure Somalis benefit from peace and stability, and called for more international support.

“The United Nations is supporting these stabilisation efforts, including by immediately making available $3 million from the United Nations’ Peace-Building Fund,” he said.

“This is a turning point in Somalia’s struggle to bring lasting peace to all its people. Its friends and partners need to act quickly and generously.”

“We must show Somalis they are not alone,” President tells key international partners as military campaign gains new ground

SOMALI MEDIA

Somali Prime Minister jets off to Switzerland

19 Mar- Source: Radio Goobjoog- 130 words

The Prime minister of Somalia Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed and high level delegates headed to Geneva, the capital of Switzerland, he is expected to attend a conference where the affairs of Somalia will be discussed. Before his departure the Prime Minister visited a hospital in Halane to see Somali National Army and Djiboutian contingent AMSIOM soldiers, who were wounded in Bula Burde, in Hiiraan. He wished them quick recovery as he sent condolence to their families and loved ones. In his visit to Geneva the prime Minister is accompanied by some of his cabinet members.
A delegate of Somali members of parliament taking part in internal parliamentary conference in Geneva Switzerland. This is the first visit of the prime Minister Abdiweli to Switzerland since his appointment last year.

Al Shabaab mobilizes local communities to fight amid advancing heavily armed African forces

19 Mar- Source: Dhanaan Media- 234 words

Al Shabaab governor of lower Shabelle region Sheikh Mohamed Abu-Abdalla met with different local communities living in Lower Shabelle and asked them to join al Shabaab in the fight against the AMISOM and Somali forces. Speaking to al Shabaab Media, the governor said he visited towns such as Bulamareer,Kuntawarey and Qoryoley and met with the local communities living in those towns asking them to join the fight to defend the religion. Sheikh Abu-Adalla said the local communities he met welcomed the idea and agreed to fight alongside al Shabaab.

Dozens arrested after search operations in Somali capital

19 Mar- Source: Hiiraan Online- 293 words

Somali government forces and African Union peacekeepers have conducted widespread house-to-house search operations in some neighbourhoods in Somali capital Mogadishu on Wednesday to hunt al Shabaab militants who are suspected to be hiding in Mogadishu after they were driven out of some regions in the country. Hundreds of heavily armed forces involved in the security check operations which began before dawnon Wednesday morning. The operations were carried out in the Zone K neighbourhood in the Hodon district and some key areas along the industrial road north and northwest of the capital Mogadishu.

Istarlin hospital in dire shortage of medical facilities

19 Mar- Source: Radio Goobjoog- 127 words

The management of Istarlin hospital in Gurel district stated that the hospital is running short of medicine and other medical facilities that soon cause the close down of the hospital. The director of Istarlin hospital Ali Omar Tarabi told Goobjoog FM that the hospital is facing dire shortage of medicine a time when lots of patients from all areas of Galgadud and nearby regions come to the hospital for medical checkup. He also added that the hospital has been running short of medicine MSF withdrew from Somali last year. The director called the federal government of Somalia and international aid agencies to support the hospital so as to save the lives of the patients in the hospital and those who come to the hospital from far areas.

REGIONAL MEDIA

France condemns attack against troops in Somalia

19 Mar- Source: KUNA- 136 words
France on Wednesday condemned a bomb attack that killed a number of Somali and Djibouti soldiers on Tuesday about 200 kilometres north of the capital, Mogadishu. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the troops were attacked in a hotel where they were staying and there were a number of dead but accurate figures were not yet available. Al Shabaab Islamist radical fighters are being blamed for placing a car bomb at the hotel, where local troops and African Union soldiers had been billeted. “France praises the action of the Somali security forces and the African Union Mission in Somalia forces in taking back territories still held by terrorists,” a statement here said. France and its partners “will continue to support the efforts of the Federal government to restore peace and security” in Somalia, it added.

We are winning the war against al Shabab: Prime Minister

19 Mar- Source: Walta Information Centre- 354 words
Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed said that the Somali National Force and AMISOM are winning the war against al Shabaab so that now is the time for Al-Shabaab to renounce violence. According to a press release the Somali Prime Minister’s Media Office sent to Walta Information Center, the National Security Council met, chaired by His Excellency President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and attended by H.E. Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, government ministers and senior military and security officials to discuss the ongoing military operations against al Shabaab and government stabilization plans. Speaking after the National Security Council meeting Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, said, “I want to thank and praise the bravery of the Somali National Army and our AMISOM brothers in their successful fight against al Shabaab. The Somali people have welcomed the forces with open arms and I urge them to continue to support and work with the forces in securing newly liberated areas.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Kenya, Uganda on alert for possible terror attacks

19 Mar- Source: AP- 221 words
Security agencies in two East African countries are on alert for possible terror attacks from Somali extremists who have vowed to avenge the presence of African Union troops in Somalia, officials said Wednesday. Anti-terror police foiled a planned terrorist attack in the coastal city of Mombasa after they intercepted a car packed with explosives a week ago, according to Kenyan authorities. The FBI is aiding the investigation and two men who were allegedly caught in the car were charged in court Wednesday for preparing to commit murder, being members of an outlawed organization and illegal possession of explosives and weapons. The two men charged in court were identified as Abdiaziz Abdulahi Abdi and Isaak Noor Ibrahim believed to be Somali nationals.

Thousands of Somalis need aid: UN

19 Mar- Source: Anatolia News Agency- 438 words

Thousands of Somalis caught up in an ongoing offensive by Somali and African troops against the Al-Shabaab militant group are in dire need of humanitarian assistance, a U.N. agency said Wednesday. “Most of the humanitarian needs which have arisen so far are related to population movements – either people moving out of towns affected by the military operation or people previously displaced moving back to newly recovered areas,” the United Nations Office for Coordination Assistance (OCHA) said in a statement mailed to Anadolu Agency. Shelter, household items, foodstuffs, safe drinking water and healthcare have all been identified as priority needs.

Germany to participate in EU Somalia mission

19 Mar- Source: Washington Post/AP- 293 words

Germany will contribute soldiers to a European Union-led military training mission in Somalia — overcoming its previous reluctance to send troops to the East African country. Government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet decided Wednesday to commit up to 20 soldiers to the mission. The move needs parliamentary approval, which it is expected to receive. The EU mission moved to the Somali capital, Mogadishu, in December. It was launched in Uganda in 2010 and Germany participated in training there, but initially wouldn’t send soldiers to Somalia itself because of security concerns.

Somalia: al Qaeda Outfit Recruited Grandfather as Suicide Bomber

19 Mar- Source: ibtimes- 292 words
Somalia’s Islamist militant group al Shabaab has claimed that a suicide bomber who blew himself up at a hotel in the east African country was an elderly Norwegian national. Six soldiers, including a top army commander, were killed when a hotel frequented by Somali and African Union officials in Bulo-Burte, central Somalia, was hit by a suicide car bomb and subsequently attacked by al-Shabaab gunmen. “The attacker of Bulo-Burte was a 60-year-old man who came from Norway to fight the enemies of Allah,” al Shabaab military spokesman Sheikh Abdul Aziz Abu Musab told AFP.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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

“As a result of decades of exploitation, the Somali people are sick and tired of always being the expendable pawn.”

Al Shabaab and the party balloon effect

19 Mar- Source: Al Jazeera English-1403 Words
From the outset, let me make one thing clear: al Shabaab and its extremist worldview is neither constructive nor sustainable. This extremist neo-Islamist group represents one of two nihilistic worldviews that dominated the 21st century political discourse – global (dysfunctional) jihadism and global war on terrorism. Both, due to their applied mantra – with hammer, all problems are solvable – are destined to self-destruct. What has been happening in Somalia is not entirely devoid of that mindset that justified senseless violence across the globe in recent years. In recent weeks, Ethiopian-led AMISOM , together with the Somali government forces have captured several strategic towns previously ruled by al Shabaab. There was not much resistance there and that is hardly surprising since, in the past few years, that has been al Shabaab’s favourite tactic – melt or move, depending on geographic and clan dynamic.