March 8, 2013 | Morning Headlines.
Somalia says UN arms embargo lift to aid fight against Shabaab
07 Mar – Source: Africa Review – 111 words
Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud has welcomed the partial lifting of a twenty-year-old arms embargo saying it would hugely boost the fight against Islamic militants. The decision, he said in a statement, “correctly reflects a new and constant improvement of the political situation in Somalia.” On Wednesday, the 15-member UN Security Council unanimously voted to suspend for one year the arms embargo against Somalia that had been in place since 1992. Resolution 2093 allows for a one-year suspension of the embargo when small arms will be allowed.
Key Headlines
- Sierra Leone offers to train Somali police force (Bar-Kulan)
- British troops to deploy in Mogadishu soon (Mail Online)
- Somaliland says federal gov’t not ready for arms embargo lift (Garowe Online)
- Somalia: how women are rebuilding Mogadishu (The Guardian)
SOMALI MEDIA
Sierra Leone offers to train Somali police force
07 Mar – Source: Bar-kulan – 127 words
The Sierra Leonean government has offered to train the Somali police force in order to boost police capacity in the country to enforce peace, law, and order. Vice President, Chief Alhaji Samuel Sam Sumana made the announcement in Freetown after receiving a six-member delegation from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the Somalia Police Force. Sumana said they will help train an unspecified number of Somali Police officers and promised to keep supporting the government in rebuilding its security forces.
Somaliland says federal gov’t not ready for arms embargo lift
07 Mar – Source: Garowe Online – 9 words
The north western breakaway region of Somaliland expressed discontent over the UN Security Council decision to partially lift the 21 year old arms embargo ban on Somalia. The Somaliland government’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Omar, spoke to BBC Somali Service on Thursday and stated that the Security Council did not evaluate the consequences of the partial lift. “We [Somaliland] recognize the decision by the Security Council as a decision that was not properly examined nor assessed. And we believe it is ill-timed an decision that could bring insecurity to East Africa,” said Minister Omar.
Denmark and Tanzania reached an anti-piracy agreement
07 Mar – Source: Radio Kulmiye – 9 words
The government of Denmark has said that it has agreed with Tanzania to make a cooperation between the two governments in order to catch individuals responsible of piracy acts along the coast of Somalia. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark Feli Sofandan has said in a press release that this agreement was announced so that other countries in the world would support anti-piracy.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Somalia says UN arms embargo lift to aid fight against Shabaab
07 Mar – Source: Africa Review – 111 words
Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud has welcomed the partial lifting of a twenty-year-old arms embargo saying it would hugely boost the fight against Islamic militants. The decision, he said in a statement, “correctly reflects a new and constant improvement of the political situation in Somalia.” On Wednesday, the 15-member UN Security Council unanimously voted to suspend for one year the arms embargo against Somalia that had been in place since 1992. Resolution 2093 allows for a one-year suspension of the embargo when small arms will be allowed.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
British troops to deploy in Mogadishu soon
07 Mar – Source: Mail Online/Topix News – 103 words
British troops are to be deployed to Somalia, opening up a new front in its military commitment in Africa. Amid fears of ‘mission creep’ in UK involvement in the region, soldiers are to be sent to Mogadishu to provide security for a new embassy. It is the latest stage in David Cameron’s commitment to providing advice and training to African Union forces in taking on Al Qaeda-linked insurgents. Ministers today published an International Defence Engagement Strategy setting out defence activity, which stops short of combat operations.
Somalia: how women are rebuilding Mogadishu – video
07 Mar – Source: Guardian – 4 min 37 sec
As Somalia emerges from civil war and the influence of Islamist insurgents al-Shabaab, it is women who are rebuilding the economy according to businesswomen in Mogadishu, and students and the rector of the University of Somalia, who says: ‘It is the women the economy relies on. The men are there for fighting’.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“Against the odds, Somaliland has become a success story for Africa and indeed the world. It now has democratically elected presidents, it’s own currency, and an abundance of delicious camel liver (really).”
Recognising Somaliland
08 Mar- Source: Buzz Bournemouth-3:18 mins
The Country That Isn’t There: A detailed look at the unrecognised African state, Somaliland from Owen on Vimeo. Somaliland, an unrecognised state next to Somalia. The landscape and the history of Somaliland is fraught with passion and blood. Its future runs directly with the optimism of its people, who are returning from all around the globe and an uncertain future. The Country That Isn’t There, followed people in Hargeisa, Berberra, And Burao, and asked them what it was like to live in a country that isn’t recognised by any other country on Earth.