May 27, 2015 | Morning Headlines
Federal Govt Forces Attack Al-Shabaab Base In Bay
26 May – Source: Garowe Online- 137 Words
Somali government forces clashed with Al-Shabaab militants near Bay regional district of Bardale of southwestern Somalia, killing two fighters according to official, Garowe Online reports. Bardale mayor, Mohamed Isaq Arro-Ase told VOA Somali Service that government troops raided Al-Shabaab bases in Bardale as part of cleanup operation. Arro-Ase added that they are in control of areas where the skirmishes occurred. Al-Shabaab has yet to comment on the deadly clashes in Bay. The Somali militant group maintains stronger presence in Bay and Bakool regions. Southwest state administration alongside African Union peacekeepers is planning to liberate Al-Shabaab-held areas. Militants fled a string of strategic towns in central and southern Somalia as a result of intense military campaign by allied forces.
Key Headlines
- Federal Govt Forces Attack Al-Shabaab Base In Bay (Garowe Online)
- Somali President Visits Troops On Front Lines in Lower Shabelle (Goobjoog News)
- UAE Donates Armoured And Unarmoured Vehicles To Jubba Administration (Horseed Media)
- Somali Military Court Acquits Seven Officers On SYL Hotel Attack (Radio Dalsan)
- Final Report Of Somalia Population Estimation Survey Launched (Horseed Media)
- 13 Kenyan Police Missing Feared Dead After Al-Shabaab Attack Near Border With Somalia (Mail & Guardian Africa)
- Five Wounded In Militant Attack On Kenyan Police (News 4)
- Why There Is High Rate Of Youth Unemployment In Puntland Somalia? (Horseed Media)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Somali President Visits Troops On Front Lines In Lower Shabelle
26 May – Source: Goobjoog News – 222 Words
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has paid a surprise visit to frontline somali troops in areas under Lower Shabelle region where there had been Military movement and tense of fighting in the recent days. The president who was accompanied by Somali minister for defence, Abdikadir Abdi Diini, SNA commanders wanted to fathom the scale of things on the ground and get first hand information about the situation of the soldiers.
“I came here to see for myself the great work Somali Army is doing on behalf of the Somali and international community to count the threat that exists here in Somalia.There is very bad press outside there but actually the truth is, I have seen here is that this is a very professional force that is trying very hard and actually are making great success and I think the success against Al-Shabaab is something the outside world needs to know about,” he said. Somali government forces are busy battling Al-Shabaab fighters who want to topple federal government of Somalia. Somali government is trying its best to bring back hope and restore security in a country that has had no peace since 1991. President is expected to visit areas which SNA soldiers liberated from Al-Shabaab fighters.
UAE Donates Armoured And Unarmoured Vehicles To Jubba Administration
26 May – Source: Horseed Media – 131 Words
The government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has donated dozens of armoured vehicles to the interim regional administration of Jubba, Horseed Media reports. Interim leader of Jubba administration Ahmed Mohamed Madobe received the military hardware aid in the port town of Kismayo, which is also the capital of the administration. Part of the aid is also unarmoured Toyota/LandCruiser-type vehicles. Al-Shabaab militants continue to pose threat in the region by launching attacks in the territories controlled by Jubba. The UAE is playing a great role in the rebuilding of the Somalia army in the past few years, as its interest in the Horn of African nation continues to grow. Somalia’s Federal government has promised to rebuild a strong national army.
Somali Military Court Acquits Seven Officers On SYL Hotel Attack
26 May – Source: Radio Dalsan – 95 Words
Somali military court has acquitted seven security officers after no sufficient evidence was found in connection to SYL hotel attack. Suicide car bomb attack on January this year was targeted at Turkish delegation meeting the SYL hotel ahead of President Tayyip Erdogan second visit in the country. Two Somali security officers and the suicide bomber were killed in the incident. Somali military court has at the same time delayed the case of four other offices suspected in facilitating the attack. The military court often carries out sentences and executions mainly targeting armed group Al-Shabaab.
Final Report Of Somalia Population Estimation Survey Launched
26 May – Source: Horseed Media – 203 Words
Somalia’s Federal government in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) officially launched the final report of the population estimation survey, the first of its kind since 1986 before the Central government collapsed. The ceremony was attended by the Deputy Prime Minister of Somalia Mohamed Omar Arte, Minister of Planning and Cooperation and officials from the UNFPA.
Launched in June 2012, Population estimation survey of Somalis undertaken in most of the 18 states in the country shows the total number of the population 12,316,895.
Officials admitted that there were challenges in some regions due to security issues and had to use other plans to estimate the people living there. According to UNFPA officials, the survey also reached out to displaced and nomadic populations through water points which are frequently visited during the pick of the dry seasons.The February 1986 census launched by the former military-led government of Somalia recorded it at 7,114,431. In 1997, during the civil war the mid-year population increased from 7,875,000 in 1985 to 10,217,000, according to United Nations estimates. Since 1991, an estimated 350,000 to 1,000,000 Somalis had died because of more than two decades conflicts.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
13 Kenyan Police Missing, Feared Dead After Al-Shabaab Attack Near Border With Somalia
26 May – Mail & Guardian Africa -372 Words
THIRTEEN Kenyan police are missing following an overnight ambush by suspected Al-Shabaab militants in the northeast of the country close to the border with Somalia, a police spokesman said Tuesday. Local officials said more than 10 officers may have been killed in Monday night’s ambush near Garissa—the scene of last month’s university massacre—while Kenyan media reported the number of dead could be as high as 20.
“There was an ambush on officers who were on patrol and as a result, 13 officers are missing,” police spokesman George Kinoti said. “Two others sustained injuries and have been taken to hospital.” “More police officers have been dispatched to look for those missing and the attackers,” he said. The attack in Garissa county came just days after extra Kenyan security forces were deployed in the area to strengthen security after a series of raids by gunmen from the Somali-led Al-Qaeda branch. The officers were ambushed as they went to assist other police who had been targeted by an explosive device, believed to be a landmine or roadside bomb.
Five Wounded In Militant Attack On Kenyan Police
26 May – Source: News 4 – 328 Words
Al-Shabaab gunmen attacked Kenyan police vehicles near Somalia’s border, injuring at least five officers and burning five cars, police said on Tuesday. Two officers were critically injured and three others sustained minor injuries in the attack in Garissa County, national Police Chief J.K. Boinnet said in a statement. Garissa police commander Shadrack Maithya said at least 13 police officers who went missing during the attack have been accounted for. Two of the attackers were killed, he said.
The interior ministry said no police officials were killed, dismissing earlier accounts by two officials that several missing colleagues were believed to have been killed. Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper reported that at least 20 police officers were feared dead. Police later said that in the confusion of the attacks that the worst was feared. The injured officers were part of team of more than 20 officers traveling in three pick-up trucks to recover a firearm lost by one officer whose car had hit a land mine.
Boinnet said there was a heavy exchange of gunfire with the Islamic militants. Al-Shabaab, a Somali extremist group with links to al-Qaida, said on its radio station that it carried out the attack.
OPINION, ANALYSIS & CULTURE
“In Puntland, the youth represent the smallest number of the working-age-population in any working place. Unemployment rate for those between the ages of 18-25 are routinely twice or even three times higher than those of the total working-age-population. In recent years the youth unemployment rate in Puntland was alarming high, in addition to the high youth unemployment rate, the proportion of youth unemployment in total unemployment is high. Some went as far as to cross the Mediterranean Sea into Europe in search of better opportunities.”
Why There Is High Rate Of Youth Unemployment In Puntland, Somalia?
26 May – Source: Horseed Media – 1060 Words
The world is facing a worsening youth employment crisis; young people are three times more likely to be unemployed than adults Unemployment means a person willing to work but unable to find a qualified job. Our country is facing many problems but one of the serious problems is of unemployment. Many graduates, doctors, engineers, scientist are unemployed or working underemployed. Due to unemployment we are wasting our country’s human resource.
According to a UN report, unemployment rate for youths in Somalia is one of the highest in the world at 67% among all 14 to 29-year-olds — 61% among men and 74% among women. The Somalia Human Development Report 2012, issued by the UN Development Programme considers 82% of Somalis to be poor, with 73% living on less than $2 a day. The report also said that 40% of youths are actively looking for work, while 21% are neither working nor in school with unemployment becoming among the biggest threats facing the Somali society.
Puntland with population of about 3 million of which 65% are nomadic (as indicated Puntland facts and figures report set Ministry of Planning and Statistics), the youth experienced unemployment in the same way as other parts of Somalia. It is estimated that 70% of Puntland’s total population is less than 30 years old. Youth women and men are the Puntland’s greatest asset for present and future, yet they also represent a group that is seriously vulnerable when it comes to unemployment. Youth unemployment is generally viewed as important policy issues in many countries, regardless of their stage and development. A failure to successfully integrate youth in to the labor market has broader consequences for the Puntland at large.