November 20, 2013 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Somali Women Attend Soccer Games as Mogadishu Defies al Shabaab
20 Nov- Source: bloomberg-771 words
Sahro Ali did something this month that she hadn’t dreamed possible for years: she and two female friends went to a soccer match between Banadir Sports Club and Elman FC in the Somali capital. The match in the rebuilt Banadir Stadium was the third of the season that kicked off Nov. 8. That marked the return of competitive soccer to Mogadishu for the first time since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and the start of two decades of civil war. It’s a symbol of the state’s success in beginning to rebuild the city after its army, backed by African Union troops, drove out al Qaeda-linked fighters in 2011.
“I was locked at home since the Islamists banned the mixing of sexes,” Ali, a 29-year-old primary school teacher, said in a Nov. 12 interview at the game, where she sat next to men. “But today for the first time in six years, I have managed to watch a match.”
Key Headlines
- President declares football as a tool for ‘peace and development’ (Raxanreeb)
- Somali Airlines’ much awaited rebirth close as first B737 sighted(Kismaayo Online/Hiiraan Online)
- Somali Women Attend Soccer Games as Mogadishu Defies al-Shabaab (Bloomberg)
- UN chief slams deadly attacks on police station in Somalia (Xinhua)
- EU defence ministers discuss operations in Mali Somalia (Kuwait News Agency)
- Somaliland mayoral delegation in Tanzania (Somaliland Informer)
- Mogadishu mothers go to school (Radio Ergo)
- Charity warns against quick repatriation (Star-Kenya)
- UN seeks funding to bolster its air operation in Somalia (Xinhua/ Fountain News)
- Somalia MP from Canada injured in al Shabaab car bomb returns to Toronto for medical treatmen ( National Post)
PRESS STATEMENT
Statement Attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General on Somalia
19 Nov- Source: UNSOM- 122 words
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the deadly attacks today against a police station in Beledweyne, Somalia, which follow a number of similar attacks on the Somali people in recent weeks. These acts of terrorism against the Government and people of Somalia have caused tremendous suffering.
The Secretary-General expresses his sincere condolences to the families of those killed and his sympathies to those injured. He pays tribute to the forces, especially the police, who courageously repelled the attack.
The Secretary-General is determined to support the Somali government in preventing such attacks, and in keeping the country on the path to peace and security. He reiterates the commitment of the United Nations to support the Federal Government of Somalia, its institutions and the Somali people.
Prime Minister welcomes extension of United Nations Security Council mandate to counter piracy off the Horn of Africa
19 Nov- Source: Office of the Prime Minister- 215 words
His Excellency Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon, today welcomed the extension for another year of the United Nations Security Council mandate to counter piracy off the Horn of Africa.
“The Somali Federal Government welcomes the extension of the United Nations Security Council mandate to tackle piracy. The extension will enable Somalia alongside its regional and international partners to build on the substantial progress already made in the last year countering piracy activities off the Horn of Africa,” the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister stressed the need to tackle the root causes of piracy which will only be achieved through the continued stabilisation and rebuilding of Somalia.
“To put an end to piracy we need to combat the root causes – poverty, absence of functioning institutions and a lack of opportunities for our young people in Somalia. We have to continue to stabilize and rebuild Somalia, promote good governance and rule of law and foster socio-economic development.
“The Federal Government is rebuilding the Somali coast guard in order to protect our waters, engaging with local communities to provide alternative livelihoods to young people and working to rehabilitate former pirates.
“Rebuilding and reforming our judicial system must continue apace in order that those suspected of piracy activities can be investigated, prosecuted and imprisoned here in Somalia.”
SOMALI MEDIA
Death toll from al Shabaab attack on police station rises to 28
20 Nov- Source: Bar-kulan-139 Words
The death toll of Tuesday’s deadly al Shabaab attack on a police station in Beledweyne town in central Somalia has reached 28. Government spokesman, Abdirahman Osman confirmed to the press that 7 civilians, 10 militants and 11 police officers were killed on the deadly attack. Al Shabaab claimed responsibility of the attack.
A car loaded with explosives rammed into the gates of the police station, exploded and then Al Shabaab fighters opened fire on the officers. Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud condemned the attack saying that Somali government is committed to eliminating the militant group from the country. Beledweyne, 300 km north of Mogadishu is a base to Djiboutian contingent of the African Union Mission in Somalia. Last month, al Shabaab claimed responsibility of a suicide attack in the same district targeting Ethiopian and Djiboutian forces, killing 16 people.
Somaliland mayoral delegation in Tanzania
20 Nov- Source: Somaliland Informer- 130 words
Nine mayors from Somaliland visit Tanzanian city of Arusha, meeting with officials from local governments.
The mayor of Hargeisa Mr.Abdirahman Mohamoud Aidid “Soltelco” who spoke to the media said that their visit is to establish link and partnership with their Tanzanian counterparts. The mayor added that they have discussed how Tanzanians can help them on the areas of training and tax collection.
He that they will embark on inspection tour to rubbish collection sites in Arusha with in the coming days. The delegation of Somaliland comprising of nine mayors will return to Somaliland on 25th Nov. 2013.
Mogadishu mothers go to school
20 Nov- Source: Radio Ergo- 273 words
Some 200 women have signed on for a free adult education programme offered by a local school in Mogadishu. The women, who are almost all mothers taking care of children, have never sat in a classroom before, according to Radio Ergo’s local reporter, who visited the school in Hamar Jajab district.
“It is an eye-opener for me,” said 50-year-old mother Batulo Abdirahman Osman, referring to her new studies. She said she hadn’t had the chance to go to school because both of her parents died when she was young.
Awliyo Farah Wareri, 60, said she had picked up her pen and wanted to learn to read and write Somali. “I want to be able to communicate with people through letters and writing,” she told Radio Ergo. She said learning Somali and basic arithmetic would help her use a mobile phone.
“Knowledge shouldn’t have an age limit,” said another mother, Fadumo Mohamed. “We can learn anything whenever the chance comes,” she added. “I want to be an informed person, so reading and writing will be necessary for me,” she said.
Some of the women had to bring their young children to school with them and even sat with them in the classrooms. “There is no one else to take care of my child at home. So, he comes with me to school,” Farhiya Shire Iidlesaid. Local secondary school graduates are teaching the women as volunteers. Mohamed Nur Jimale, the chairman of the youth organization Fardo, said literacy was important for women. “They are our mothers and they have been busy rearing us. So, now it is time for us to give back,” Jimale said.
President declares football as a tool for ‘peace and development’
20 Nov- Source: Raxanreeb- 402 words
The president of the federal republic of Somalia Professor Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud has confessed that football was a major element used for peace building, youth development, public integration and prevention of violence in Somalia, thanking the world’s football governing body (FIFA) for its continued support to the country’s football Federation (SFF).
The president made the announcement during his visit to the FIFA-rebuilt facility ‘stadium Banadir’ where he enjoyed watching of a hotly-contested football match on Tuesday afternoon. Somali Football federation president Ali Said Guled Roble and Secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab welcomed the nation’s president Professor Hassan Sheik Mahmoud to the stadium where they invited him to kick the first ball of Tuesday’s Jeenyo –Elman FC clash before a major audience.
Somaliland: SBI in Pioneer Pep-up Subsidy to Local Farming
20 Nov- Source: Somaliland Sun-223 Words
The local Coca-Cola Company, the Somaliland Beverage Industries (BSi),has boosted agricultural industry by distributing 2050 guava shoots to the Dabolaq area farmers of Faraweine district. This is the first time ever a subsidized pep-up system is injected to local agriculture by a private company.
The plant Managing Director Mr. Mustaffe Osman Gelle said that his company would do its utmost best to help local farming industry, especially as concerns where produce would be used by the factory. While at the function where the over two thousand guava trees were being distributed to 22 local farmers, Mr. Mustaffe promised that the produce from the plants would be bought directly by the factory.
He said that the pledge was not a mere lip service but that SBi would enter written agreements with local farmers to the effect that the former would purchase all the produce at the going market rates. He further said that each and every farmer would be supplied with as much as tree-shoots that one can handle.
Somali Airlines’ much awaited rebirth close as first B737 sighted
19 Nov- Source: Kismaayo Online/Hiiraan Online/ ch-Aviation- 75 words
Somali Airlines (Mogadishu) could resume operations in the coming weeks. According to Skyliner Aviation, a SAMair(9C, Bratislava) B737-400, OM-SDA (msn 24438), has been painted into the Somali national carrier’s distinctive colours in Budapest ahead of its delivery to Mogadishu.
Prior to the collapse of the Siad-Barre regime in 1991, Somali Airlines had operated B720Bs, B707-300s and A310-300s on a respectable domestic network along with regional and international connections to the Middle East and Europe.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Charity warns against quick repatriation
20 Nov- Source: Star-Kenya- 138 words
Charity organisation Médecins Sans Frontières has warned against plans to repatriate Somalia refugees back home. MSF assistant regional information officer Wairimu Gitau said it is far too early to be talking about a safe voluntary return of refugees despite the burden they pose on Kenya.
In a statement sent to the Star, she said Somalia is not yet safe for refugee repatriation because of its own internally displaced refugees. “Conflict is ongoing in many parts of Somalia today and access to basic services, including health services remain extremely limited,” Gitau said.
She said a survey conducted by the MSF in September indicated that 80 per cent of Somalia refugees do not want to return home. “MSF therefore calls on the signatories of the (tripartite) agreement to preserve Kenya as a safe haven for those fleeing violence and insecurity.”
EU defence ministers discuss operations in Mali, Somalia
19 Nov- Source: Kuwait News Agency- 197 words
EU defence ministers met here Tuesday and discussed about the security and defence industry in Europe and EU operations in Mali and Somalia. General Patrick De Rousiers, Chairman of the European Union Military Committee, told a press conference: “The focus was really on the two missions – EUTM Mali and ATALANTA, just because both of them are going under scrutiny and there is a strategic review coming up.”
“There has been no political decision to extend the missions, there were discussions by Ministers. And what I heard around the table was a global support of the idea of extension and for a duration which was for the two missions highlighted at two years,” he said.
EUTM Mali was launched in February 2013 and is part of the EU’s comprehensive approach to the crisis in the Sahel region. The European Naval Force Somalia – ATALANTA, launched in December 2008, aims to improve maritime security, by preventing acts of piracy and armed robbery off the Somali coast and in the Indian Ocean.
Kenya Police handover Westgate building to property management
19 Nov- Source: KTN TV-2:23 min
The Westgate mall where a terror mission took place two months ago leading to death of over 60 people is no longer a crime scene. Police have now handed over the building to property management.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somali Women Attend Soccer Games as Mogadishu Defies al Shabaab
20 Nov- Source: bloomberg-771 words
Sahro Ali did something this month that she hadn’t dreamed possible for years: she and two female friends went to a soccer match between Banadir Sports Club and Elman FC in the Somali capital.
The match in the rebuilt Banadir Stadium was the third of the season that kicked off Nov. 8. That marked the return of competitive soccer to Mogadishu for the first time since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and the start of two decades of civil war. It’s a symbol of the state’s success in beginning to rebuild the city after its army, backed by African Union troops, drove out al Qaeda-linked fighters in 2011.
“I was locked at home since the Islamists banned the mixing of sexes,” Ali, a 29-year-old primary school teacher, said in a Nov. 12 interview at the game, where she sat next to men. “But today for the first time in six years, I have managed to watch a match.”
UN chief slams deadly attacks on police station in Somalia
20 Nov- Source: Xinhua-320 Words
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday strongly condemned the deadly attacks on a police station in Somalia, saying that these terrorist acts “have caused tremendous suffering.” “The secretary-general strongly condemns the deadly attacks today against a police station in Beledweyne, Somalia, which follow a number of similar attacks on the Somali people in recent weeks,” said a statement issued here by Ban’s spokesman. “These acts of terrorism against the government and people of Somalia have caused tremendous suffering,” said the statement.
A suicide car bomb hit the gate of the police station in the central Somali town of Beledweyne which is the provincial capital of central Somalia region of Hiran, a commercial hub that connects southern and northern Somalia. At least 19 people were reportedly killed in the attacks. Beledweyne, located 300 km north of Mogadishu, is the base for the Djiboutian contingent of the African Union peacekeeping Mission in Somalia, known as AMISOM.
UN seeks funding to bolster its air operation in Somalia
20 Nov- Source: Xinhua/ Fountain News-490 Words
The UN humanitarian agency has called for urgent donor funding to help it scale up its air operations in Somalia in 2014. The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Tuesday said the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) operation in Somalia is currently facing a funding shortfall with current funding enabling it to continue the service only until the end of January 2014.
“About 155 humanitarian organizations, as well as the donors and the diplomatic community operating in Somalia, rely on the operation,” OCHA said in its latest report released in Nairobi.
According to the report, a significant size of the humanitarian aid community in Somalia and staff based in neighboring Kenya, but travelling to Somalia on regular missions, combined with a precarious security situation, demands a continued and augmented humanitarian air transport capacity.
UNHAS has regular flights to eight locations of which only two are served by domestic commercial airlines that do not yet meet UN standards for staff travel. The UNHAS operation in Somalia transports about 2,300 passengers and 13 tonnes of cargo every month.
Somalia MP from Canada injured in al Shabaab car bomb returns to Toronto for medical treatment
19 Nov-Source: National Post-372 Words
A Somali-Canadian who returned to his homeland last year to serve as a member of Parliament has arrived back in Toronto for medical treatment after being injured in a suicide bombing. Sooyaan Abdi Warsame, 42, was among more than a dozen people injured when an al Shabaab car bomb exploded outside the Hotel Maka in Mogadishu on the evening of Nov. 8. Six died in the attack.
He flew to Toronto from Dubai on Monday. He has shrapnel wounds but no broken bones or head injuries, his brother Liban Warsame said Tuesday. “He was going to the hospital this morning,” he said. Mr. Warsame had lived in Toronto since the early 1990s and worked at various jobs including truck driving. The son of a minister who was in government before Somalia’s collapse, he returned to help rebuild the troubled African country and was named to the Federal Parliament of Somalia in August 2012.
Dispatches: Deported to Danger in Somalia
19 Nov- Source: HRW-431 Words
Two weeks ago, the Netherlands deported Said Ahmed Said to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. The Dutch government has been saying for nearly a year that the situation on the ground has improved to the point where they can safely return failed asylum seekers. On November 7, just one day after his return, however, Said was among those injured in a brutal attack on a hotel in central Mogadishu. The Islamist insurgent group al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the double bomb blast, killing at least six people, including members of the security services that had arrived to investigate the first explosion when the second went off. Many more were injured, including Said, who was sprayed with glass in his hand and leg from one of the shattered windows.
People like Said are particularly at risk from Somalia’s ongoing instability and violence. A failed asylum seeker, the 26-year-old had not set foot in Somalia for two decades when the Dutch sent him back, and he had never been to Mogadishu. Said says he was born in the embattled city of Kismayo, in southern Somalia, and with no close relatives or friends to turn to in Mogadishu, his survival in the capital is precarious.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“The harvest is denuding the savannah and making portions of southern Somalia unsuitable for human habitation by accelerating soil erosion, reducing the arability of the land, depriving cattle and goats of shade in the savannah’s intense heat, reducing foliage for grazing camels, and killing tree root systems once capable of retaining moisture in the soil.”
UN Charcoal Ban Crucial to Somalia Survival
19 Nov- Source: VOA-843 Words
Al Shabaab militants, who control portions of southern Somalia, have long relied on charcoal exports to Gulf Arab states to fund their operations and pay their recruits. Now, following the al Shabaab attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall in September that killed at least 67 people, there is renewed urgency at shutting down the charcoal pipeline. U.N. officials who are pushing the effort have so far had little success in curbing the trade but the recent seizure of a ship carrying charcoal to Dubai may change that.
Convincing Middle Eastern ports to prevent Somalia charcoal imports has been difficult. On any given day, as many as 22 dhows and two steel-hulled ships dock at Kismayo, Somalia’s major southern port on the Indian Ocean, to deliver sugar and concrete while laborers load bags of charcoal bound for thriving Middle Eastern markets where prices are three and four times the local Somali market.
In an important test of U.N. efforts to tighten sanctions among Middle Eastern governments, the United Arab Emirates seized the boat, crew and cargo of M/V Energy 3, which docked at Port Rashid with 140,000 sacks of charcoal in August. U.N. officials and others working to curb the trade say more port seizures such as this could discourage investors and limit the trade.
“Godane has the support of determined young militants known as Amniyat, who assist him with sophisticated intelligence, training and commando-style operations. These militants operate like federal agents, independent from regional administrations. The Amniyat are accountable to Godane only, and he regularly replaces their commander to prevent any challenges.”
Somalia’s al Shabaab Revives, Renews Attacks
19 Nov- Source: VOA-665 Words
A year ago, the Somali government and African Union troops were on the move against al Shabaab, taking over town after town. The al Qaeda-linked militants were in clear retreat, and violent in-fighting among top leaders shook the group. Since then, the tables have turned and al Shabaab appears resurgent with renewed attacks inside and outside Somalia, most notably the deadly assault on a Kenyan shopping mall in September. Analysts say the group should never be underestimated.
In its seven-year existence, al Shabaab has faced strong opposition, including the Ethiopian intervention into Somalia, drone attacks that target top leaders, and the military forces of the Somali government and African Union mission, AMISOM. But the group has persevered, and according to Cedric Barnes of the International Crisis Group, the setbacks of 2011 and 2012 may have increased its ability to attack.
He said, “And now AMISOM is in a similar position to al Shabaab before the big offensive – its lines are more stretched, it has more responsibility to populations, logistics, whereas al Shabaab is more free from those responsibilities and now it has more capacity to react and change tactics quickly in what seems to be a new capacity to hurt both Somalis and foreign troops.”
Top tweets
@BBCAfrica Kuwait has pledged $3m to help people affected by cyclone in #Somalia. Many people have lost their entire livestock.
@UKinSomalia Interesting how Somalia’s leaders have put the country back on the map through the use of Twitter #twiplomacyhttp://twiplomacy.com/info/
@UNSomalia#UN Security Council passes resolution 2125 that tightens anti-#piracy measures off the coast of #Somaliahttp://bit.ly/1aP01Z6
@amisomsomalia “We must not drop our guard. The threat of attack remains real even when the extremists were forced out of various urban towns.” SRCC
@GenoWorldview PHOTO: This #Somalia Child received therapeutic feeding. Today is Universal Children’s Day.pic.twitter.com/7v25yQfkEN
Image of the day
Somali president Hassan Sheik Mahmoud kicks the ball to officiate Tuesday’s Somali league clash between Jeenyo and Elman FC at the FIFA-rebuilt facility ‘stadium Banadir’ in Mogadishu. Photo:@VillaSomalia