November 4, 2013 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Somali security forces detain foreigners in Beled Hawo town
04 Nov- Source: Radio Bar-kulan/Somaliland.org/
A number of foreigners have on Sunday been arrested by security officials in Beled Hawo, a town bordering Kenya and Somalia. Deputy Mayor of Beled Hawo, Addow Noor Hassan told Bar-kulan that the security forces detained a Ghanaian and a number of Kenyans during an exercise to tighten up security in the area.
He added that they have handed over the Kenyans to the Kenyan government while still investigating the Ghanaian and will determine his fate in due course. The move comes after a government delegation is said to be in the town to settle a rift between Beled Hawo and Dolow administrations.
Key Headlines
- High Court delegation jet off to attend Nairobi conference on judiciary law (Universal TV)
- Somali security forces detain foreigners in Beled Hawo (Radio Bar-kulan)
- Anti-piracy meeting held in Galkayo town (Radio Bar-kulan)
- Egypt’s new ambassador to Somalia leave Cairo to take over his duties in Mogadishu (Goobjoog Online/Shahid Online)
- Galmudug Vice President: Fight Piracy through Job Creation (Hiiraan Online)
- Kenya: State told to open Kenya-Somalia border (Star)
- Mogadishu hosts meeting on Jubaland (Africa Review)
- Bus drivers strike over roadblock extortion (Radio Ergo)
- 30 al Shabaab militants killed in attack by Somali army (Daily Nation)
- Jawari: Crucial time ahead of the Somali parliament (Radio Bar-kulan)
- Counter-terrorism police hunt missing suspect (Telegraph)
- Somalia’s future relies on an army that does not yet exist ( Irishtimes)
- Toronto police reach out to recruit from Somali community (The Star)
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali security forces detain foreigners in Beled Hawo town
04 Nov- Source: Radio Bar-kulan/Somaliland.org/
A number of foreigners have on Sunday been arrested by security officials in Beled Hawo, a town bordering Kenya and Somalia. Deputy Mayor of Beled Hawo, Addow Noor Hassan told Bar-kulan that the security forces detained a Ghanaian and a number of Kenyans during an exercise to tighten up security in the area.
He added that they have handed over the Kenyans to the Kenyan government while still investigating the Ghanaian and will determine his fate in due course. The move comes after a government delegation is said to be in the town to settle a rift between Beled Hawo and Dolow administrations.
High Court delegation jet off to attend Nairobi conference on judiciary law
04 Nov- Source: Radio Mustaqbal/Universal TV- 117 words
Somalia’s chief justice Aidid Ilka Hanaf accompanied by officials traveled to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Speaking to Journalists at Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu, the chief justice said the delegation is attending the conferences on Judiciary law that will take place in Kenya and Djibouti.
The meetings that the delegates were invited, will be focused on laws of judiciary since judiciary law is the backbone of the State and also how safeguard the constitution of the country.
Jawari: Crucial time ahead of the Somali parliament
04 Nov- Source: Radio Bar-kulan- 92 words
Somalia parliament has mounting tasks to complete before the end of the year according to parliament speaker Prof. Mohamed Sheikh Osman Jawari.
The speaker stated that there are 21 crucial tasks ahead of the parliament to finalize before the turn of the year and mentioned the significance that will play in achieving the objectives of the government through to 2016.
Addressing the parliament in Mogadishu, Jawari warned a failure to implement the crucial points in time will result a setback to the government plans.
Egypt’s new ambassador to Somalia leave Cairo to take over his duties in Mogadishu
04 Nov- Source: Goobjoog Online/Shahid Online- 126 words
Egypt’s new ambassador to Somalia, Ambassador Mahmoud Auf has Left Cairo Sunday evening on his way to Mogadishu via Kenya, to take over his new duties as the first Egyptian ambassador in the Somali capital for more than 20 years. The new ambassador appointed last month as the first Egyptian ambassador in Mogadishu since 1991.
The Egyptian ambassador went to Mogadishu after the completion of renovation of the Egyptian embassy and opened in the presence of former Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
The Ambassador Mahmoud Ouf has previously worked in several positions, including Egypt’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Assistant Secretary of State for Cultural Relations.
Anti-piracy meeting held in Galkayo town
03 Nov- Source: Radio Bar-kulan- 140 words
An anti-piracy meeting to discourage the youth in Galmudug Administered areas from taking part pirate activities was on Friday held in Galkayo town.
Organized by Somali Anti-Piracy Information Center, the meeting was attended by Galmudug officials including the vice president, ministers, civil society, religious scholars as well as community leaders.
Speaking at the meeting, the SAPIC Galmudug Program Manager, Hassan Moallim Abdullahi noted the objectives of the meeting were to discourage Galmudug youth from joining piracy and to educate them the risks associated with the dangerous practices.
Galmudug vice president, Abdisamad Noor Guled urged Galmudug youth to refrain from the illegal practices saying it will only leave bad reputation on them.
He added sustainable form of employment for the youth could deter potential recruits from joining the lucrative pirate business. SAPIC is supported by United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia.
Galmudug Vice President: Fight Piracy through Job Creation
03 Nov- Source: Hiiraan Online- 232 words
Vice-President of Galmudug, Abdisamad Guled Calls for Employment and Capacity Building Programmes for Pirates During a SAPIC Town Hall Meeting.
The Vice-President of Galmudug regional state of Somalia, Abdisamad Guled, has today called for creation of employment opportunities for pirates in the area in order to mitigate their negative impacts on socio-economic development.
While speaking at a town hall meeting convened by Somali Anti-Piracy Information Centre (SAPIC), the VP lauded the efforts of SAPIC in empowering Somali youth against piracy.
He noted that capacity building and establishment of a sustainable form of employment for Somali youth could deter potential recruits from taking up the dangerous practice.
Bus drivers strike over roadblock extortion
03 Nov- Source: Radio Ergo- 256 words
Bus and truck drivers operating between Baidoa and Mogadishu are on strike for third day in protest against an escalation of extortion at numerous roadblocks placed between the two towns. Abdi Hassan, one of the drivers said that more than 26 roadblocks had been set up on the Baidoa-Mogadishu road in recent weeks.
“Each roadblock requires us to pay $20. We spend all the money we have earned on the road and so we stooped operating,” Abdi Hassan told Radio Ergo’s local reporter in Baidoa. He said the checkpoints were run by soldiers in government uniform.
Another driver, Mohamed Ali, said that all the roadblocks that had been removed from the roads connecting Mogadishu to Marka and Jowhar had been put up on this Baidoa road. He urged government officials to intervene to force their soldiers to leave the road.
“We are especially calling for interventions from the high offices – the offices of the president, prime minister, and defence minister and parliamentary speaker. We are telling them that these checkpoints are extortion points, not legal points,” Ali told Radio Ergo.
No everyone sympathized with the strike, particularly some travellers who were left stranded. Abdikafi Mustafe Hassan, a student in Mogadishu, said: “I have been coming back to the bus station for several days and there are no vehicles going to Mogadishu. I am missing my classes. It is trouble!”
Meanwhile, Bay region’s traffic commander Aden Ahmed Abdi said they were making efforts to remove the roadblocks between Mogadishu and Baidoa.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Kenya: State told to open Kenya-Somalia border
04 Nov- Source: Star (Kenya)- 135 words
Dadaab MP Mohammed Dahiye has appealed to the government to open up the Kenya-Somalia border to enhance trade between the two countries and boost bilateral relations.
He said the country used a whooping Sh270 million of taxpayers money to put up immigration, KEBS, KRA, customs, security offices and staff houses, which lie idle five years after their completion.
Speaking after touring the facility on Saturday, Dahiye said the country stands to earn a lot of revenue that otherwise get into corrupt security officials’ pockets where traders use undesignated routes to get to the market.
He said the immigration office at the border will play a major role as some refugees are willing to return to their country. Dahiye said the refugees will have to undergo security checks before they leave or coming into the country.
Mogadishu hosts meeting on Jubaland
03 Nov- Source: Africa Review- 289 words
Somalia Prime Minister, Abdi Farah Shirdon, wants efforts to build a strong Jubaland sustained. “The government’s constitutional mandate is to establish a federal state as the end goal and that is what we are working towards,” said the premier while opening a three day Reconciliation Conference for Juba communities in Mogadishu.
He added, “It is a complex and difficult process, but (it is) something this government will not shy away from. But it will not happen overnight.”
In May this year, the prime minister declined to recognise the five men who claimed the presidency of Jubaland in Kismayo town, 500 km south of Mogadishu.
30 al Shabaab militants killed in attack by Somali army
03 Nov- Source: Daily Nation- 269 words
Thirty al Shabaab militants were killed over the weekend by the Somalia National Army at Kolbio, near the Kenyan border, as the war against terror intensified. Kenya Defence Forces spokesman Major Emmanuel Chirchir confirmed the Sunday raid but declined to divulge more details saying that the matter touched on another country’s army.
“This (the raid) shows that Somalia’s army has come of age. They are going it alone nowadays. The Somali army is getting stronger by the day,” Major Chirchir said. The raid comes less than a week after military spokesman Colonel Cyrus Oguna, said KDF warplanes bombed targets held by the group.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Counter-terrorism police hunt missing suspect
03 Nov- Source: Telegraph -583 words
Terror suspect Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed is being hunted by Scotland Yard after going missing despite being closely monitored by authorities. The 27-year-old, who is subject to a Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures (TPIMs) notice, was last seen leaving a mosque in west London on Friday wearing a burka which covered his face.
It is not known what Mohamed is suspected of, as those under the orders are given anonymity during court hearings. That anonymity was lifted by judges on Saturday after an application by police so they could launch a public appeal for information.
Somalia’s future relies on an army that does not yet exist
03 Nov- Source: Irishtimes- 589 words
The man in the back of the pick-up truck driving along a Mogadishu street is wearing military fatigues with the pale blue starred Somali flag sewn on his sleeve. He may be a soldier in Somalia’s national forces – or he may not.
The al-Shabaab militants who controlled the Somali capital before they were routed two years ago have been known to don army uniforms to infiltrate the city, as have common criminals. This is just one of the myriad challenges when it comes to building a viable army in a country that has known little else but war for more than two decades.
For over a year now a regular parliament has been in session in Mogadishu for the first time since the collapse of Mohamed Siad Barre’s regime in 1991 plunged the country into years of vicious clan fighting. Parliamentarians have appointed a president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who talks ambitiously of putting Somalia on a path towards political and economic stability, and hopes to hold national elections in 2016.
Toronto police reach out to recruit from Somali community
03 Nov- Source: the Star- 394 words
The Toronto police force has about 5,400 uniformed officers. Only two full-time officers and one auxiliary or civilian volunteer are Somali. Moussa Tahlil is a landscaper, but his dream is to be a police officer.
“I’ve been fortunate. Everything has worked out for me and I’d like to give back to the Somali community,” says the 33-year-old man.
Tahlil was among about 60 people who attended an information session held by Toronto police on Saturday. The event, held at the Toronto Police College near Islington Ave. and Lake Shore Blvd. W., was geared to the Somali community.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“The President of Somalia must come out and talk to the nation and the world about the circumstances that led to the resignation of the former Governor of Somalia’s Central Bank. We are waiting for your speech, Mr. President.”
Wishing away Abraar’s resignation?
04 Nov- Source: Wardheernews- 376 words
Like anyone else who cares about Somalia, I was partially stunned partially disillusioned and partially admired Yussur Abraar’s move to resign the governorship of Somalia’s Central Bank. Ms. Abraar did not only resign her coveted position but also blown a much needed and historic whistle over Villa Somalia’s incessant orgy of looting everything that Somalis held dear.
The international community from Nairobi to Washington DC, Brussels and London as far as Beijing and Moscow woke up to the protest of a decent Somali woman who refused to take part in the shameless looting of Somalia’s natural and financial resources. Mind you, this demand of illegal transfer comes on the heels of Soma Oil scandalous deal.
Yussur Abraar articulated her protest and did the honorable thing about the greedy onslaught on anything that is worthy of a dime in or about Somalia. Graciously, Abraar did not name names as far as this author knows but Mogadishu’s Kitchen Cabinet and its kingpin took the initiative and started to reveal themselves.
“My take is that both the AU and the UN are wrong in pursuing expansion of Amisom troops at the expense of building the capacity of Somalia’s defence forces. Its Army, estimated at just about 10,000 men converted from local militias, is so ill-equipped that it lacks the capacity to secure towns freed from al Shabaab.”
Don’t send more Amisom troops, build Somali Army
02 Nov- Source: Standard Media- 585 words
The UN Security Council is set to approve an additional 4,000 troops for AMISOM in Somalia to help the fledgling government maintain security in that nation.
This follows the African Union request to send in more soldiers to fight al Shabaab due to its threats to nations in the region. If this additional force is deployed, it will bring the total number of the Amisom troops from several African nations to 22,000.
Amisom controls Mogadishu, Kismayo and other major towns in the south of the country. According to the UN, Al Shabaab controls about a third of the territory. Recent UK media reports suggest that the organisation, which UN says has about 5,000 men, is regrouping, recruiting and training daily contrary to perceptions that they are finished.
The Guardian newspaper report quotes KDF sources saying that the group’s number could actually be three times more, and that in spite of being formally removed from Kismayo, al Shabaab maintains a parallel underground administration that collects revenue from businesses.
The same report suggests that Amisom advances to other areas under the control of the group have lost momentum in recent months due to inadequate equipment.
Top tweets
@UNSomalia24mPresident Hassan Sheikh Mohamud & #UNenvoy Kay talk about efforts to strengthen #Somalia‘s army:http://bit.ly/1b68vMl via @IrishTimes
@SomaliPM Another significant blow to Al-Shabaab this wk, successful operation by SNA. No safe haven for Al-Shabaab in#Somalia http://bit.ly/16USInJ
@mary_harper British military to focus on #Somalia and other parts of #Africa after #Afghanistan withdrawalhttp://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/
@KingYusufYusuff How Yusur Abraar’s resignation is not covered in the #Somalia media, shows that we do not take corruption seriously, and we should.
@GenoWorldview Refugee women from #Somalia say insecurity a serious problem in Alkharaz, #Yemen –@RadioErgo broadcast.
Image of the day
The Prime Minister of Somalia, Abdi Farah Shirdon Saaid, addresses the audience at the opening ceremony for the Juba Reconciliation Conference in Mogadishu on November 3, 2013. Photo: UN Photo / Tobin Jones