October 10, 2016 | Morning Headlines
Jubaland, Galmudug And Puntland States Nominate Candidates For Upper House
09 October – Source: Goobjoog News – 208 Words
Jubaland, Galmudug states and semi-autonomous regional state of Puntland have announced the candidates to be selected for the upcoming Upper House chamber amid recurrent delays to Somalia’s electoral process. Somalia’s Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation team (FIEIT) has extended the period till October 7, and called regional leaders to adhere to the deadlines. Three states have submitted names of 48 candidates who run for the Upper House seats.
Meanwhile information minister for Southwest, Hassan Abdi Mohamed who spoke to Goobjoog News said the list of Upper House candidates from Southwest has not been submitted to the electoral commission. More than 14,000 delegates representing Somalia clans will cast their votes for members of the Lower House, while the regional states will select the members of the Upper House.
The Electoral commission has called on the federal government, regional states and international community to take part in facilitating the election process and provide the necessary support in terms of security and election material to ensure successful elections.The Western-backed government is propped up by a 22,000-strong African Union force, which fights alongside the Somali army against Al-Shabaab fighters. Al-Shabaab have ramped up their attacks in 2016, carrying out regular suicide bombings and armed attacks on government and civilian targets.
Key Headlines
- Jubaland Galmudug And Puntland States Nominate Candidates For Upper House (Goobjoog News)
- Outgoing Federal Parliament Speaker Heading To Jowhar (Garowe Online)
- UNSOS Holds Communication Training For AMISOM Public Information Officers (Goobjoog News)
- Somali Police Commissioner Wraps Up Police Training In Cadaado Town (SONNA News)
- Kenya’s Elite Forces Have Become More Lethal Since Somalia Entry (Daily Nation)
- At least Five Injured In Mortar Attack Near Somalia Capital Airport (Xinhua)
- Somali-American Outreach Workers Bridge Divide Between Community And Government (Star Tribune)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Outgoing Federal Parliament Speaker Heading To Jowhar
09 October – Source: Garowe Online – 153 Words
Somalia’s parliament speaker, Mohamed Osman Jawari, is expected to reach Jowhar town in Middle Shabelle, to take part in the swearing-in event of new state parliamentarians for Hir-Shabelle state, Garowe Online report.Jowhar town is hosting state formation conference for Hiiraan-Middle Shabelle regions, sponsored by Federal Interior Ministry and seek to wrap up the conference with the voting of new lawmakers to a new President in October 15.
The exact composition of Hir-Shabelle Parliament is yet unclear but officials at the ongoing State Formation Conference are expected to announce it before the swearing in ceremony, according to close sources. Reports indicate that about 45 MPs are prepared so for the event amid opposition of some clan leaders to participate in the state building process, citing interference over the process.Recurrent political deadlock in negotiations between regional elders and Somali government led to the collapse of extended process originally set to conclude last year.
UNSOS Holds Communication Training For AMISOM Public Information Officers
09 October – Source: Goobjoog News – 280 Words
United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) has conducted a four-day training workshop for AMISOM Public Information Officers. The workshop, which was aimed at improving communication skills was concludedon Saturday. The information officers, drawn from all military sectors under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), were taken through best practices in crisis communication and taught how to use modern technology for effective communication.
AMISOM Spokesperson, Lt. Col Joe Kibet, said the training was critical, adding that the participants will apply the skills acquired to enhance communication in the Mission’s military component. “For the last four days we have been training our public information officers and the purpose of the training was to help them improve their skills in management of information. They also learnt new skills on the latest technologies in public information,” Kibet noted.
The training was also intended to come up with a uniform communication structure to enable public information officers effectively articulate the Missions’ activities in Somalia. “In the past we have had differences in the way we manage, share and communicate our information. Therefore we saw the need to get together and harmonize our ways so that our information comes out clearly, is well understood and we are able to communicate with the Somali public in one voice,” Lt. Col Kibet noted.
In addition to learning new skills, the officers also received modern equipment, which they will use for information gathering and dissemination. “We have given them equipment which can be used in the field. This is an ongoing effort and we see ourselves in future equipping our sectors and public information officers with sufficient equipment to help us capture the information needed,” the spokesperson observed.
Somali Police Commissioner Wraps Up Police Training In Cadaado Town
09 October – Source: SONNA News – 141 Words
The President of Galmudug State Abdikarim Hussein Gulled and the Somali Police Commissioner, Mohamed Hassan Hamoud, have jointly on Sunday wrapped up police training at Cadaado town the current headquarters of Galmudug State of Somalia.These newly trained police constables have been undergoing this training for more than four months, and their number is 400 and they are trained to keep law and order in Galmudug State. “We have given these 400 police constables full training and as from now henceforth they are suppose to take part in the general security of Galmudug State, and we expect them to behave well with the community and serve them well” said Police Commissioner Hamoud. The President of Galmudug State Mr. Gulled has stated that his administration is committed in establishing the security branches, and the police is the prime branch of the security.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kenya’s Elite Forces Have Become More Lethal Since Somalia Entry
09 October – Source: Daily Nation – 846 Words
Since the start of the Somalia war, there are at least two unique and intriguing cases in the capture of dozens of towns in southern Somalia.These two victories can be the pride of any military in the world.
The most publicised is the victory at the port city of Kismayu in September 2012 codenamed Operation Sledge Hammer.This was achieved through a seaborne (amphibious) landing, the first such operation by an African military.During Operation Sledge Hammer, troops in three battle groups and a team of special forces, who were critical in spearheading the vanguard unit to secure the landing zone, captured the port city without much fanfare.Actually by the time they arrived in Kismayu, Al-Shabaab militants had run away, leaving only pockets of resistance that were overrun.The second intriguing capture of a town in the five-year war is that of Bardhere, a small town in the Gedo region of southern Somalia full of Al-Shabaab militants that KDF retreated from after the El Adde attack.
Perhaps the reason not much has been heard about it is because it was captured by special forces.The men who captured Bardhere were drawn from KDF’s Special Operations Regiment (SOR), which includes troops from a variety of Kenya’s best units, whose numbers have grown since 2011.While most of their operations remain classified, SOR operators have been used more aggressively in the past five years than ever before.“Our revolution started with Somalia,” a commanding officer in one of the elite units, who spoke in confidence, told the Sunday Nation.The elite soldiers train to track a target, and finish him off without being detected.They are highly trained, well equipped, and experts in weapons, intelligence gathering and battlefield medicine.
At least Five Injured In Mortar Attack Near Somalia Capital Airport
09 October – Source: Xinhua – 124 Words
At least five people were injured on Saturday evening in a mortar attack on a residential area near the airport in the Somali capital of Mogadishu.Police officer Ahmed Jama told Xinhua that mortar shells were fired at a Buluhubey village, a short distance from the headquarters of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
Local resident,Sulayman Abdi said he heard “five mortar rounds” rock the village and that they might be targeting the AMISOM base or the Aden Adde International Airport.Witnesses said the injured included children and had been rushed to hospital.There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but the Somalia-based Islamist militant group Al-Shabaab carries out frequent attacks in the country, many of them in Mogadishu.
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“Many in the Somali community have low expectations of law enforcement because of their experiences back home, Abdi Mohamed said. “To explain to them that the law enforcement here is helping them is a challenge,” he said,”
Somali-American Outreach Workers Bridge Divide Between Community And Government
08 October – Source : Star Tribune- 1267 Words
Abdimalik Mohamed shows young Somalis that government jobs are not far-fetched. Yasmin Muridi explains to teachers what school in a refugee camp looks like. Abdi Mohamed sifts through piles of documents that require Somali translation.The three are among a growing number of Somali-Americans recruited as bridge-builders to overcome mistrust and misunderstanding between Minnesota’s Somali community and government agencies. While some community members welcome Somali professionals as outreach workers, others worry that they will be used as a cover to snoop.Love for community service has these three bouncing between two cultures at a time when suspicions run high over the convictions of several young Somali men on terror-related charges“If I am not there to help represent our community, then who will be there to help shape our narrative?” Abdimalik Mohamed said.
Abdimalik Mohamed was sitting at a restaurant when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive a block away during a visit to Somalia last year. He understands the importance of counterterrorism efforts. Through that experience, he learned the importance of engaging with young people to prevent radical recruitment.
He was working with Ka Joog, a nonprofit youth organization that gained recognition for its youth mentoring program, when U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger enlisted him as the office’s community outreach specialist in January. He was looking for a new challenge, and he got one.