October 2, 2012 | Daily Monitoring Report.
US praises Kenyans, Africans for work in Somalia
02 Oct – Source: AFP/Capital FM/Daily Nation – 396 Words
The United States Monday praised Kenyan troops from an African Union force for driving out Islamist rebels from the Somali port of Kismayo, and urged Somali leaders to now stabilize the town.
“Somalia is a good news story for the region,” the top US diplomat for Africa Johnnie Carson told reporters, pointing to the nation’s new constitution, and its new parliament and president, after years of lawlessness. “We applaud the work of AMISOM and what they have done in helping to degrade and defeat and push al Shabaab out of Somalia’s main cities.
“We believe that this will help to bring about a return to stability in Somalia, and reduce over time the terrorist threat to Somalia and neighboring states,” Carson added on a conference call. He said he hoped the Kenyan presence in Kismayo “will not be seen as an occupying force, and that the government in Mogadishu, working alongside AMISOM and the UN, will go in very quickly and establish a political stability, and a political system that takes into account the various clan and sub-clan interests.”
Key Headlines
- Somali president visits Beledweyne (Shabelle/Raxanreeb/Radio Mogadishu/Hiiraan Online)
- US praises Kenyans Africans for work in Somalia (Capital FM/AFP/ Daily Nation)
- Al Shabaab threatens Lower Shabelle residents over relief food (Bar-kulan)
- Police increase security near border with Somalia (Coastweek/ Xinhua)
- Al Shabaab seeks civilian support says official (Radio Kulmiye)
- Kenyan police post targeted al Shabaab suspected (Reuters)
- Locals flee their homes in Luq as River Juba continue swelling (Radio Bar-kulan)
SOMALI MEDIA
Somali president visits Beledweyne
02 Oct – Source: Shabelle/Raxanreeb/Radio Mogadishu/Hiiraan Online – 81 words
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is on Tuesday visiting the flood ravaged central town of Beledweyne, the provincial capital of Hiiraan region. A security official told Shabelle Media Network that a daytime curfew has been imposed on the city to maintain the security during the visit of the president
“There is heavy presence of army guarding every junction of Beledweyne. All business and public activities have been shut down, to protect attacks during the trip of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud,” a resident said.
Al Shabaab threatens Lower Shabelle residents over relief food
02 Oct – Source: Bar-kulan – 105 words
An al Shabaab leader in Lower Shabelle region has reportedly threatened locals found smuggling humanitarian aids from aid agencies into the region. Mohamed Abu Aballa, the al Shabaab point man in the region allegedly claimed that such relief foods distributed by NGOs in the region are of low quality and aimed at lowering the outputs of local farmers.
Speaking to a section of the local media, Abu Abdalla said his militant group will decisively deal with anybody found smuggling relief foods into the region. Al Shabaab rebel group has late last year ordered several aid agencies to leave areas under their control, with some offices already raided in southern Somalia.
Al Shabaab seeks civilian support, says official
02 Oct – Source: Radio Kulmiye – 95 words
Somalia’s al Shabaab group is seeking support from the civilian population in order to wage guarilla warfare against Somali government and African Union troops. According Sheikh Abdulkhadir Mumin, a senior al Shabaab cleric, the group is preparing itself to wage ‘jungle warfare’ and needs the support of the Somali population.
“Everyone must join the jihad to defend the country from the invaders of Christian Africans,” he said. Al Shabaab has been forcibly recruiting youths since their retreat from Kismayo, the Somali’s port city in Juba region. Thousands of Kenyan troops along with Somali national forces are still fighting the militants in Somalia.
Banadir administration to handle illegal armed men in Mogadishu
02 Oct – Source: Radio Dalsan – 108 words
Banadir regional administration has expressed concerns over armed men, who are not part of the government force, roaming the streets of the capital, Mogadishu. According to Mogadishu mayor, Mohamoud Ahmed Nour Tarsan, the administration will require the help of Somali Police force and Ministry of Interior and National Security in order to get rid of the armed men in an effort to stabilizing the city. Tarsan was speaking at a meeting security meeting organized by the Minsitry of interior and national security and Somali police force.
Locals flee their homes in Luq as River Juba continue swelling
02 Oct – Source: Radio Bar-kulan – 179 words
Locals in Luq town, Gedo region, have started vacating their homes to higher and safer grounds as the area River Juba continue swelling following heavy rains in the area. Farmers have also suspended all their farming activities in fear of massive flooding in the area like the one experience in central Somali town of Beledweyne.
Some residents told Bar-kulan that increasing water levels at river Juba has heightened anxiety among the locals as they fear a worsening situation in case of further downpour. Recently, some 52 people were reportedly killed and hundreds others displaced after River Shabelle bust its bank following heavy downpours, causing massive flooding in the area.
Meanwhile, business premises in central Somali town of Abudwak remained closed for the better part of the day following heavy rains that are being experience in the area. The rain started early this morning and there were no casualties or property destroyed due to this rain, according to locals who spoke to Bar-kulan. The rains have also been received in several parts of the region including Adado and its environs.
NUSOJ calls on Kenyan government to free detained journalists
01 Oct – Source: Raxanreeb – 200 words
The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) calls on the Kenyan government to safely release three television journalists who the Kenyan police arrested at the Eastliegh neighborhood in Nairobi on Sunday 30 September 2012.
The Journalists, Abdifitah Mohamed Elmi TV presenter, Abdiaziz Ibrahim Ali cameraman, Ahmed Abdirahman Heybe HCTV Nairobi branch director, all whom work for the Somali Television based in the United Kingdom, were arrested on Sunday 30 September, 2012 around 2:00pm local time, amid the journalists were covering a grenade attack on the Anglican St. Polycarp church at Juja road Pangani on the outskirts of the Eastleigh neighborhood in Nairobi. The grenade attack killed at least one person and wounded more than 5 others.
The exiled Somali journalists in Nairobi have fled from their homeland of Somalia to Nairobi in search for safety after witnessing their colleague killed in front of them, death threats, intimidation, arbitrary arrests and other press freedom violations as documented by the National Union of Somali Journalists and live in Nairobi as refugees and the majority of them can not afford to have work permits, while otherwise the journalist have considered Kenya, a safe-haven whereby they are to continue their work as journalists.
Government, AU forces “pull out” of southern Somali port after entry
01 Oct – Source: Jowhar Online/Shabelle – 146 words
Reports from port city of Kismayo [in southern Somalia] say the allied [government and AU] forces have pulled out of the city at sunset Monday after they entered it earlier in the afternoon. The forces reportedly went back to their bases on the city’s outskirts, with reports saying their commanders ordered them to pull out.
Other reports say the forces’ entry of Kismayo was not a direct order from the government, AMISOM [African Union Mission in Somalia] and Raas Kaambooni military commanders, who are yet to unveil their plan for the city since it is without an administration.
A spokesman for the [pro-Somali government militia group] Raas Kaambooni, Abdinasir Seerar, said the forces did not enter the city in an orderly manner, adding that they will do so on Tuesday.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Police increase security near border with Somalia
02 Sept – Source: Coastweek/ Xinhua – 603 words
Kenyan authorities have beefed up security in Garissa close to the border with Somalia as search for those who killed two police officers on Sunday night has been intensified.
Divisional deputy police commander, Chemonges Ndiema, said the security forces have recovered the two G-3 rifles and 40 rounds of ammunitions that were taken away from the slain administration police officers who were killed on Sunday evening.
Ndiema said the two guns are already in custody as police were doing investigation in a bid to apprehend the culprits. “We have already dismantled the two guns and our forensic experts are doing finger print test which will give us crucial leads into unearthing those who are behind this heinous attack,” he said.
Somali troops roll into once rebel bastion of Kismayo
02 Oct – Source: New Vision – 708 words
Hundreds of Somali government troops and allied militia fighters deployed throughout the former al Shabaab rebel stronghold of Kismayo on Monday, sending panicked locals scrambling for cover.
Residents said some soldiers took up positions on rooftops and that there was no immediate retaliation from the al Qaeda-linked militants who fled the port city on Friday after Kenyan and Somali troops launched an assault by sea, air and land.
“We have now seen troops walking in the town. We are running into houses and shops have closed. We are afraid of explosions,” said resident Ismail Nur.
AU and Somali troops enter Kismayo
02 Oct – Source: Standard – 298 words
The first Somali government and African Union troops are reported to have entered the strategic Somali port of Kismayo, witnesses and officials say. They have been battling the al Shabab militia for control of the city. On Saturday, the al Qaeda-aligned militants said they had withdrawn from Kismayo after an AU military assault.
Kenyan and Somali forces had launched a beach assault on the Islamist group’s last major bastion the day before, but had met some resistance. Reports as to the size and make-up of the AU contingent have been mixed.
One resident told the BBC Somali Service that a small infantry unit of 11 Somali soldiers had entered the city from the west and were patrolling on foot on the main roads of Kismayo, while another said he had seen both Kenyan and Somali troops entering the city centre from the airport.
Kismayo Victory
01 Oct – Source: KTN – 2:24 min
The Kenya military continues surging forward deep into Kismayo, al Shabaab’s fortress. The rag tag militia has abandoned the city that is now under the Kenya defence forces and the Somali national army. The naval ship are keeping vigil in the Somali waters at Kismayo to choke any supplies the terror militants get in through the strategic port.
Kenyan government warns Garissa hotels to comply with security requirements
01 Oct – Source: Sabahi Online – 430 words
Security officials in Kenya’s Garissa District have warned hotel operators to abide by the requirement of recording guest information after it emerged that suspected al Shabaab militants arrested in Nairobi and Mombasa had spent time in Garissa hotels strategising their attacks.
According to Garissa County Commissioner Maalim Mohamud, one of the two al Shabaab suspects charged with possession of illegal firearms on September 17th had spent time in a Garissa hotel.
Since militants began carrying out attacks in Kenya last October, it has been a security requirement for hotels to record detailed information of all of their guests. Required data include name, date of birth, physical attributes, alternate contacts and the purpose of their visit.
Heart for Somalia’s women and children
02 Oct – Source: Africa Review – 1107 words
The first question that comes to mind when you hear about her work is what is the link? Is she married to a Somali, is she of Somali descent, did her paths cross with a Somali somewhere in a way that lit a passion to help in her heart? This is about Gloria Ekemu, a Ugandan, who is neither of the above.
Until last year, her connection to the war ravaged horn of Africa was as remote as that of the majority of Ugandans, through the various bulletins on the television, telling of yet suicide bombs or progress of the he African Union Mission in Somalia Amisom) soldiers and the frequently highlighted plight of the civilians.
Today, Ms Ekemu runs an organisation that seeks to restore healing to the country, Hope In Life International (Hili), with a focus on women and children. The areas she aims to leave an impact are nutrition and sanitation.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
US praises Kenyans, Africans for work in Somalia
02 Oct – Source: AFP/Capital FM/Daily Nation – 396 Words
The United States Monday praised Kenyan troops from an African Union force for driving out Islamist rebels from the Somali port of Kismayo, and urged Somali leaders to now stabilize the town.
“Somalia is a good news story for the region,” the top US diplomat for Africa Johnnie Carson told reporters, pointing to the nation’s new constitution, and its new parliament and president, after years of lawlessness.
“We applaud the work of AMISOM and what they have done in helping to degrade and defeat and push al Shabaab out of Somalia’s main cities.
“We believe that this will help to bring about a return to stability in Somalia, and reduce over time the terrorist threat to Somalia and neighboring states,” Carson added on a conference call.
He said he hoped the Kenyan presence in Kismayo “will not be seen as an occupying force, and that the government in Mogadishu, working alongside AMISOM and the UN, will go in very quickly and establish a political stability, and a political system that takes into account the various clan and sub-clan interests.”
Kenyan police post targeted, al Shabaab suspected
02 Oct – Source: Reuters – 260 words
Suspected al Shabaab militants threw a hand grenade at a Kenyan police post on Monday in the northern town of Garissa close to the border with Somalia, police said, a day after two police officers were shot dead in the same town.
Kenya has been rocked by a series of grenade and gun attacks since it sent troops into Somalia last October in pursuit of Islamist al Shabaab rebels whom it blamed for kidnapping its security personnel and Western tourists.”A hand grenade was thrown, it dropped and exploded but nobody was injured,” Garissa county commissioner Mohamed Maalim said, adding a gunfight ensued for about 10 minutes.
Opening statements begin in trial of Minn. man accused of helping send US fighters to Somalia
02 Oct – Source: Washington Post – 133 words
Opening statements are set to begin in the trial of a Minnesota man accused of supplying money and U.S. fighters to a terror group in Somalia. Mahamud (mah-hah-MOOD’) Said (sy-EED’) Omar is charged with five terror-related federal counts. Prosecutors say he encouraged young men to leave Minnesota and fight for al Shabaab, which is linked to al Qaeda.
Omar is also accused of helping some men get airline tickets and pay for weapons.His attorneys deny the charges and say he never conspired against the U.S.
Opening statements are scheduled to start Tuesday during his trial in Minneapolis. The city is home to the largest population of Somali immigrants in the U.S. Jurors were chosen Monday to hear the case. They include an X-ray technician, a school paraprofessional and a bus driver.
UN Report Paints Grim Picture for Somalia’s Youth
01 Oct – Source: VOA News – 151 words
A new United Nations report is painting a bleak picture of life for youth in Somalia, especially women, and says a “powerful new vision” is needed to transform the country. The 2012 Somalia Human Development Report says the unemployment rate for Somalis age 30 and under is 67 percent – one of the highest rates in the world, according to the study. It also says more than 60 percent of youth in Somalia have intentions to leave the country in hopes of making a better living.
The report ranks Somalia second to Afghanistan as the worst country in the world for women. It says females face widespread gender-based violence and extreme inequality, particularly when it comes to health care, empowerment and employment.
The report’s authors note that 70 percent of Somalia’s population is under 30, and call for “positive youth empowerment” to be at the center of any future development strategies.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“At present the international community spends billions on ineffectual operations to secure commercial shipping against piracy. An equivalent amount is also spent on fighting armed groups and providing relief for people displaced by recurrent drought. But building a stable political system and establishing state infrastructure and an all-inclusive national reconciliation would be less costly and more beneficial for the region and the world.”
A rare opportunity for Somalia – and the world
01 Oct – Source: Guardian – 1015 Words
Amid the flurry of international concern over the European economic crisis, the American elections, the controversy surrounding Iran and the fallout from the Arab spring, it is important not to ignore Somalia. There is a rare opportunity taking shape there that deserves international support.
The crisis in Somalia poses a danger not only to the Horn of Africa, but also to the security and economies of the world. Almost 50% of the world’s maritime trade passes through the region, and the Somalian coast extends for 3,000 kilometres, from the straits of Aden to the Indian Ocean. Attacks by pirates cost the world economy more than $7bn annually, making the Somali crisis an international one.
The Horn of Africa has become the military theatre with the widest array of international forces after Afghanistan. The US, China, Russia, Nato and the EU all maintain naval forces in the region to combat piracy. On the ground Ethiopian and African Union forces are mostly focused on safeguarding key locations in the capital, Mogadishu, and fighting al Shabaab mujahideen in the south of the country.
“One of the world’s most famous failed states, Somalia, finally shows surprising signs of progress. One reason may be Somali fatigue over violence, anarchy, and foreign meddling.”
A global model for peace building – in Somalia?
01 Oct – Source: CSMonitor – 454 Words
Somalia has long been the very model of a modern failed state. The largely ungoverned country on the Horn of Africa has suffered through pirates, terrorists, warlords, foreign invaders, and bandits, not to mention famine. Since 1991, more than a dozen plans to fix it have been tried by the international community. For a world now very weary of mistakes made in trying to push democracy in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, it is easy to forget about Somalia. But we shouldn’t.
“As soon as the President picks a Prime Minister, we will have an answer to this question: How confident is the new President with his own ability to debate issues with people who, presumably, are more intelligent and who might hold different views? If the President chooses someone who is ideologically different from his own, and if he picks someone more “qualified” than him in terms of governance, work experience, education and whole list of other experiences (which we will know) –that should tell us this: the President wants complex ideas, he is confident with his own analysis, and he is aiming higher goals.”
The Selection of a Prime Minister: A “Window” to the New President?
01 Oct – Source: Hiiraan Online – 932 Words
Our new President will soon have to pick a new Prime Minister. The President’s pick of a new Premier will tell us a lot: we will know how the new President thinks, what he values, and to some extent, what we should expect from his Presidency.
Having spent the last two decades in Somalia, we can assume the following about the President: he thinks Somalis can resolve their own problems; he clearly loves his country and his people – and he is religiously sufficiently qualified for such seemingly conservative society.
This is not a minor issue given the current politics of other majority Muslim countries. Finally, he has on the ground experience working with both international donor nations and other Somalis. These are quintessentially good identities and the President will need all of these and more as leader of Somali nation.
On the other hand, he comes in with little governing experience. While he has a long track record of work, we know less about his leadership philosophy and therefore we know substantially less about how the new President makes decisions. These are crucial issues given the myriad problems we expect him to solve. Already, a mixed picture is emerging and we will surely learn more as we get to know our President in the coming weeks and months.
Top tweets
@Oxfam Peace through youth sports in #Somalia http://oxf.am/JtJ.
@AJELive #Kismayo resident prays there will be no chaos and robbery ‘We have actually suffered a lot’ http://aje.me/QU1Wno #Somalia.
@GenoWorldview PHOTO: folks recover belongings from #Flood, Beletweyne #Somalia. UN says 20,000 displaced. http://pic.twitter.com/
@warsameh PHOTOS: New #Somalia president’s 1st visit outside #Mogadishu since his election went 2 southern town of #Baidao. http://bit.ly/SvIDnw.
@FAOemergencies #Somalia: What are the factors behind a decrease in the no. of food insecure ppl? Infographic: http://buzz.mw/-KGA_y @UNOCHA.
@UNPOSomalia #Security in #Somalia is being discussed today at high level event hosted by UN in Nairobi – lessons & challenges @UN_DPA @UNPeacekeeping.
Image of the day
An internally displaced woman wades through a flooded IDP camp in central Somali town of Beledweyne. Photo: Oxfam.