October 2, 2013 | Daily Monitoring Report.
Kenya tells Somalia to ‘put house in order’
02 Oct- Source: Al Jazeera English-398 Words
Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya’s president, has told Somalia to “put their house in order,” in a sign of frustration at the festering instability in the neighbouring country after members of a Somali armed group attacked and killed dozens at a Nairobi shopping mall.
The al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group said it raided the Westgate mall, killing at least 67 people in a four-day siege, in revenge for Kenya’s military campaign against its fighters inside Somalia.
Al Shabaab repeated its warnings to Kenya on Tuesday of new attacks if it did not pull troops from Somalia. Earlier, President Kenyatta announced a formal inquiry into the deadly assault.
Key Headlines
- Gunmen assassinate Somali police officer in Mogadishu (Raxanreeb/Jowhar Online/Somalia Today/ Radio Mustaqbal)
- Consultative meetings on ‘new administration’ for Hiran set to conclude Wednesday (Radio Mustaqbal)
- Somali foreign minister Fowsia Yusuf meets with Canadian FM (Radio Mustaqbal/Radio Mogadishu/SNTV/Hiiraan Online)
- Kuwait Fund Pumps another $5 Million into Egal International Airport Upgrade Project (Somalilandpress)
- Kenya tells Somalia to ‘put house in order’ (Al Jazeera English)
- Somali al Shabaab vow terror campaign against Kenya (AFP)
- Canada reinforces African Union forces in Somalia (Fox News/AFP)
SOMALI MEDIA
Gunmen assassinate Somali police officer in Mogadishu
02 Oct – Source: Raxanreeb/Jowhar Online/Somalia Today/ Radio Mustaqbal – 92 words
Unidentified gunmen have shot and killed Somali police officer in Mogadishu’s Hodan neighborhood early on Wednesday, witness and police sources said. Colonel Sharif Adam who was a serving police officer was shot and killed by three men armed with pistols at Mogadishu former playground “Tarabunka” in Hodan district and immediately escaped from the crime scene.
According in eyewitness accounts the killers took Colonel Adam’s pistol away after he has passed away on the spot. Government security forces reached the area and begun to condone off the whole as they started searching killers.
Consultative meetings on ‘new administration’ for Hiran set to conclude Wednesday
02 Oct- Source: Radio Mustaqbal- 149 words
The current interim administration of Hiiran region that was appointed by Somali federal government announced that the consultative meetings between the government delegates and the residents of Hiiran will end on Wednesday.
Government delegates led by the director of interior and national security minister Ali Abtidoon were having consultative meetings with clans reside in Hiiran region about how new all inclusive administration can be formed for Hiran region bearin in mind their choice and needs.
Deputy chairman of civil affairs for Hiiran region Osman Husein told Mustaqbal radio that the delegates from federal government will issue communiqué about their meeting with residents.
Somali foreign minister Fowsia Yusuf meets with Canadian FM
02 Oct- Source: Radio Mustaqbal/Radio Mogadishu/SNTV/Hiiraan Online- 173 words
Reports from Canada say that Somali deputy prime minister and foreign minister Fowsia Yusuf Haji has met with her Canadian counterpart. The Somali delegation led by the foreign minister includes the chairwoman of Somali central bank Miss Yurus Aden Abrar and other members of the S.
While meeting Canadian FM John Baird, Fowsia discussed wide range of Issued relating the two country’s cooperation and political relation. Canada announced funds offered to Somalia for its rebuilding and restoration of law and order. Somali FM Miss Fowsia Yusuf Haji Aden is expected to meet with Somali community in Torronto and Attawa towns in Canada.
Kuwait Fund Pumps another $5 Million into Egal International Airport Upgrade Project
02 Oct- Source: Somalilandpress- 283 words
Somaliland minister of aviation and air transport Hon Mahmud Abdi Hashi has of last night signed a new agreement with the Kuwait Government estimated to be $5m at a function held in Kuwait city the capital of Kuwait.
The signing of the new agreement by Hon Mahmoud Abdi Hashi pumps additional $5 Million to the project previous $10 Million which will be utilized for the construction of the remaining 1km of runway, installation of lighting system for night landings as well a security perimeter fence and aircraft hangars at the Egal international airport.
The Kuwaiti Fund expressed the main donors of the Egal airport upgrade expressed their satisfaction with works during a public meeting held at the civil service institute last week in what many termed as a rare happening in the country after for the first time members of the public were given a chance to ask government officials among them minister of Aviation question about the project.
Interim Jubba Admin to launch military operation against al Shabaab soon
01 Oct – Source: Kismaayo Online – 115 words
The Interim Jubba Administration has promised to launch military operation against al Shabaab bases in the Jubba regions, saying that they were now mobilizing their troops in order to wrest control of territories under the al Shabaab control. In a press conference, the administration’s acting leader, Maalim Mohamed Ibrahim said they will soon attack Jamame, Jilib and Bu’ale districts in Lower and Middle Jubba regions.
He said the militant group is terrorizing locals in the Jubba regions and ought to be ousted immediately to liberate the towns, hinting they will soon attack them. IJA has been vowing to oust the militant rule in the Jubba regions since they captured Kismayo city on October 2012 with the help of Kenyan troops in Somalia. Meanwhile, the Jubba administration reiterated its objection to participate in the forthcoming reconciliation conference for Jubba communities to be held in Mogadishu on October 5.
Armed men force schools to close in Yemen refugee camp
01 Oct- Source: Radio Ergo- 224 words
Armed men terrified teachers and students in Al-Kharaz refugee camp on Sunday by forcing the closure of schools and sending children home. The camp, in southern Yemen, is home to an estimated 20,000 Somali refugees. Mohamed Mohamud Yalahow, chairman of the camp’s Parent Committee, said the armed men were local indigenous inhabitants who were angry about the selection process of new teachers hired for primary and intermediate schools. He said five local candidates had failed to pass the examination for teachers’ posts and successful Somali teachers were selected to fill the vacancies.
Militiamen representing the failed candidates’ families are demanding that teaching jobs be given to their fellow clansmen, threatening that they will ensure the schools remain closed until their demands are met. “They are saying they can’t see Somali teachers until jobs are given to their people first,” Yalahow told Radio Ergo’s local reporter in the camp.He added that there are no police protecting refugees from the militia.
There is a long history of friction between local Yemeni residents and the Somali refugees. There have been numerous cases in which threats have been made by locals against the refugees. Yalahow said the refugee leaders were planning to open talks with local residents to try to negotiate for the re-opening of the schools.
REGIONAL MEDIA
Kenya tells Somalia to ‘put house in order’
02 Oct- Source: Al Jazeera English-398 Words
Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya’s president, has told Somalia to “put their house in order,” in a sign of frustration at the festering instability in the neighbouring country after members of a Somali armed group attacked and killed dozens at a Nairobi shopping mall.
The al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group said it raided the Westgate mall, killing at least 67 people in a four-day siege, in revenge for Kenya’s military campaign against its fighters inside Somalia.
Al Shabaab repeated its warnings to Kenya on Tuesday of new attacks if it did not pull troops from Somalia. Earlier, President Kenyatta announced a formal inquiry into the deadly assault.
Sierra Leone arrests eight foreigners over terror threat
01 Oct- Source: Africa Review- 237 words
Sierra Leone police have confirmed the detention of eight foreign nationals following the tightening of security to avert a terrorism threat. The suspects, said to be Pakistanis, have been held since Friday, the director of Police Media Relations, Ibrahim Samura, said Monday. Other media reports cited a senior police officer saying the suspects were being questioned for entering the country allegedly without valid visas.
The Concord Times quoted chief superintendent Bakarr Sanpha Koroma as saying that the suspects were detained together with some Sierra Leoneans serving as their fixers around the city`s imposing Law Court Building. “We contacted their hosts at Allen Town but they did not come and when we also discovered that they did not have entry visas, we referred them to the Criminal Investigations Department for further investigation,” Mr Koroma said. The men reportedly told police that they were Muslim missionaries and had travelled from Pakistan to Yemen through Abu Dhabi and the United Kingdom.
Kenyatta’s tough Message to al Shabaab in Somalia
01 Oct- Source: Citizen/Star- 5:46 min
The government on Tuesday announced that a commission of inquiry to probe the Westgate attack will be set up. Making the announcement, President Uhuru Kenyatta said the commission will be expected to establish if security lapses may have enabled the terrorists’ raid at the Westgate shopping mall that left 67 people dead and close to two hundred injured. President Kenyatta who spoke during an inter denominational prayers for victims of the Westgate attack also announced that Kenya will not withdraw its defence forces’ from Somalia until order and stability is restored in the war-torn country.
Al Shabaab’s murder spree at Westgate flouts teachings of Prophet Mohammed
01 Oct- Source: Sabahi Online- 1181 words
As victims and eyewitnesses of last week’s Westgate mall siege recount the terrifying, bloody ordeal, Muslim clerics and scholars denounced al Shabaab’s attack, saying the rampage goes against the tenets of Islam and the teachings of Prophet Mohammed.
“Until Saturday, I did not know terrorists would stoop so low to want to kill a disabled woman in a wheelchair like me,” said 38-year-old Anisa Chopra, shaking her head as she pointed to her heavily bandaged left knee. Chopra was at the Westgate mall on September 21st when al Shabaab gunmen stormed the shopping centre and began opening fire indiscriminately.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Somali al Shabaab vow terror campaign against Kenya
02 Oct- Source: AFP-239 Words
Somalia’s al Shabaab militants threatened Wednesday to step up militant attacks against Kenya, after Nairobi refused to pull its troops out of Somalia.
The al Qaeda linked al Shabaab claimed responsibility for last week’s attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall, in which at least 67 people died, with 39 more listed as missing by the Red Cross.
“We will strike Kenyans where it hurts the most, turn their cities into graveyards and rivers of blood will flow in Nairobi,” al Shabaab said in a statement.
“The Kenyan government’s decision to keep its invading force in Somalia is an indication that they haven’t yet learnt any valuable lessons from the Westgate attacks,” the extremists added, warning that Kenya was “inviting unprecedented levels of insecurity, bloodshed and destruction.”
Canada reinforces African Union forces in Somalia
01 Oct – Source: Fox News/AFP – 164 words
Canada announced Tuesday funding to bolster African Union forces in Somalia, after a deadly mall attack in Nairobi by al Shabaab militants last month. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird pledged Can$5 million for enhancing counterterrorism efforts through the African Union mission in Somalia, as well as $1 million for other security and conflict resolution programs in the Horn of Africa.
The funds are in addition to Can$37 million already committed by Ottawa for Somalia, and $2.4 billion committed by the world. At a joint press conference, Somalia’s visiting Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Fawzia Yusuf Adam said her government in partnership with the African Union “is defeating” Shebab.
“El Shebab is on its last legs, they lost numbers, they lost morale, they lost ground, they’re only in small pockets. We’re not worried about them. We’re in control of the situation, but we need a last push” with aid from the international community to strengthen its security forces, she said.
Uhuru Kenyatta: Kenyan troops ‘will stay in Somalia’
02 Oct- Source: BBC-01:56mins
Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has addressed a multi-faith prayer service for the 67 victims of the Westgate shopping centre attack. He told the gathering that the Somali militants behind the siege had tried to use religion to divide Kenyans but faith had instead united them. The president added that if al Shabaab fighters thought the mall attack would make Kenya withdraw its troops from Somalia, they were mistaken.
SOCIAL MEDIA
CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS
“The African Union and the international community in general must do more and faster to empower the Somali government politically, economically and militarily to be able to deal with al Shabaab and other internal challenges by itself. The seemingly endless involvement of Uganda, Burundi, Kenya and others is not sustainable.”
Empower Somali govt to do its job
01 Oct- Source: The Observer-347 Words
The official mourning after the terrorist attack that killed 67 people in Kenya ten days ago is over but the pain will last forever. As the inquest into what went wrong begins, asking whether anything could have been done to stop the carnage, it’s also time to reflect on Somalia, the country in whose name the terrorists committed their macabre act.
Truth is, the intervention of African Union forces, AMISOM, through Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Djibouti and Sierra Leone, has made Somalia better off and put it on a recovery path for the first time in 20 years, but it has not necessarily made the region safer. In fact, it has made the region more prone to terrorist attacks.
That doesn’t mean the countries involved must cut and run; doing that would hand easy victory to the terrorists and the gains made in Somalia over the last couple of years would immediately be lost.
“Calling terrorists and murderers and other criminals “jihadists” and “Islamists” simply plays into their hands by legitimizing them and making it easier for them to recruit more terrorists. And it also perpetuates the stereotypes (spiraling out of control and funded by a multi-million dollar industry), of Islam as a violent religion and Muslims as barbarians. The U.S. government has made a decision to not call terrorists jihadists. It’s about time that the media also stopped using these simplistic, blanket, catchall terms.”
Al Shabaab’s attack in Kenya: media coverage plays into terrorist agenda
01 Oct- Source: Huffington Post Blog-669 Words
The recent attack on the Westgate mall in Kenya is a sickening example of the senseless, criminal violence that occurs when a conflation of ignorance, thuggery, and murdering impulses becomes justified by a self-righteous and perverted distortion of religion. AlShabab is a militant terrorist group that has been empowered by decades of chaos in Somalia, including (according to Jeremy Scahill) the results of U.S. interference in the country. But instead of calling al-Shabab what they are — extremist terrorists — media outlets across the political spectrum have been referring to them as “Islamists” and even “jihadists.”
Using blanket terms like “Islamist” to describe any non-secular Muslim group or individual is a lazy way to simplistically term an enormous spectrum of people and attitudes and philosophies and histories. Moreover, it is also prejudicial, because it is unfailingly used in only negative contexts, which perpetuates negative images of Islam. Yet the difference between, for example, between Turkey’s democratically elected coalition-building government, which is described as “Islamist,” and al-Shabab murdering terrorists, also described as “Islamist,” should be apparent to the meanest intelligence.
Does Al Shabab Pose a Threat on American Soil?
01 Oct- Source: New York Times-78 Words
In the aftermath of the horrific massacre of innocent shoppers at the Westgate mall earlier this month, Western investigators, including a large F.B.I. contingent, have poured into Nairobi to gather information that may help prevent further attacks by the Shabab. The militant group, which has taken responsibility for the violence, has clearly extended beyond Somalia and become much more organized. Its financial dealings are increasingly sophisticated. How much of a terrorism threat is Al Shabab on U.S. soil?
Audio slideshow: Kenya mourns Westgate attack
01 Oct- Source: BBC-68 Words
The attack on the Westgate shopping centre by Somali militants has united Kenyans from different ethnic and religious groups in their grief. Westgate was a favourite haunt of rich Kenyans and foreigners. Among those killed were President Uhuru Kenyatta’s nephew and members of the country’s Asian community – both Muslim and Hindu. Somali group al Shabaab says it carried out the attack, which killed at least 67 people.
Top tweets
@UNLazzarini A huge number of Somalis rely on remittances for basic needs; if they stop, an interim solution needed to sustain the #Somalia lifeline.
@amisomsomalia #AMISOM responds to women needs in#Baidoa http://bit.ly/GzwLP2
@astroehlein #Kenya: In the aftermath of #Westgate, remember Shabab shows the same violent contempt toward Somali civilians too http://ow.ly/ppu6x
@OwuorMichael Al-Shabaab still controls lucrative smuggling routes in Southern Somalia & extracts protection money from Somali businesses.
@shephardm Canada pledges $6.02 million for projects in#Somalia following Ottawa meeting between foreign ministers,@HonJohnBaird & @FawziaYusufAdam
Image of the day
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird shows the Ottawa skyline to Somalia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Fawzia Yusuf H. Adam prior to a meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2013 in Ottawa. Photo: The Canadian Press