September 24, 2018 | Morning Headlines

Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo has canceled his planned trip to New York this week as the Horn of Africa nation faces a political crisis pitting the central government against regional states. Somali Foreign Minister, Ahmed Isse Awad who arrived New York a few hours ago, will instead deliver the Somali President’s speech at the United Nations  General Assembly. The president was scheduled to fly to New York on Sunday to attend the annual UN General Assembly, which is set to open next week.

However, Mr. Farmaajo has pulled out of the high-level UN meeting to help end a growing political crisis in Galmudug where opposing parliamentary factions have ousted the region’s top leaders in controversial moves, Abukar Osman, the Somali ambassador to UN told Hiiraan Online in an interview. However, sources close to the President told Hiiraan Online that there were fears of the President being confronted on arrival in the United States by protestors, who are unhappy about his administration’s performance. This may have prompted him to cancel the US trip. .

According to sources, President Farmaajo was also scheduled to make separate trips to Minneapolis to meet Somali communities from across the US. American-based Somali activists have reportedly kicked off plans for large protests against Farmaajo’s administration, which faces mounting criticism against its policies and handling of security issues since his election on early 2017. During his visit to the US, the President would also have attended his daughter’s wedding in Buffalo, NY next week.

Key Headlines

• Somali President Cancels Planned US Trip (Hiiraan.com)
• RADIO: Puntland President Warns Of Impending Al-Shabaab Attacks (Dalsan Radio)
• TV: PM Chairs Conference On Enforcement Of Court Decisions (Somali Cable TV)
• Somalia: Puntland Minister Resigns, Cites High-level Corruption (Garowe Online)
• US Military Says 18 Al-Shabaab Militants Killed In Retaliatory Airstrike (the-star.co.ke)
• Two Car Bombs Explode In Somali capital, One Dies (reuters.com)
• When Farmajo And The States Fight, Somalis Are Trampled (theeastafrican.co.ke)

NATIONAL NEWS

RADIO: Puntland President Warns Of Impending Al-Shabaab Attacks

23 September 08:10:04 – Source : Dalsan Radio – 85 Words

Puntland state President, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, has warned the residents of Puntland of an impending attack orchestrated by the militant groups in Puntland. Speaking at a public gathering, the Puntland leader said the militant groups, Daesh and Al-Shabab, were planning to carry out attacks on Puntland’s major towns and cities and urged the public to work closely with security forces to avert such attacks: “We are urging everyone to play their part so that we can defeat the terrorist groups.”.

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TV: PM Chairs Conference On Enforcement Of Court Decisions

23 September 17:10:47 – Source : Somali Cable TV – 131 Words

Somali Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire, today chaired the second monthly judiciary  development meeting in Mgadishu. The meeting focused on accelerating efforts in strengthening the justice system, implementing court decisions, tackling the challenge posed by fraudulent and fake documents and executing the land dispute resolution program. The meeting was attended by Somali Police Force officials, Federal Government Cabinet minister in charge of Justice and Security dockets, Banadir Administration officials and the Auditor General.

Speakers at the event stressed on the need to restore public confidence in the judiciary. The Prime Minister called on judiciary officials and law enforcement agencies to work closely in order to enforce judicial decisions. Participants agreed to collaborate with a view to enable citizens access a transparent, fair and balanced justice system.

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Somalia: Puntland Minister Resigns, Cites High-level Corruption

23 September – Source : Garowe Online – 240 Words

The Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Puntland State in northwestern Somalia, Ali Abdullahi Warsame, has resigned from the Cabinet on Sunday, citing “swelling” corruption in the government, Garowe Online reports. In his resignation letter obtained by Garowe Online, Warsame said he took the decision after having seing government’s failure and lack of commitment to handle internal security, economic and political challenges facing the state.

“After having acknowledged that Government institutions in crisis and their operations have been moved under the office of the President and the corruption has reached its peak in the state, I decided to step down and leave office,” he added. The minister said the work of his ministry was handed over to an agency which operates under the directives of the Puntland presidency, in what is believed to be a scheme to embezzle public funds and key development projects in the region.

Warsame added that his office that was doing momentous service for the people of Puntland but it’s operations had been paralyzed and its staff members had not been paid for years due to massive corruption and the President’s lack of commitment to keep public serves operational. The move comes less than a week after Puntland State Agency for Water Energy and Natural Resources (PSAWEN) took control of a German-funded water project in Harfo and Jalam areas.

 

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

US Military Says 18 Al-Shabaab Militants Killed In Retaliatory Airstrike

23 September – Source : the-star.co.ke – 187 Words

US forces acting in self defense called in an airstrike on al Shabaab militants in the southern Somalia province of Lower Juba, killing an estimated 18 Islamist extremists, US Africa Command said. Somali government troops accompanying the US unit killed two other fighters of the al Qaeda-linked group with small arms fire during the clash that took place on Friday, it said. “The US airstrike was conducted against militants after US and partner forces came under attack,” US Africa Command said in a statement on Saturday. “We currently assess no civilians were injured or killed.”

The clash took place about 30 miles (50 km) northwest of the Lower Juba port city of Kismayo. US forces are in Somalia supporting a UN-backed government against al Shabaab, an Islamist extremist group that lost control of most of the country’s towns and cities after withdrawing from the capital Mogadishu in 2011. Meanwhile, a person died and another was injured in two car bombs that exploded in the heart of the Somali capital on Saturday and the Islamist group al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attacks.

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Two Car Bombs Explode In Somali capital, One Dies

23 September – Source : reuters.com – 225 Words

One person died and another was injured when two car bombs exploded in the heart of the Somali capital on Saturday. The Islamist group , Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attacks. The bombs detonated in two different cars near a main road in city center. Al-Shabaab frequently carries out bombings in Mogadishu and other parts of the Horn of Africa country. “Two people were injured in the two car bombs. One of them died of the wounds,” said Major Mohamed Hussein, a police officer.

Al-Shabaab told Reuters they had planted the car bombs and that they had targeted a police official who apparently escaped. Another police officer, Ahmed Nur, said one of the cars was parked and had nobody in it, while the second was moving and the two people inside it had been injured. One of the injured persons later died. On Friday, at least three people were killed in separate attacks in Mogadishu, including a female university student, who was shot dead while in class by two men armed with pistols.

Members of Al-Shabaab are fighting to topple Somalia’s Western-backed central government in order to establish their own rule based on their strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law. The group also hopes to drive African Union (AU)-mandated AMISOM peacekeepers out of the country.

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OPINION, ANALYSIS AND CULTURE

“The bone of contention is that, since he took office, President Farmajo and his government have paid little attention to the grievances of the Federal Member States, created their own cronies in most of the states to make life difficult for their leaders. With elections coming up, the leaders of the states are already facing stiff competition from candidates said to be sponsored by Villa Somalia.”

When Farmajo And The States Fight, Somalis Are Trampled

21 September – Source : theeastafrican.co.ke – 368 Words

It was a fateful week in Somali politics, one that could shape the presidency of Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo. Last weekend, the leaders of Somalia’s Federal Member States (FMS) suspended ties with the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in what is seen by many as a significant blow to the already weak relationship between the two. The Upper House boycotted the joint opening session of parliament, which was presided over by President Farmajo.

There are also talks of a pending vote of no-confidence against the president and prime minister. The motive of this motion, which is yet to be received by parliament, is not yet known, but pundits say it is part of an effort by the president of the Federal Member States to turn the heat on Villa Somalia. The latest row between the leadership of the Federal Member States and the Federal Government of Somalia is a classic example of a power tussle between two layers of government that should be working seamlessly.

In Somalia, citizens hardly have access to basic services and the promise of the promulgation of the provisional constitution in 2012 seems to have evaporated. In a strongly worded communique issued after weeklong deliberation in Kismayu, the interim headquarters of Jubbaland State, the president of the Federal Member States accused Villa Somalia of interfering with the internal affairs of the regional states, and of failing to honour past agreements it had signed with them. In a quick rejoinder, Villa Somalia called for an urgent meeting of the National Security Council in Mogadishu to discuss the security situation.

But President Farmajo failed to even mention the standoff with the regional states during his speech at the opening of parliament. His call for a National Security Council meeting is therefore seen by many as an attempt to assert his authority. The stalemate comes at a critical time; Somalia is a country recovering from decades-old conflict and this standoff will not allow the wounds of yesteryear to heal. There can only be one winner in this case: It is the terrorists who relish the internal wrangles between the parties who should have instead taken the fight to them.

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