RSS Feed (xml)
Afgoye — The Al-Qaeda affiliated militants of Al-shabab in Somalia, have abducted at least five teenagers, among footballers in the town of Afgoye, which is just 30-km south of Mogadishu, witnesses said Saturday.
Reports say fighters loyal to hard-line Al-shabab militants have overnight stormed in houses and villages in Afgoye town in Shabelle region of southern Somalia, arresting five young boys, whom they blame of spying UN-backed Somali government.
Relatives of the abducted teenagers by the militants in the town of Afgoye said, they are concerned about the safety of their boys after being taken forcibly from them by the group. The incident sparked off shock and fears among local teenagers who are living under the rebel-held towns in south-central Somalia.
Al-shabab has not made any comments about the matter so far.
Tagged: Arms and Armies, Children, Conflict, East Africa, Human Rights, Somalia
Showing posts with label Alliance for the Liberation of Somalia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alliance for the Liberation of Somalia. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Al Shabaab Driven from Beledweyne Near Ethiopian Border
Ethiopian troops and Somali government forces have seized control of a key rebel-held town in Somalia after battling al-Qaida-linked militants.
Somali officials say the fighting began early Saturday after Ethiopian and Somali forces attacked positions held by al-Shabab, an Al-Qaeda affiliate, fighters on the outskirts of Beledweyne, about 30 kilometers from the Ethiopian border.
A resident of Beledweyne told the French news agency that 18 people, most of them militants, died in the fighting.
But al-Shabab denied it was defeated and said many Ethiopian troops were killed in the clashes. The militant group said it carried out a planned withdrawal from Beledweyne after the fighting.
Saturday's assault on Beledweyne marks the third location in Somalia where militants have been challenged. Control of the town has changed hands often in recent months as different militias push to seize control of it.
African Union troops have mostly forced al-Shabab out of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and Kenyan troops are battling militants in the south.
Somalia has been mired in anarchy since warlords toppled military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
Somali officials say the fighting began early Saturday after Ethiopian and Somali forces attacked positions held by al-Shabab, an Al-Qaeda affiliate, fighters on the outskirts of Beledweyne, about 30 kilometers from the Ethiopian border.
A resident of Beledweyne told the French news agency that 18 people, most of them militants, died in the fighting.
But al-Shabab denied it was defeated and said many Ethiopian troops were killed in the clashes. The militant group said it carried out a planned withdrawal from Beledweyne after the fighting.
Saturday's assault on Beledweyne marks the third location in Somalia where militants have been challenged. Control of the town has changed hands often in recent months as different militias push to seize control of it.
African Union troops have mostly forced al-Shabab out of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and Kenyan troops are battling militants in the south.
Somalia has been mired in anarchy since warlords toppled military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Al Shabaab Money Laundering Results in the Closing of Hawala in the US
Nairobi — Humanitarian groups in Somalia have raised the red flag as foreign banks prepare to pull out of money transfer business as the world seeks to paralyse Al-Shabaab operations.
Franklin Bank -- the last of the US financial institutions in the unregulated money transfer business (hawala) in Somalia -- plans to suspend money wiring services this week, putting at stake millions of dollars remitted from abroad.
Last week, Oxfam Group and the American Refugee Committee said the decision would disrupt aid from family members and well-wishers abroad, affecting 250,000 Somalis in need of urgent life-saving assistance.
"This is the worst time for this service to stop. Any gaps with remittance flows in the middle of the famine could be disastrous," Shannon Scribner, Oxfam America's humanitarian policy manager, said, adding that the $100 million in worth of remittances from US that is received each year in Somalia will be affected.
Franklin took the decision two weeks ago to ditch hawala, an unregulated money transfer service, at the end of this month saying it violates US counterterrorism financing regulations crafted after the September 11, 2001 al-Qaida bombings.
"The US government should give assurances to the bank that there will be no legal ramifications of providing this service to Somalis in need," Ms Scribner said. Under hawala which is widely practised in Islamic countries, a recipient simply claims money from a broker in home city on promise that the sender has deposited similar amount with another hawala broker abroad.
This way, currency worth billions of shillings is exchanged across borders without any documentation as the parties rely on trust embedded in Islamic law to conduct the business.In war-torn Somalia where many residents do not have bank accounts, hawala services have thrived.
In Nairobi, the growing number of hawala merchants in Eastleigh estate is seen as the channel through which billions of shillings sent by Somalis living in the diaspora has found its way into Kenya's real-estate segment.
The Rest @ AllAfrica
Franklin Bank -- the last of the US financial institutions in the unregulated money transfer business (hawala) in Somalia -- plans to suspend money wiring services this week, putting at stake millions of dollars remitted from abroad.
Last week, Oxfam Group and the American Refugee Committee said the decision would disrupt aid from family members and well-wishers abroad, affecting 250,000 Somalis in need of urgent life-saving assistance.
"This is the worst time for this service to stop. Any gaps with remittance flows in the middle of the famine could be disastrous," Shannon Scribner, Oxfam America's humanitarian policy manager, said, adding that the $100 million in worth of remittances from US that is received each year in Somalia will be affected.
Franklin took the decision two weeks ago to ditch hawala, an unregulated money transfer service, at the end of this month saying it violates US counterterrorism financing regulations crafted after the September 11, 2001 al-Qaida bombings.
"The US government should give assurances to the bank that there will be no legal ramifications of providing this service to Somalis in need," Ms Scribner said. Under hawala which is widely practised in Islamic countries, a recipient simply claims money from a broker in home city on promise that the sender has deposited similar amount with another hawala broker abroad.
This way, currency worth billions of shillings is exchanged across borders without any documentation as the parties rely on trust embedded in Islamic law to conduct the business.In war-torn Somalia where many residents do not have bank accounts, hawala services have thrived.
In Nairobi, the growing number of hawala merchants in Eastleigh estate is seen as the channel through which billions of shillings sent by Somalis living in the diaspora has found its way into Kenya's real-estate segment.
The Rest @ AllAfrica
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Al Shabaab Raid Kenya Navy Ships Near Madhawa Island
Mugadisho — A group of armed of Somalia's Islamist militant group Al-shabab on four speed boats reportedly launched a massive attack on a fleet of Kenyan naval warships, burning one the warships, according to reliable sources on Sunday.
Witnesses said, that the 20 minute attack on Kenyan warships happened Madhawa Island, an island in southern coast of Somalia, causing damages not casualties.
Neither Kenya nor Al-shabab has made comments about the attack on the Kenyan Warships on Sunday in the lawless coastal territories of Somalia, but it is the first assault on Kenyan warships by Al-shabab since Kenya has sent last month troops and tanks into Somalia to root out the threat of Al-shabab militants on its national security and tourism.
The Rest @ The Rest @ AllAfrica.com
Witnesses said, that the 20 minute attack on Kenyan warships happened Madhawa Island, an island in southern coast of Somalia, causing damages not casualties.
Neither Kenya nor Al-shabab has made comments about the attack on the Kenyan Warships on Sunday in the lawless coastal territories of Somalia, but it is the first assault on Kenyan warships by Al-shabab since Kenya has sent last month troops and tanks into Somalia to root out the threat of Al-shabab militants on its national security and tourism.
The Rest @ The Rest @ AllAfrica.com
Monday, September 12, 2011
Lamu Kenya Shooting: UK Advises Aginst Travel within 30 km of Somali Border
NAIROBI (BNO NEWS) -- A British tourist was shot dead and his wife kidnapped from a Kenyan resort, the British Foreign Office said on Sunday.
The married couple were attacked overnight at a beach resort north of Lamu, near the Kenya-Somalia border, a Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement. According to the BBC, Kenyan officials said a policeman saw six men taking away a woman in a boat.
A BBC reporter said that, since the tourist resort is near Somalia, Somali pirates could be involved. Meanwhile, a source said Islamist group al-Shabab could also be involved.
The Foreign Office said it is working with Kenyan authorities to establish further details about the attack. It also said it had sent a consular team from the High Commission in Nairobi to the area.
"We are working to secure the safe and swift release of the British National who has been kidnapped and ask those involved to show compassion and release the individual immediately," the office stated.
It continued to advise against all but essential travel to within 30 kilometers (18 miles) of Kenya's border with Somalia. It added that there have been previous attacks by Somali militia into Kenya. In July 2009, three aid workers were kidnapped, and two Western nuns in November 2008.
(Copyright 2011 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)
The married couple were attacked overnight at a beach resort north of Lamu, near the Kenya-Somalia border, a Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement. According to the BBC, Kenyan officials said a policeman saw six men taking away a woman in a boat.
A BBC reporter said that, since the tourist resort is near Somalia, Somali pirates could be involved. Meanwhile, a source said Islamist group al-Shabab could also be involved.
The Foreign Office said it is working with Kenyan authorities to establish further details about the attack. It also said it had sent a consular team from the High Commission in Nairobi to the area.
"We are working to secure the safe and swift release of the British National who has been kidnapped and ask those involved to show compassion and release the individual immediately," the office stated.
It continued to advise against all but essential travel to within 30 kilometers (18 miles) of Kenya's border with Somalia. It added that there have been previous attacks by Somali militia into Kenya. In July 2009, three aid workers were kidnapped, and two Western nuns in November 2008.
(Copyright 2011 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)
Friday, August 19, 2011
Somali Pirate Ransom Negotiator Indicted in US
US charges accused Somali pirate negotiator again
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Somali man already facing U.S. charges of negotiating a ransom for four Americans later killed by pirates was indicted on Thursday for allegedly playing the same role in another incident with 22 hostages held seven months.
Mohammad Saaili Shibin was brought to the United States in April to face federal court charges in Norfolk, Virginia, over the pirating of an American yacht in February off the coast of Somalia and taking hostage two American couples who were later killed.
- Shibin allegedly researched over the Internet who the hostages were to try to determine how much money to demand and the identity of their family members so he could contact them about a ransom.
- The four slain Americans were Jean and Scott Adam of California and Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle fromSeattle.
The new charges involved a different incident. Shibin was accused of being the ransom negotiator for the pirates who seized the M/V Marida Marguerite, a German-owned vessel with a crew of 22 men, who were held hostage off the coast of Somalia for seven months, starting in May 2010.
- According to the indictment, Shibin received $30,000 to $50,000 in U.S. cash as his share of the ransom payment.
- "Shibin is alleged to be among the select few who are entrusted with one of the most important tasks in Somali piracy -- ensuring a ship's owners pay the maximum amount of ransom possible for the release of a hijacked vessel," U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride, whose office brought the case, said in a statement.
- The 50-year-old Shibin now faces 15 counts, including charges of piracy, hostage taking, kidnapping and conspiracy. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
(Reporting by James Vicini; editing by Mohammad Zargham)
Monday, August 08, 2011
Somali Piracy Ransom Payments Funding Al Shabaab
Written July 6th, 2011
John Steed, the principal military adviser to the U.N. special envoy to Somalia and head of the envoy’s counter-piracy unit, said links between armed pirate gangs and Somalia’s al Qaeda-affiliated rebels were gradually firming.
“The payment of ransoms just like any other funding activity, illegal or otherwise, is technically in breach of the Somalia sanctions regime if it makes the security situation in Somalia worse,” said Steed.
“Especially if it is ending up in the hands of terrorists or militia leaders — and we believe it is, some directly, some more indirectly,” said Steed, a retired military officer.
Ransom demands have risen steadily in recent years. According to one study, the average ransom stood at $5.4 million (3.3 million pounds) in 2010, up from $150,000 in 2005, helping
Ransom demands have risen steadily in recent years. According to one study, the average ransom stood at $5.4 million (3.3 million pounds) in 2010, up from $150,000 in 2005, helping
Somali pirates rake in nearly $240 million last year.
Steed acknowledged he had no proof of an operational relationship between the pirates and the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab rebels who control much of southern and central Somalia and parts of the capital Mogadishu.
Steed acknowledged he had no proof of an operational relationship between the pirates and the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab rebels who control much of southern and central Somalia and parts of the capital Mogadishu.
Some political analysts said the policy of some Western governments to endorse the payment of ransoms, seen as fuelling the insecurity, is at odds with their financial support for the Somali government and the African troops propping it up.
Under the terms of the arms embargo on Somalia, financial support to armed groups in the Horn of Africa country is banned. Both the United States and Britain regard al Shabaab as a terrorist organisation.
The U.N.’s Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) says pirates are increasingly launching their cross-ocean raids from the al Shabaab-controlled southern coastal city of Kismayu. Recruitment for pirates from the region was also on the rise, it said.
“Detained pirates tell us that some level of cooperation with al Shabaab is necessary to run a criminal enterprise,” said Alan Cole, piracy program coordinator at UNODC.
Al Shabaab sources agree.
Al Shabaab sources agree.
“If there was no relationship between us, there is no way the pirates would be able to operate, or carry their weapons within zones we control,” said an al Shabaab militant based in the pirate haven of Haradhere, north of Mogadishu.
BIGGEST GAMES IN TOWN
Natznet Tesfay of Executive Analysis said al Shabaab was heavily involved in
- Smuggling through Kismayu,
- Slapping taxes on illegal charcoal exports to the Gulf,
- Arms shipments from Yemen
- Electronic goods destined for the region.
Tesfay said she had yet to see evidence of an “operational relationship” between the pirates and al Shabaab but that the militants had a reputation for monopolising key income-earning sectors once they had taken control of an area.
In February al Shabaab seized a number of pirate gang leaders in Haradhere and forced them to accept a multi-million dollar deal under which the pirates would hand over 20 percent of future ransoms.
A Reuters investigation found the following payments had been made to al Shabaab’s “marine office”:
- On February 25: $200,000 from the release of the Japanese-owned MV Izumi after pirates received a $4.5 million ransom.
- On March 8: $80,000 from the $2 million release of the St Vincent & Grenadines-flagged MV Rak Africana.
- On March 9: $100,000 after the Singapore-flagged MV York was freed for $4.5 million.
- On April 13: $600,000 from the release of the German ship Beluga Nomination after a $5.5 million ransom was paid.
- On April 15: A $66,000 share of the $3.6 million ransom handed over for the Panama-flagged MV Asphalt Venture.
- On May 14: $100,000 from the release of two Spanish crew of the Spanish-owned FV VEGA 5.
ONLY WAY TO FREE HOSTAGES
“Some money has to be ending up in al Shabaab’s hands,” said Michael Frodl, a Washington Lawyer and head of C-level Maritime Risks, which advises Lloyd’s of London underwriters.
Frodl questioned whether payment of ransoms would be even an indirect breach of the arms embargo, but said that if proved, it might break laws in the United States and Britain against funding terrorism.
Sanctions experts said ransoms could violate the arms embargo if they were voluntary financial support to armed groups in Somalia, but said the payments could be considered extortion, and therefore involuntary, blurring the issue.
Some Horn of Africa experts argued there appeared to be no clear systematic link between pirates and al Shabaab’s central command, but there probably were ties at a more local level.
It was likely there was a bleeding of pirate money to local rebel commanders through clan ties, “taxes” or even protection money, they said.
C-level Maritime’s Frodl said the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) carried out reviews of all potential ransom payments to determine if the pirate group in question had ever handed over part of a ransom to al Shabaab.
- “Most times OFAC has authorised payment because it has found no link,” Frodl said. “But if there is indeed a 20 percent ‘tax’ being applied by Shabaab against pirate ransoms in Haradhere, a major pirate hub it now controls, then things could change.”
While Washington has firmly opposed ransom payments, counter-piracy experts say London — home to the world’s shipping and insurance industries — has demonstrated a conspicuous lack of appetite to follow suit.
The UK Chamber of Shipping said it would continue to consider piracy a criminal activity, until proof emerged of financial ties between the sea-bandits and insurgents.
The association welcomed what it called the government’s “balanced view” in refraining from preventing ransom deals.
“Frankly, that’s the only way we get people released,” said Mark Brownrigg, the chamber’s director-general.
(Additional reporting by Mohamed Ahmed in Mogadishu and Jonathan Saul in London, editing by Tim Pearce)
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Why Al Shabaab Believes They Cannot Let Non-Muslim Aid Come to Somalia
al Shabaab has recently outlawed a popular triangle shaped bit of stuffed bread called a samosa. It appears the three sided snack appears "too Christian" This bizarre announcement comes on the tail of other religious rulings suggesting that al Shabaab's version of Sharia law continues to grow more conservative.
In the mind of a strict Salfayaa, they believe that God is distant, and can only be pleased by acts of sacrifice and rigorous religious behavior. They believe that their God is sovereign, in control of all events past, present and future.Al Shabaab's recent losses in all corners of their war suggest to them that their God is displeased and is punishing them. Therefore, they respond in the most appropriate way they can, in their mind, which is to seek out and "correct" irreligious behavior, no mater how small and insignificant. In essence, this is is al Shabaab's version of Sharia law.
Al Shabaab knows they are failing their God, and they will adopt more and more bizarre restrictions as they become more desperate to please him.
This is the reason they believe they cannot let non-Muslim foreign aid agencies into their territory. Their God is already punishing them, and he will punish them more in they let in any help from non-Muslim sources. They believe the famine is a test, a trial. If they give in, then the entire war they created, all their sacrifice, all their "cleansing work" will be for nothing.
Their leaders believe giving in, even for food for starving children, will be even more painful for them then letting them die.
This alone makes them world class war criminals, but they have already committed enough atrocities that they are destined for death or the Hague.
The only mediation that may help is for aid agencies to find a Salafi cleric that al Shabaab respects enough to hear, but who has not committed war crimes himself. Then, they can work through the Da'wa issues.
The only other option is to give the aid to al Shabaab for distribution, but this will fuel more war, a tax will come off the top, and Al Shabaab's Mujahdeen, who are a protected class under Sharia,will get fed before any Muslim child gets the food.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Shabaab Still Refuse Aid Agencies as Vlilages Die of Drought
Thousands of Somalis trek to Ethiopia every day, but camps are now also forming inside Somalia itself. Camps of people fleeing East Africa's worsening drought have started forming inside Somalia, says medical aid agency Medecins Sans Frontieres. One camp had more than doubled in size in a matter of days, and now holds around 5,000 people.
The aid agency can provide medical help, but has no food to give them.
Until now Somalis have been pouring across the borders to Ethiopia and Kenya, arriving at giant refugee camps which are severely overcrowded.
Joe Belliveau of MSF told the BBC the development of camps inside Somalia was a "most desperate and vulnerable moment."
This is a rare glimpse of the situation inside Somalia itself.
MSF is one of a few aid agencies still managing to operate in those areas of Somalia controlled by the militant Islamist group, al al-Shabab.
Continue reading the main story
"Just about a week ago, the number there was about three hundred families in that camp. Within the space of a few days that has jumped to eight hundred families," he said.
Mr Belliveau explained that when people left their homes and their wider families and begun to cluster in camps it indicated that their ability to cope had been exhausted.
"And that's why you see such an outflux also into Ethiopia and Somalia because people have just reached the point, which is the most scary point, where they no longer are able to cope with backup measures for survival," he said.
Mr Belliveau said the recent statement by al-Shabab lifting its ban on aid agencies working in areas it controls was welcome, but so far it had made no difference on the ground.
MSF is having the greatest difficulty in getting permission from al-Shabab to airlift materials into Somalia and bring in expatriate staff.
The aid agency can provide medical help, but has no food to give them.
Until now Somalis have been pouring across the borders to Ethiopia and Kenya, arriving at giant refugee camps which are severely overcrowded.
Joe Belliveau of MSF told the BBC the development of camps inside Somalia was a "most desperate and vulnerable moment."
This is a rare glimpse of the situation inside Somalia itself.
MSF is one of a few aid agencies still managing to operate in those areas of Somalia controlled by the militant Islamist group, al al-Shabab.
Continue reading the main story
"Just about a week ago, the number there was about three hundred families in that camp. Within the space of a few days that has jumped to eight hundred families," he said.
Mr Belliveau explained that when people left their homes and their wider families and begun to cluster in camps it indicated that their ability to cope had been exhausted.
"And that's why you see such an outflux also into Ethiopia and Somalia because people have just reached the point, which is the most scary point, where they no longer are able to cope with backup measures for survival," he said.
Mr Belliveau said the recent statement by al-Shabab lifting its ban on aid agencies working in areas it controls was welcome, but so far it had made no difference on the ground.
MSF is having the greatest difficulty in getting permission from al-Shabab to airlift materials into Somalia and bring in expatriate staff.
By Martin Plaut
Africa editor, BBC World Service
Africa editor, BBC World Service
Thursday, June 09, 2011
Another Minnesota Man Charged with Support, Another Man Again a Suicide Bomber in Somalia
American charged over aid to Somali militants
Ahmed Mahamud, who previously lived in Minnesota, was charged with four counts including conspiracy to provide material support and providing material support to al-Shabaab, which the U.S. government has designated a terrorist group, according to the unsealed indictment.
He is accused of trying to provide money and people to help the militant group in its fight against the Ethiopian military. The four-page indictment did not offer more details about his activities.
Mahamud is expected to be sent to Minnesota to face the indictment, the Justice Department said. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison if convicted.
Already 18 people have been charged in Minnesota during a three-year U.S. investigation into efforts to recruit Americans to train or fight with al-Shabaab in Somalia. Eight have been arrested, five of whom have pleaded guilty.
At least two of the group charged in U.S. courts are believed to have been killed in Somalia. American officials have expressed concerns that the country could also provide a safe haven for al Qaeda militants.
The FBI said on Thursday they had identified one of two bombers who blew themselves up at a government checkpoint in Somalia on May 30 as a Twin Cities man who faced terrorism charges for traveling to Somalia and joining al-Shabaab.
Farah Mohamed Beledi, 27, was identified by comparing fingerprints obtained from one of the bombers with those known to be from Beledi, the FBI said. The FBI has not identified the second bomber.
Beledi was believed to have left Minnesota in October 2009 to travel to Somalia, according to a federal indictment released in July 2010.
Al-Shabaab rebels controls wide swaths of the African country, including parts of the capital, fighting the West-backed government. They claimed responsibility for deadly bombings in Uganda last year that killed 79 people.
Ahmed Mahamud, who previously lived in Minnesota, was charged with four counts including conspiracy to provide material support and providing material support to al-Shabaab, which the U.S. government has designated a terrorist group, according to the unsealed indictment.
He is accused of trying to provide money and people to help the militant group in its fight against the Ethiopian military. The four-page indictment did not offer more details about his activities.
Mahamud is expected to be sent to Minnesota to face the indictment, the Justice Department said. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison if convicted.
Already 18 people have been charged in Minnesota during a three-year U.S. investigation into efforts to recruit Americans to train or fight with al-Shabaab in Somalia. Eight have been arrested, five of whom have pleaded guilty.
At least two of the group charged in U.S. courts are believed to have been killed in Somalia. American officials have expressed concerns that the country could also provide a safe haven for al Qaeda militants.
The FBI said on Thursday they had identified one of two bombers who blew themselves up at a government checkpoint in Somalia on May 30 as a Twin Cities man who faced terrorism charges for traveling to Somalia and joining al-Shabaab.
Farah Mohamed Beledi, 27, was identified by comparing fingerprints obtained from one of the bombers with those known to be from Beledi, the FBI said. The FBI has not identified the second bomber.
Beledi was believed to have left Minnesota in October 2009 to travel to Somalia, according to a federal indictment released in July 2010.
Al-Shabaab rebels controls wide swaths of the African country, including parts of the capital, fighting the West-backed government. They claimed responsibility for deadly bombings in Uganda last year that killed 79 people.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
US Marines Recapture Magellan Star from Somali Pirates
NAIROBI, Kenya — In a predawn raid with helicopters hovering nearby, 24 American Marines scaled aboard a hijacked ship in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday, arrested the nine pirates on board and freed the ship — all without firing a shot, the American military said.
American officials said the rescue appeared to be the first time the American military had boarded a ship commandeered by Somali pirates, who have been hijacking vessel after vessel off Somalia’s coast and wreaking havoc on some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
The Americans, however, are active in the area.
Last year, Navy Seal snipers killed three pirates who were holding an American cargo ship captain in a lifeboat, after he had offered himself as a hostage in exchange for the safety of his crew.
Despite the intense international naval presence in the region, the pirates are on track to have another banner year, with more than 30 ships hijacked so far in 2010 and tens of millions of dollars in ransoms.
But not this time.
According to American officials, around 5 a.m. on Thursday, two teams of 12 Marines each motored up in inflatable boats to the hijacked ship, a 436-foot-long German-owned cargo vessel called the Magellan Star. A band of Somali pirates had seized the ship and its crew of 11 in the Gulf of Aden, between Yemen and Somalia, on Wednesday morning. It was carrying steel chains.
The Marines clambered up portable ladders — much as pirates have been doing — and swiftly took over the ship, American officials said. Two helicopters hovered overhead, throwing down cones of light. A Turkish frigate, part of an American-led anti-piracy task force, was nearby. All nine pirates surrendered without a shot, American officials said. The Magellan Star’s crew was safe, too.
Cmdr. Amy Derrick-Frost, a spokeswoman for the Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, said the Marines had been able to stay in constant contact with the crew on board, receiving specific information about the number of pirates and their locations on the ship, as well as the locations of crew members. That lent military planners a big advantage when organizing the raid, Commander Derrick-Frost said.
Lt. John Fage, an American Navy spokesman, also credited extensive coordination among several players.
“There was an amazing amount of teamwork between the Navy and the Marines and several ships in the task force,” Lieutenant Fage said, “including the Turkish frigate, which was running the show.”
After the operation, Rear Adm. Sinan Ertugrul of the Turkish Navy said: “This regional problem, truly, has global impact, and we are completely committed to bringing the disruptive acts of piracy to an end. We have full support of the international community and will continue to do everything possible to bring security to the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin.”
It is not clear what will happen to the captured pirates. They are in custody aboard one of the ships in the task force, and the officers on the scene are awaiting orders from higher levels.
While hundreds of Somali pirates have recently been sent to jail in Kenya, the Seychelles or Somalia, and a few have even been taken to Europe and the United States, many more have been set free by Western navies in a controversial “catch and release” approach because of the complications of prosecuting suspects arrested on the high seas.
The Rest @ The New York Times
American officials said the rescue appeared to be the first time the American military had boarded a ship commandeered by Somali pirates, who have been hijacking vessel after vessel off Somalia’s coast and wreaking havoc on some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
The Americans, however, are active in the area.
Last year, Navy Seal snipers killed three pirates who were holding an American cargo ship captain in a lifeboat, after he had offered himself as a hostage in exchange for the safety of his crew.
Despite the intense international naval presence in the region, the pirates are on track to have another banner year, with more than 30 ships hijacked so far in 2010 and tens of millions of dollars in ransoms.
But not this time.
According to American officials, around 5 a.m. on Thursday, two teams of 12 Marines each motored up in inflatable boats to the hijacked ship, a 436-foot-long German-owned cargo vessel called the Magellan Star. A band of Somali pirates had seized the ship and its crew of 11 in the Gulf of Aden, between Yemen and Somalia, on Wednesday morning. It was carrying steel chains.
The Marines clambered up portable ladders — much as pirates have been doing — and swiftly took over the ship, American officials said. Two helicopters hovered overhead, throwing down cones of light. A Turkish frigate, part of an American-led anti-piracy task force, was nearby. All nine pirates surrendered without a shot, American officials said. The Magellan Star’s crew was safe, too.
Cmdr. Amy Derrick-Frost, a spokeswoman for the Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, said the Marines had been able to stay in constant contact with the crew on board, receiving specific information about the number of pirates and their locations on the ship, as well as the locations of crew members. That lent military planners a big advantage when organizing the raid, Commander Derrick-Frost said.
Lt. John Fage, an American Navy spokesman, also credited extensive coordination among several players.
“There was an amazing amount of teamwork between the Navy and the Marines and several ships in the task force,” Lieutenant Fage said, “including the Turkish frigate, which was running the show.”
After the operation, Rear Adm. Sinan Ertugrul of the Turkish Navy said: “This regional problem, truly, has global impact, and we are completely committed to bringing the disruptive acts of piracy to an end. We have full support of the international community and will continue to do everything possible to bring security to the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin.”
It is not clear what will happen to the captured pirates. They are in custody aboard one of the ships in the task force, and the officers on the scene are awaiting orders from higher levels.
While hundreds of Somali pirates have recently been sent to jail in Kenya, the Seychelles or Somalia, and a few have even been taken to Europe and the United States, many more have been set free by Western navies in a controversial “catch and release” approach because of the complications of prosecuting suspects arrested on the high seas.
The Rest @ The New York Times
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Indian Mujahadeen Among Shabaab Foreign Fighters
NEW DELHI: A freak blast in Mogadishu has sent tremors all the way to New Delhi, with indications that Indian terrorists might be fighting for al-Qaida's group Al Shabaab in Somalia.
Over the weekend, the Somali ministry of information announced that two Indians, three Pakistanis and an Afghan were among 10 Al Shabaab terrorists killed while trying to put together a suicide car bomb in Mogadishu.
The dead even included one leader ''who was in charge of praying for suicide bombers before they are dispatched''.
If the Indians' identity is borne out, this would be a first. Th us far, Indian terrorists have stopped short of venturing out that far for transnational jihadi terrorism.
Al Shabaab is no ordinary Islamist terror group. In February, the group publicly declared its allegiance to al-Qaida, though that linkage had long been suspected by western terrorism analysts.
Harkat-al-Shabaab started work in 2005 in Somalia;
Over the weekend, the Somali ministry of information announced that two Indians, three Pakistanis and an Afghan were among 10 Al Shabaab terrorists killed while trying to put together a suicide car bomb in Mogadishu.
The dead even included one leader ''who was in charge of praying for suicide bombers before they are dispatched''.
If the Indians' identity is borne out, this would be a first. Th us far, Indian terrorists have stopped short of venturing out that far for transnational jihadi terrorism.
Al Shabaab is no ordinary Islamist terror group. In February, the group publicly declared its allegiance to al-Qaida, though that linkage had long been suspected by western terrorism analysts.
Harkat-al-Shabaab started work in 2005 in Somalia;
- the Islamist group succeeded in bringing a few months of quiet in an unending spate of civil war in the country.
- By the time the US declared Al Shabaab a terrorist organization in 2008, the group was well on its way to establishing an Islamist terror movement in the region.
- It was also when the group got its new leader Ahmed Abdi Godane, aka Abu Zubeyr.
- Other top leaders in the organization like Abu Mansoor and Ibrahim Jaama earned their spurs apparently fighting in Afghanistan and Kashmir.
Whether they actually fought in Kashmir is not confirmed but certainly, Al Shabaab has in the past declared its intention of seeing Kashmir "liberated".
Terrorism analyst B Raman says Pakistan's Tablighi Jamaat has been very active in Somalia, including sending terror fighters to Al Shabaab. "If Indians have gone there, it's possible they have gone with the Tablighis," he said.
Al Shabaab has seen a significant increase in "foreign fighters" in recent years. As with the Taliban in Afghanistan, it preaches a severely radical ideology of jihad.
Interestingly, Al Shabaab has more than its share of US and European jihadis, most prominent among them being Al-Amriki. According to terrorism analyst Daveed Gartenstein Ross, around 20 US citizens from Minnesota, US, are believed to have joined Al Shabaab. Analysts say more than 100 Britons have travelled to Somalia to fight for Al Shabaab.
Thus far, Indian terrorism watchers have paid scant attention to Al Shabaab, but Saturday's incident should be an eye-opener. Al Shabaab has openly declared its global ambitions and though a lot of that is focused on the US and Europe, India and other such countries may not escape their jihadi heat either.
If Taliban is considered to be the heir apparent of al-Qaida, Al Shabaab is gaining prominence in the Islamist jihad hierarchy.
According to Critical Threats by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), "Al Shabaab currently controls much of southern and central Somalia, including large portions of the capital, Mogadishu. It has evolved into a group resembling a hybrid of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida.
It provides government services to its constituents, enforces a strict interpretation of Sharia law, and maintains its grip on power by using violence and intimidation.
The group also conducts terror operations, including suicide bombings, against its perceived enemies and views itself as part of the global jihad movement. It has established an effective recruiting strategy to attract militants from throughout Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, as well as the US and Europe."
The Rest @ The Times of India
Monday, September 06, 2010
Ogaden, Ehtiopia Issues
Note that the ONLF only let al Jazera got in....
Recent Speech to US disppora by Abdifatah Sheikh Abdullahi in reference to the Ogaden
Recent Speech to US disppora by Abdifatah Sheikh Abdullahi in reference to the Ogaden
Friday, August 27, 2010
Somaliland has declared its independance from Somalia, mostly as a reaction to the al Shabaab control of Southern Somalia. Recent Somaliland Presidential elections supported this move.
Though al Shabaab threatened the elections, the voting was a landslide. Take a look ath the rhetoric that Zubayr ( Abdi Godani ) produced to try and defeat the elections. It is classic Islamist doctrine. Keep in mind an Islamist believes these things wheter they carry a rifle or not:
- Democracy is anti -Islamic
- Those supporting democracy should be hanged or arrested or killed by ammunition
-Shimron Issachar
HARGEISA, Somalia (Reuters) - Islamist Al Shabaab leader Ahmed Abdi Godane has urged Somalis to reject "the Devil's principles" of democracy, just several days ahead of elections in the breakaway Somaliland region.
"The reality is that democracy is something Allah made unlawful, and someone else cannot make it lawful," the reclusive leader, also known as Sheikh Mukhtar Abdirahman, said.
"If people who are Muslims, who declare the name of Allah, argue that they are real Muslims but forget Allah's message, hang or arrest them, kill them by using ammunition."
Abu Zubeyr urged Muslims in an audio recording on the Internet to move away from areas that tried to build democracy.
The separatist republic of Somaliland - which has sought international recognition as sovereign state - is holding presidential elections on June 26.
The region has enjoyed relative peace and stability for nearly two decades - while the rest of Somalia has had no functioning administration - but is frustrated by the lack of international recognition as a sovereign state.
"If people fight... till everyone is killed, that is much easier than legalising the devil's principles such as constitutions or making a ruler who governs against Allah's laws," he said.
Abu Zubeyr did not mention Somaliland specifically, but analysts said the timing of the message showed that it was intended to frighten people away from polling stations.
"This is something Al Shabaab has been trying for a number of years, to disrupt Somaliland elections," said Ej Hogendoorn, the Horn of Africa director International Crisis Group.
Over a million people will take part in polls in the Horn of Africa polls, which has been delayed three times since April 2008 because of problems with voter registration.
"The people have been waiting for long to elect their president for the next five years ... and they will do it peacefully and democratically," said Ahmed Hashi, Somaliland's assistant minister for planning.
Hashi said Abu Zubeyr's rhetoric showed growing extremism imported form the Al Shabaab-controlled central and south Somalia needed to be confronted.
Somaliland police have arrested dozens of men linked to Al Shabaab rebels in the last two weeks, Interior Minister Abdullahi Saed told Reuters.
"We arrested those people in multiple operations as they planned to disrupt security," he said.
25 June 2010
(Reouters)
Monday, April 19, 2010
Hizbul Islam Charging "tax' of Khat Trucks
Mogadishu (Alshahid) – The drivers of the vehicles that transport Khat (a stimulant leaves chewed by most Somalis) from Afgoye town to the capital Mogadishu complained about the money that Hizbul Islam militias take from them.
The drivers said that Hizbul Islam militias have several check points on the highway that connects Afgoye to Mogadishu and every militia group in those check points ask for money to allow the vehicles pass.
The Hizbul Islam police chief in Afgoye Mohamed Hassan Omar who talked to the reporters in Mogadishu denied the complains saying that only Somali Shilling 300 are taken from each vehicle and that amount goes to the road maintenance.
Mr. Omar said that any vehicle which doesn’t comply with the rules of Hizbul Islam will not use the road.
The drivers said that Hizbul Islam militias have several check points on the highway that connects Afgoye to Mogadishu and every militia group in those check points ask for money to allow the vehicles pass.
The Hizbul Islam police chief in Afgoye Mohamed Hassan Omar who talked to the reporters in Mogadishu denied the complains saying that only Somali Shilling 300 are taken from each vehicle and that amount goes to the road maintenance.
Mr. Omar said that any vehicle which doesn’t comply with the rules of Hizbul Islam will not use the road.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Breath in Mogadishu Battle, More to Come
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
Date: 15 Mar 2010
NAIROBI, 15 March 2010 (IRIN) - Five days of fighting in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, have left residents without food, cut off from their homes and unable to bury their dead, civil society leaders in the city said.
"We cannot go to some of the worst-affected areas and for all we know people may be buried under the rubble of what used to be their homes," Asha Sha'ur, a civil society activist, told IRIN. The fighting had displaced hundreds of families, she added.
In many areas of the city, people were unable to access their homes or even bury their dead. The fighting had also cut off aid deliveries.
"What little assistance that used to come in is no longer there, so they [civilians] are on their own," Sha'ur added. "It is a tragedy but no one seems to care. Imagine people with small children unable to go out and buy food or milk."
Ali Sheikh Yassin, deputy chairman of the Mogadishu-based Elman Human Rights Organization (EHRO), told IRIN the fighting between government troops and insurgent which began on 9 March "had been the most intense since May 2009".
Local sources estimate that more than 100 people had died before relative calm returned to the city on 15 March. "I would say this was the worst [fighting]," Yassin told IRIN.
Some residents, he added, had ventured out of their homes on 15 March to assess the damage and bury their dead.
"There is a feeling among the population that this is not the end and worse is yet to come," he said. Both sides, he explained, were mobilizing, with tanks belonging to the African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission (AMISOM) dotting the city.
A medical source said the hospitals had been inundated. "We are barely coping," she told IRIN. "When you think there are no more, more are brought in."
On the move
The fighting, between AMISOM-backed government forces and the Islamist group Al-Shabab, broke out when Al-Shabab fighters attacked government positions in north Mogadishu, a local journalist told IRIN.
"By Friday [12 March], the fighting had spread to most parts of north Mogadishu. The Yaqshid, Karan, Abdiasis and Wardhigley districts were the hardest hit," he added.
By 15 March, hundreds of families were on the move, "taking advantage of the break in the shelling". According to the journalist, many were joining those in the Afgoye corridor - already home to hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people - while others were heading to Balad, 30km north of Mogadishu.
While the death toll was more than 100, another 245 people were injured, the medical source said.
"These are the ones we can account for; there may be many more who are unaccounted for," she said. "I am sure that once we have access to the epicentre of the fighting the death toll will be much higher."
Most of the injured, she said, were children, citing the case of Salado Ali in Medina, Mogadishu's main hospital. Her six-year-old son and husband were injured when their home in the northern Karan district was hit by a shell.
"The doctors have removed the pieces from the boy's stomach," she told IRIN by telephone. "They tell me he is stable."
Salado, whose husband was in another wing of the hospital with a less serious injury, said: "I don't think there is anyone left in our neighbourhood." A selection of IRIN reports are posted on ReliefWeb. Find more IRIN news and analysis at http://www.irinnews.org
Une sélection d'articles d'IRIN sont publiés sur ReliefWeb. Trouvez d'autres articles et analyses d'IRIN sur http://www.irinnews.org
This article does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. Refer to the IRIN copyright page for conditions of use.
Cet article ne reflète pas nécessairement les vues des Nations Unies. Voir IRIN droits d'auteur pour les conditions d'utilisation.
The Rest @ IRIN
Shimron Issachar
On Twitter
Date: 15 Mar 2010
NAIROBI, 15 March 2010 (IRIN) - Five days of fighting in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, have left residents without food, cut off from their homes and unable to bury their dead, civil society leaders in the city said.
"We cannot go to some of the worst-affected areas and for all we know people may be buried under the rubble of what used to be their homes," Asha Sha'ur, a civil society activist, told IRIN. The fighting had displaced hundreds of families, she added.
In many areas of the city, people were unable to access their homes or even bury their dead. The fighting had also cut off aid deliveries.
"What little assistance that used to come in is no longer there, so they [civilians] are on their own," Sha'ur added. "It is a tragedy but no one seems to care. Imagine people with small children unable to go out and buy food or milk."
Ali Sheikh Yassin, deputy chairman of the Mogadishu-based Elman Human Rights Organization (EHRO), told IRIN the fighting between government troops and insurgent which began on 9 March "had been the most intense since May 2009".
Local sources estimate that more than 100 people had died before relative calm returned to the city on 15 March. "I would say this was the worst [fighting]," Yassin told IRIN.
Some residents, he added, had ventured out of their homes on 15 March to assess the damage and bury their dead.
"There is a feeling among the population that this is not the end and worse is yet to come," he said. Both sides, he explained, were mobilizing, with tanks belonging to the African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission (AMISOM) dotting the city.
A medical source said the hospitals had been inundated. "We are barely coping," she told IRIN. "When you think there are no more, more are brought in."
On the move
The fighting, between AMISOM-backed government forces and the Islamist group Al-Shabab, broke out when Al-Shabab fighters attacked government positions in north Mogadishu, a local journalist told IRIN.
"By Friday [12 March], the fighting had spread to most parts of north Mogadishu. The Yaqshid, Karan, Abdiasis and Wardhigley districts were the hardest hit," he added.
By 15 March, hundreds of families were on the move, "taking advantage of the break in the shelling". According to the journalist, many were joining those in the Afgoye corridor - already home to hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people - while others were heading to Balad, 30km north of Mogadishu.
While the death toll was more than 100, another 245 people were injured, the medical source said.
"These are the ones we can account for; there may be many more who are unaccounted for," she said. "I am sure that once we have access to the epicentre of the fighting the death toll will be much higher."
Most of the injured, she said, were children, citing the case of Salado Ali in Medina, Mogadishu's main hospital. Her six-year-old son and husband were injured when their home in the northern Karan district was hit by a shell.
"The doctors have removed the pieces from the boy's stomach," she told IRIN by telephone. "They tell me he is stable."
Salado, whose husband was in another wing of the hospital with a less serious injury, said: "I don't think there is anyone left in our neighbourhood." A selection of IRIN reports are posted on ReliefWeb. Find more IRIN news and analysis at http://www.irinnews.org
Une sélection d'articles d'IRIN sont publiés sur ReliefWeb. Trouvez d'autres articles et analyses d'IRIN sur http://www.irinnews.org
This article does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. Refer to the IRIN copyright page for conditions of use.
Cet article ne reflète pas nécessairement les vues des Nations Unies. Voir IRIN droits d'auteur pour les conditions d'utilisation.
The Rest @ IRIN
Shimron Issachar
On Twitter
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
NAIROBI, Kenya, December 9 (CDN) — Somali Christian Mohamud Muridi Saidi last month fled a refugee camp near Kenya’s border with Sudan after Muslims threatened to kill him.
For Saidi, a father of four, the recent relocation of 13,000 refugees from the Dadaab refugee camp near the Somali border to the Kakuma camp, where he had lived since 2002, brought its own nightmare: the arrival of Muslims from Somalia’s Lower Juba region who knew of his father’s Christian activities in his home village.
After Somalis four times threw stones at Saidi’s iron sheet home in the Kakuma refugee camp – once in mid-October, and again on Nov. 17, 21 and 22 – word spread that they intended to kill him. Case workers for a Lutheran World Federation (LWF) service group confirmed the death threat.
“I know the attackers are the Muslims who forced us to leave Somalia in 2002,” Saidi told Compass in Nairobi, adding that he was unable to bring his family with him when he fled on Nov. 23. “
They are not safe, and that is why we should be out of Kakuma as soon as possible.”
Saidi has reported the attacks to the LWF service group as well as to police in Kakuma. Case workers for the LWF service group confirmed that the stoning of his home had escalated to the threat of him being assassinated.
“Saidi has security-related issues fueled by the new refugees from Dadaab,” said one LWF service group worker, who requested anonymity for security reasons, last month. “I did some investigation and found out that Saidi’s life is threatened.”
On one of the occasions in which his house was stoned as his family slept, Saidi turned on a flashlight and neighbors rose up, scaring off the assailants.
He and his family had enjoyed some tranquility since fleeing raging conflict in Somalia, but that ceased with the transference of the Somali Muslims from Dadaab refugee camp to Kakuma in August. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees relocated the refugees to ease congestion in the crowded Dadaab camps of Ifo, Hagadera and Dagahaley, where close to 300,000 Somalis had arrived to sites designed to house only 90,000 refugees.
The influx of those refugees from the Dadaab camp more than 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) away came with the quickly spreading word that Saidi and his family must be Christian, since his father was a well-known Christian while living in Somalia. A Somali Bantu from Marere, Lower Juba, Saidi’s family left Marere in 2002 after strict Muslims sought to kill them when they found out they were followers of Christ.
Saidi’s late father had coordinated activities for a Christian charity in Lower Juba. Since the death of his father in 2005, Saidi has been working as a translator for a Non-Governmental Organization. As a translator, he became known to the newly arrived Somalis from Dadaab.
Because of the dangers, Saidi has been forced to abandon his job for fear of exposing himself to other Muslims who might know of his father. He is the sole supporter for his family, including his 55-year-old mother, wife and four children.
“It is not safe for us to continue living in Kakuma – we have to move away, possibly to Nairobi,” Saidi said.
As a stop-gap measure, Saidi said he hopes to work as a freelance translator, for which he would need a computer, printer, photocopying machine and laminator.
“This would be a temporary measure – asylum for my family would be a permanent solution,” he said.
Despite the relocation of the refugees from Dadaab, overcrowding has not eased due an influx of newly displaced people fleeing fighting in southern Somalia. Earlier this month, radical Islamic al Shabaab militia recaptured three key towns, including the key town of Dobhley, in Lower Juba province along Somalia’s border with Kenya. They retook control from the more moderate Isbul-Islam militants as they each try to overthrow the Western-backed Transitional Federal Government of president Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed in Mogadishu.
Report from Compass Direct News
Particular Kev
Shimronletters
For Saidi, a father of four, the recent relocation of 13,000 refugees from the Dadaab refugee camp near the Somali border to the Kakuma camp, where he had lived since 2002, brought its own nightmare: the arrival of Muslims from Somalia’s Lower Juba region who knew of his father’s Christian activities in his home village.
After Somalis four times threw stones at Saidi’s iron sheet home in the Kakuma refugee camp – once in mid-October, and again on Nov. 17, 21 and 22 – word spread that they intended to kill him. Case workers for a Lutheran World Federation (LWF) service group confirmed the death threat.
“I know the attackers are the Muslims who forced us to leave Somalia in 2002,” Saidi told Compass in Nairobi, adding that he was unable to bring his family with him when he fled on Nov. 23. “
They are not safe, and that is why we should be out of Kakuma as soon as possible.”
Saidi has reported the attacks to the LWF service group as well as to police in Kakuma. Case workers for the LWF service group confirmed that the stoning of his home had escalated to the threat of him being assassinated.
“Saidi has security-related issues fueled by the new refugees from Dadaab,” said one LWF service group worker, who requested anonymity for security reasons, last month. “I did some investigation and found out that Saidi’s life is threatened.”
On one of the occasions in which his house was stoned as his family slept, Saidi turned on a flashlight and neighbors rose up, scaring off the assailants.
He and his family had enjoyed some tranquility since fleeing raging conflict in Somalia, but that ceased with the transference of the Somali Muslims from Dadaab refugee camp to Kakuma in August. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees relocated the refugees to ease congestion in the crowded Dadaab camps of Ifo, Hagadera and Dagahaley, where close to 300,000 Somalis had arrived to sites designed to house only 90,000 refugees.
The influx of those refugees from the Dadaab camp more than 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) away came with the quickly spreading word that Saidi and his family must be Christian, since his father was a well-known Christian while living in Somalia. A Somali Bantu from Marere, Lower Juba, Saidi’s family left Marere in 2002 after strict Muslims sought to kill them when they found out they were followers of Christ.
Saidi’s late father had coordinated activities for a Christian charity in Lower Juba. Since the death of his father in 2005, Saidi has been working as a translator for a Non-Governmental Organization. As a translator, he became known to the newly arrived Somalis from Dadaab.
Because of the dangers, Saidi has been forced to abandon his job for fear of exposing himself to other Muslims who might know of his father. He is the sole supporter for his family, including his 55-year-old mother, wife and four children.
“It is not safe for us to continue living in Kakuma – we have to move away, possibly to Nairobi,” Saidi said.
As a stop-gap measure, Saidi said he hopes to work as a freelance translator, for which he would need a computer, printer, photocopying machine and laminator.
“This would be a temporary measure – asylum for my family would be a permanent solution,” he said.
Despite the relocation of the refugees from Dadaab, overcrowding has not eased due an influx of newly displaced people fleeing fighting in southern Somalia. Earlier this month, radical Islamic al Shabaab militia recaptured three key towns, including the key town of Dobhley, in Lower Juba province along Somalia’s border with Kenya. They retook control from the more moderate Isbul-Islam militants as they each try to overthrow the Western-backed Transitional Federal Government of president Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed in Mogadishu.
Report from Compass Direct News
Particular Kev
Shimronletters
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Khat, Miraa, Somali and Northern Kenya Addiction Growing
Nairobi — Every afternoon, Garissa town residents meet for a miraa (khat) chewing session. The twig is a way of life in this stuffy and sun bathed town.
"Miraa creates a social bond and keeps most of us away from crime and drug abuse," says Ahmeddin Nur. A group of young men high on the mild narcotic plant nod their heads in agreement.
But this is about to change if proposal to ban trade and use of miraa in the town becomes a reality.
In a recent workshop on Islam and health, more than 40 religious leaders backed the call to ban miraa in the district.
A potential showdown among traders, consumers and the leaders is looming. Miraa traders and lovers have vowed to demonstrate against the proposed move.
A farmer harvests miraa in Meru North. Muslim leaders want the sale and consumption of the crop banned in northern Kenya.
Although livestock is the chief source of income in the district, the twig provides an alternative for many families.
If the demonstrations go ahead, it will revive memories of similar confrontations in Somalia when residents rose against the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC.
In 2006, the Islamists banned khat and closed entertainment joints.
Street protests
These triggered street protests and the UIC, who had attracted goodwill for restoring order, found itself on a collision course with the people.
Three people were killed when UIC soldiers opened fire on the demonstrators.
Mama Zeinabu Abdi, a Garissa resident who has been in miraa business for the last five years, says it is the only source of income for her and other families.
"The business has made me educate my three children in secondary schools," she says at her miraa stall on Ngamia road. Mr Steven Mayak says he is supporting three school going children with the trade.
Religious leaders say they are not against the income generating trade per se.
"Miraa business has been used to aid trafficking and peddling of hardcore drugs like cocaine, heroin and bhang," the Garissa Supreme Council of Kenyan Muslims (Supkem) leader, Sheikh Hussein Mahat, said while reading the resolutions.
Spread of HIV
Mahat said the drugs adversely affect the community by promoting immorality, poor performance in education and the spread of HIV/Aids.
The leaders also want sale of alcohol, condoms and video showing banned.
The North Eastern Provincial Medical Officer of Health Dr Osman Warfa said drug abuse is a big factor in the spread of HIV.
"The HIV prevalence rate in the town shot from 1.6 per cent to 2.6 per cent last year," he told the workshop. It is as a result of this revelation that the leaders proposed the ban.
Two days later, religious leaders met a section of youths to enlist their support.
This elicited mixed reactions from traders and consumers of the stimulant.
Mr Abdinassir Abdi, a taxi operator, said: "The ban is long overdue. It is time the future of the youths is protected. Many people have become useless and lazy as a result of drugs. I support the resolutions."
Miraa is an addictive plant and has taken toll on the socio-economic life of the province.
Activities in the province come to a halt in the afternoons when majority of the residents partake the stimulant.
Women traders
Some women complain that the shrub has contributed to breakdown of family values. "Men have abandoned their family roles and spend most of their income on the drug," Mrs Rukia Ali regretted.
Ironically, most of the miraa traders in the district are women unlike other parts of the country where men dominate the business.
They can be spotted at the dusty roadsides, mostly past midnight, selling the stimulant under a lantern lamp. Here, the lantern is a sign of a miraa outlet.
A report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicates that miraa trade is slowly overtaking livestock as the economic mainstay in this region. The twigs managed a near 5 per cent GDP growth in 2006.
In a province where alcohol is not consumed on religious grounds, miraa chewing is a favourite pastime.
A vehicle arriving with the twigs always stirs the sleepy villages. Not even the sweltering heat can stop women and men from scrambling for the stimulant.
When the delivery of fails, villagers become edgy and gloomy.
Relevant Links
East Africa
Kenya
A first time visitor here will be surprised by the sudden pandemonium of hooting vehicles and shouting announcing the arrival of miraa.
The driver of the miraa vehicle is usually accorded respect .
In the afternoons, it is common for major towns in Northern Kenya to be deserted, save the stray livestock.
Locals remain behind closed doors to chew miraa for several hours. The cross-legged residents also puff cigarettes and sip tea.
The effect of the stimulant is evident as they engage in animated talk. The dens become the region's parliament.
But this routine could be redefined if the religious leaders' proposal to ban the miraa takes effect.
The Rest @ AllAFrica
"Miraa creates a social bond and keeps most of us away from crime and drug abuse," says Ahmeddin Nur. A group of young men high on the mild narcotic plant nod their heads in agreement.
But this is about to change if proposal to ban trade and use of miraa in the town becomes a reality.
In a recent workshop on Islam and health, more than 40 religious leaders backed the call to ban miraa in the district.
A potential showdown among traders, consumers and the leaders is looming. Miraa traders and lovers have vowed to demonstrate against the proposed move.
A farmer harvests miraa in Meru North. Muslim leaders want the sale and consumption of the crop banned in northern Kenya.
Although livestock is the chief source of income in the district, the twig provides an alternative for many families.
If the demonstrations go ahead, it will revive memories of similar confrontations in Somalia when residents rose against the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC.
In 2006, the Islamists banned khat and closed entertainment joints.
Street protests
These triggered street protests and the UIC, who had attracted goodwill for restoring order, found itself on a collision course with the people.
Three people were killed when UIC soldiers opened fire on the demonstrators.
Mama Zeinabu Abdi, a Garissa resident who has been in miraa business for the last five years, says it is the only source of income for her and other families.
"The business has made me educate my three children in secondary schools," she says at her miraa stall on Ngamia road. Mr Steven Mayak says he is supporting three school going children with the trade.
Religious leaders say they are not against the income generating trade per se.
"Miraa business has been used to aid trafficking and peddling of hardcore drugs like cocaine, heroin and bhang," the Garissa Supreme Council of Kenyan Muslims (Supkem) leader, Sheikh Hussein Mahat, said while reading the resolutions.
Spread of HIV
Mahat said the drugs adversely affect the community by promoting immorality, poor performance in education and the spread of HIV/Aids.
The leaders also want sale of alcohol, condoms and video showing banned.
The North Eastern Provincial Medical Officer of Health Dr Osman Warfa said drug abuse is a big factor in the spread of HIV.
"The HIV prevalence rate in the town shot from 1.6 per cent to 2.6 per cent last year," he told the workshop. It is as a result of this revelation that the leaders proposed the ban.
Two days later, religious leaders met a section of youths to enlist their support.
This elicited mixed reactions from traders and consumers of the stimulant.
Mr Abdinassir Abdi, a taxi operator, said: "The ban is long overdue. It is time the future of the youths is protected. Many people have become useless and lazy as a result of drugs. I support the resolutions."
Miraa is an addictive plant and has taken toll on the socio-economic life of the province.
Activities in the province come to a halt in the afternoons when majority of the residents partake the stimulant.
Women traders
Some women complain that the shrub has contributed to breakdown of family values. "Men have abandoned their family roles and spend most of their income on the drug," Mrs Rukia Ali regretted.
Ironically, most of the miraa traders in the district are women unlike other parts of the country where men dominate the business.
They can be spotted at the dusty roadsides, mostly past midnight, selling the stimulant under a lantern lamp. Here, the lantern is a sign of a miraa outlet.
A report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicates that miraa trade is slowly overtaking livestock as the economic mainstay in this region. The twigs managed a near 5 per cent GDP growth in 2006.
In a province where alcohol is not consumed on religious grounds, miraa chewing is a favourite pastime.
A vehicle arriving with the twigs always stirs the sleepy villages. Not even the sweltering heat can stop women and men from scrambling for the stimulant.
When the delivery of fails, villagers become edgy and gloomy.
Relevant Links
East Africa
Kenya
A first time visitor here will be surprised by the sudden pandemonium of hooting vehicles and shouting announcing the arrival of miraa.
The driver of the miraa vehicle is usually accorded respect .
In the afternoons, it is common for major towns in Northern Kenya to be deserted, save the stray livestock.
Locals remain behind closed doors to chew miraa for several hours. The cross-legged residents also puff cigarettes and sip tea.
The effect of the stimulant is evident as they engage in animated talk. The dens become the region's parliament.
But this routine could be redefined if the religious leaders' proposal to ban the miraa takes effect.
The Rest @ AllAFrica
Saturday, July 18, 2009
French Security Advisors to Be Tried by Shabaab Sharia
Two French security advisers seized in Somalia will be tried under Sharia law, an official from their captors, the Islamic al-Shabab militia, says.
The unnamed spokesman said they would be tried for spying and "conspiracy against Islam".
The two, who were training government troops, were kidnapped by gunmen in a Mogadishu hotel on Tuesday and later handed over to al-Shabab insurgents.
Al-Shabab and its allies control much of southern Somalia.
The al-Shabab official said no date had been set for the trial of the two men.
They were on an official mission to train the forces of the interim government, which has recently appealed for foreign help to tackle Islamist insurgents.
Moderate Islamist President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed was sworn in in January after UN-brokered peace talks.
He promised to introduce Sharia law but the hardliners accuse him of being a western stooge.
Somalia has not had a functioning national government since 1991.
Meeting al-Shabab Somali justice, Islamist-style
The Rest @ the BBC via Weasel Zippers
The unnamed spokesman said they would be tried for spying and "conspiracy against Islam".
The two, who were training government troops, were kidnapped by gunmen in a Mogadishu hotel on Tuesday and later handed over to al-Shabab insurgents.
Al-Shabab and its allies control much of southern Somalia.
The al-Shabab official said no date had been set for the trial of the two men.
They were on an official mission to train the forces of the interim government, which has recently appealed for foreign help to tackle Islamist insurgents.
Moderate Islamist President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed was sworn in in January after UN-brokered peace talks.
He promised to introduce Sharia law but the hardliners accuse him of being a western stooge.
Somalia has not had a functioning national government since 1991.
Meeting al-Shabab Somali justice, Islamist-style
The Rest @ the BBC via Weasel Zippers
Monday, July 06, 2009
Iran Sends Two Ships to be Near Somali Pirate Fighters
09-07-06 18:46:39
TEHRAN, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Iran has sent two more warships to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden to protect merchant vessels, Iran's English-language satellite channel Press TV reported Monday.
Iran's Deputy Naval Commander Gholam-Reza Khadem was quoted as saying on Monday that the dispatched warships were set to replace aging vessels and protect Iranian merchant containers and oil tankers from Somali pirates.
"Pirates have stepped up attacks on Iranian merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden, so we have decided to send two more warships to patrol the area and help keep everything under control," Khadem said.
He said Iran's decision to join the international fight against piracy in the key shipping-lanes off the coast of Somalia has been "rather positive."
The Rest @ China View (State owned MEdia)
TEHRAN, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Iran has sent two more warships to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden to protect merchant vessels, Iran's English-language satellite channel Press TV reported Monday.
Iran's Deputy Naval Commander Gholam-Reza Khadem was quoted as saying on Monday that the dispatched warships were set to replace aging vessels and protect Iranian merchant containers and oil tankers from Somali pirates.
"Pirates have stepped up attacks on Iranian merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden, so we have decided to send two more warships to patrol the area and help keep everything under control," Khadem said.
He said Iran's decision to join the international fight against piracy in the key shipping-lanes off the coast of Somalia has been "rather positive."
- In November last year, Somalian pirates hijacked a Hong Kong cargo ship loaded with 36,000 tons of wheat, which was chartered by an Iranian company, in the Gulf of Aden near the coast of Yemen.
- In December, an Iranian warship was sent to the Gulf of Aden in Somalia waters on a mission to protect Iranian ships and fight pirates.
- In late June, Iran's navy prevented an attempt to hijack an Iranian oil tanker by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, the official IRNA news agency reported.
- According to a report by the Public Relations Department of Iran's Navy Force, pirates in the Gulf of Aden had planned to hijack an Iranian oil tanker named "Hadi," but Iranian warship arrived in the scene on time to rescue it, IRNA said.
- Each year about 20,000 vessels pass through the Gulf of Aden, which links Indian Ocean with Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea.
Editor: Xiong Tong
The Rest @ China View (State owned MEdia)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
