Al Shabaab Shows Their Kidnap Victims

The four Kenyans abducted by Al-Shabaab on Wednesday have been displayed by the militants in a Somali town, local media has reported.

The militants paraded the four, among them a district officer, and a chief in the town of BardherBardere, Gedo region, about 380 km southwest of Mogadishu.

They also displayed a vehicle they took during the raid on an Administration Police camp in Gerille town, Wajir on the Kenya-Somalia border.


The Kenyans and the vehicles were displayed in different neighbourhoods in the town before being taken to a local square.

The militants also disconnected all communication equipment with the outside world, fearing that they may become victims of revenge air strikes.

More abductions

Media reports quoted the militants warning that they would continue to raid towns inside Kenyan territory and carry out killings and abductions.

This is in retaliation to the military operation by the Kenya Defence Forces inside Somalia. The Islamists invaded Gerille town and bombed the camp, reducing it to ashes.

Six persons, including two APs, were killed and three others were injured.


In a statement, Police Commissioner Mathew Iteere said about 100 heavily-armed bandits attacked Gerille Administration Police Post in Wajir South District at around 6.30pm.

The bandits stole firearms, ammunition and a car from the post. "The bandits also committed arson by burning several properties within the post," said the commissioner.

North Eastern deputy provincial commissioner Wenslas Ongayo said most of those killed and injured were shot while fleeing to safety.

"The locals were heading to the mosque and other centres for evening prayers while the registration officers were distributing IDs," said Mr Ongayo.

Al-Shabaab later claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to Kenya's decision to send troops into Somalia last October.

Kenya deployed a large force in southern Somalia in mid-October hot pursuit of Al-Shabaab militants whom it accused of endangering its security and economy.

Nairobi accused Al-Shabaab of kidnapping Western tourists and aid workers from Kenya.

The latest development comes at a time when Kenya and the African Union have submitted a request to the United Nations Security Council to allow KDF troops join the continental force combating Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Major powers at the council have backed the mission but urged caution.

The deployment of KDF personnel would bring the total number of AU troops fighting the militants to 17,731. - Nation Reporter and AFP.

The Rest @ AllAfrica

Al Shabaab Arrests Elders in Bardhere Town in Gedo

Bardhere — The Al-Qaeda inspired militants of Al-shabab have early morning on Thursday detained a number of prominent elders in Gedo province southern strongholds of Somalia, according to witnesses and residents.

• Local residents indicated that Al-shabab fighters seized several elders, including a well-known community chief from their houses in their strong held-Bardhere town in Gedo region, which is located close to Somalia's border with neighboring Kenya.
• Mahamud Arahay, one of the intellectuals in Somalia's southern Gedo region confirmed to Shabelle Media in Mogadishu by the telephone, that elders were arrested by Al-shabab militants, while they were departing to El-gadud village in the same region, he added the reason behind the arrests is unclear so far.
• "The imprisoned local elders are not absolutely involved the country's politics or link with one of power struggling sides, they are impartial peace lovers and this is a part of problems against civilians committed in by Al-shabab fighters." Mr.Arahay. 
• Al-shabab fighters have not yet commented about the arrests in Gedo region of Somalia.

The Rest by the Shabelle Media Network. @AllAfrica.com

Kenya's Soldiers in Somalia Facing Battle-Hardened al Shabaab, but Make progress

The number of casualties is on the rise as Kenya-backed Transitional Federal Government troops and al Shabaab militias battle for control of large swathes of lawless Somalia. The Garissa District Hospital has admitted 128 injured TFG solders since Operation Linda Nchi was launched in mid October.

Multiple sources confirmed the soldiers have, mainly, gunshot wounds and burns from explosives. “These people came to the hospital in very bad conditions from bullet wounds, burns and deep head cuts, injuries consistent with a situation of fierce gun fighting, use of explosives and other weapons between the TFG solders and the al Shabaab,” one of the sources said. Critically injured troops are flown to Mombasa or Nairobi for special care.

Because of the rising numbers, Kenya Army doctors have fashioned out a wing at the district hospital for the foreign soldiers injured in Somalia. The separate and isolated wing has been established to shield the men from public view because many in Garissa are not comfortable with the high security mounted at the hospital by the army in and outside the hospital. Over 54 TFG soldiers were injured during the deadly one-on-one fight on Monday while over 30 al Shabaab fighters were injured in the clash and taken to Mareray and Afmadhow hospitals for treatment.

According to the Kenyan military spokesman Emmanuel Chirchir, out of the 54 injured TFG soldiers, 25 were airlifted to Garissa for treatment. "The attack in Hayo in Central Sector marks the deadliest one on one engagement between TFG and Al Shabaab. In the TFG 11 died, 54 injured, 25 of those injured were airlifted to Garissa and Nairobi for treatment. Over 40 Al Shabaab dead and many more injured. The KDF on 5 December 2011 hit two al Shabaab camps in Afmadhow," Chirchir said on Monday.

Garissa District Hospital has been receiving most of the casualties from from both the Kenyan Defence Forces and the TFG soldiers from the fighting in Somalia against al Shabaab. The injured soldiers are being treated by doctors from the Kenyan military who have established centres and wards at the hospital which is reportedly overwhelmed by the injured. The Shabaab have deployed more fighters in Mogadishu following a spate of bomb explosions in central Mogadishu some of which have been claimed by the al Qaeda-linked group.

More al Shabaab fighters have been deployed in Mogadishu's Baklad area in the middle Shabelle and through Heliwaa in Banadir area while the fighting has been reported in Karan and Huriwa areas of the city. Several TFG soldiers were reportedly injured during an attack by al Shabaab in Mogadishu's Holwadag junction.

Meanwhile, the newly relaunched al Shabaab has now taken its battle to Twitter after opening an account to counter the Kenyan military. The insurgents yesterday began tweeting @HSMPRess where the Harakat Al Shabaab Al Mujahideen press office is now sending tweets. Maj Chirchir on Monday said the group is likely to split into two with one group, Imaarat Islamiya, led by one Muktar. "Al Shabaab likey to split into two ... watch out for Imaarat Islamiya ... Muktar likely to lead the faction," Chirchir tweeted then.

Recent tweets:

Al-Shabaab:@HSMPress: We hereby clarify that we do not recognize the United Nations, or any of its institutions and affiliates, as legitimate authorities

BY DOMINIC WABALA

The Rest @ Blog Foreign Policy

Ethiopias Support of Kenya's Offensive is a Mistake

Ethiopia seems to have moved back into to Somalia 's West to support Kenya's offensive. in the South.
This is a mistake, a failure to recognize the history between Ethiopia and Somalia.

Al Shabaab promptly held recruiting rally's in the areas they still hold, inviting the boys that remain to join the tradition of their ancestors and fight against the invading Ethiopians.This will give energy to a dying Al Shabaab. The Same effect could have been gained by moving many Ethiopian troops up to the border to prevent al Shabaab from escaping to the East,,,,,

-Shimron Issachar

***********************************

(Reuters) - Scores of Ethiopian military vehicles pushed at least 80 km into neighboring Somalia on Saturday, residents said, five weeks after Kenya entered Somalia to fight Islamist militants it blames for a wave of kidnappings on its soil.

"The Ethiopian troops, which are in convoys of armored vehicles, come to us today, crossing from Balanbale district on the border," Gabobe Adan, an elder in the town of Guriel told Reuters.

• "They were in about 28 trucks and armed battle wagons - the armed vehicles are very big."
• Other residents told Reuters that the Ethiopians had set up a base in Guriel and moved troops to other towns nearby.

A spokesman for the Ethiopian government, Shimeles Kemal, would neither confirm nor deny the reports. Another Ethiopian official told Reuters that an Ethiopian move to support the Kenyan assault on the al Shabaab group was likely.

Senior Kenyan government ministers have shuttled around the east Africa region this week and travelled to the Gulf to drum up political and financial support for a coordinated campaign to rout the al Qaeda-linked rebels.

Although Ethiopian troops regularly cross the border with Somalia, and it has admitted opening "humanitarian corridors" into the country that it says are for food relief, residents said the numbers and locations of the troops was unusual.

Ethiopia entered Somalia in 2006, with tacit U.S. backing, to oust another Islamist movement that had taken control of the capital Mogadishu and large swathes of the country.

Its army set up a base in Guriel during that operation.

The presence of the Ethiopian troops was hugely unpopular with Somalis, and with some analysts saying it was fanning support for new militant groups, they withdrew in early 2009.

(Writing by Barry Malone; Additional reporting by Aaron Maasho in Addis Ababa and Sahra Abdi in Nairobi)

The Rest @ Reuters

UN to Take Action as Eritrea and Others Still Trafficking Arms to al Shabaab

The troops backed by TFG soldiers have now secured the towns of Qoqani, Tabda and Afmadow in Somalia.No casualties were reported on the Kenyan side and the port of Kismayu on Somalia’s coastline is the next clear target as terrorist group.
Kenya has accused Eritrea of being behind three planeloads of weapons delivered last month to Al Shabaab at Baidoa airport.
On Tuesday, President Kibaki welcomed the support Kenya has obtained from both its citizens and governments in the operation against the militants who seek to destabilise the region’s economies.

While opening the Regional Infrastructure Conference at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kibaki said: "As we embark on planning our infrastructure programmes, I wish to underscore the importance of peace and stability in our region."
Meanwhile, a police Toyota Land Cruiser escorting aid agency vehicles headed back to the UN complex in Dadaab reportedly hit a landmine on Tuesday along the road to Hagdera refugee camp, injuring two people.
North Eastern PPO Leo Nyongesa confirmed the incident. Last night President Kibaki worked late at his Harambee House offices discussing internal security matters with top departmental officials.
In July, the UN Somalia-Eritrea Sanctions Monitoring Group cited what it called "credible information received from multiple sources" that said aircraft carrying arms, ammunition, equipment, militia commanders and wounded fighters on behalf of Al Shabaab landed in Baidoa, Baledogley and Kismayu from Eritrea.
The UN Group is already preparing a list of individuals and States targeted for sanctions.
In addition to Eritrean officials, the list is expected to include Mr Abdirahman Abdi "Salawat"; a Somali national who the UN says illegally obtained Kenyan identity cards and passports. It gives the numbers for Salawat’s Kenyan passports as A739601 and A183790 under the alias "Abdi Warsame Dirie".

He is accused of actively smuggling Somali emigrants to Europe since 2004, and acting as broker for Somalis who encounter "immigration difficulties in Kenya".

Illegal immigrants

Also named is Salawat’s alleged associate, a Mr Abdullahi Abdinur Mohamed ‘Topolino’ who it says held "a Sh350,000 a month lease agreement for a property on 10th Street, Eastleigh. This property, which subsequently came to be known as Top Ten Hotel (now called Gaman Hotel)."

The two are accused of facilitating the provision of forged Kenyan identity cards and passports to illegal Somali emigrants.

Eritrea has dismissed the claims against it as a "fabrication" and a ploy by its bitter rival Ethiopia to undermine its international standing.

But the Monitoring Group says it has evidence of Eritrea violating various Security Council resolutions. They include resolution 1844 of 2008 and1907 of 2009.

It says "the Government of Eritrea conceived, planned, organised and directed a failed plot to disrupt the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa by bombing civilian and governmental targets."
The UN also says Eritrea’s intelligence apparatus, which spearheaded the AU bombing plot, is also active in Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Uganda, making it a threat to those countries.

Sources for the UN include Eritrean military, intelligence and diplomatic officials who it says "retain active contacts within the Government of Eritrea and PFDJ, and in some cases were able to obtain information from serving Eritrean officials."

The UN Monitoring Group report says Al Shabaab in the past benefited from the fact that "the Transitional Federal Government security forces and their local allies continue to be little more than clan-based militias with loyalties to individual commanders and that look to Amisom rather than to the Government for leadership and support".

\Also targeted for sanctions are heads of indigenous networks engaged in recruitment, radicalisation and resource mobilisation on behalf of Al Shabaab in Kenya. It mentions the Muslim Youth Centre "commonly known as Pumwani Muslim Youth", which it accuses of actively recruiting for the insurgents.
The centre has since denied the allegations that it facilitated travel to Somalia for Kenyan youth recruited to train and fight for Al Shabaab.

The group also names several hotels in Nairobi as "safe houses" for illegal Somali emigrants with links to Salawat.

Best equipped

Reports also quote the African Union’s Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra as saying the entry into the conflict by the Kenya Defence Forces – arguably the best equipped and most disciplined military force in the region – offers the best chance yet in years of cutting of supply lines to Al Shabaab.
KDF has already cut off a key revenue stream of the insurgents by blocking smuggling routes for charcoal, electronics, and clothing across the Kenya-Somali border.

The Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea estimates that by July, Al Shabaab was generating between $70 million to $100 million per year in revenue from extortion and taxing traders in areas under its control.

"You see Al Shabaab is under pressure because Kenya is taking advantage of assets, helicopters, aircraft, and navy vessels. So clearly today, we have even the possibility to implement a no-fly zone, thanks to Kenya’s assets. So it is different," he said.

Six East African countries involved in fighting the insurgents have also appealed for more international support to assist the African Union Mission in Somalia, following a meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Monday.
The meeting heard that Al Shabaab is in disarray following its ouster from 98 per cent of the capital Mogadishu, and the ongoing joint offensive by the Kenya Defence Forces and soldiers of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG).

The pledge to pursue sanctions against the insurgents and their allies came from the UN special envoy for Somalia, Augustine Mahiga, who said a UN Security Council-appointed monitoring group will recommend broad sanctions against Al Shabaab and its allies that include freezing their assets as well as ban on travel and import of weapons.

The meeting involved the defence chiefs of Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia, and Burundi met at African Union headquarters.

Other sources quote UN Chief of Field Operations, Susana Malcorra who is in the region to assess conditions, as saying closer co-operation among countries that oppose Al Shabaab will be necessary to ensure defeat of the insurgents and restoration of peace in Somalia.

By Collins Kweyu in Tabda

The Rest @ The Standard (Kenya)

A Oil Export Base in Kismayo?

 It is the middle of the night in Eastleigh, a district of Nairobi mainly occupied by the Somali community. Jamal Sharif has not slept for 48 hours, steadily chewing miraa stems, which contain a mild amphetamine that dispels fatigue and makes people talkative.

Sharif is terrified the rest of Kenya might "attack and kill" Somali residents, and even those of Somali extraction. Operation Linda Nchi (Protect the Nation), which Kenya launched in mid-October, is already yielding poisonous fruit.

The army sent about 2,000 men across the border into Somalia to combat Islamist al-Shabaab insurgents who control much of the south. Al-Shabaab has promised to respond with attacks inside Kenya, endangering the Somali community, particularly in poor areas where lynching is commonplace. There have been a number of attacks.

There is more to operation Linda Nchi than just an incursion by a powerful neighbour. Until now Kenya has supported the Somali transitional federal government, which is backed by Ugandan and Burundian troops belonging to the African Mission in Somalia (Amison), and the US, without becoming directly involved.

Under rules set by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, formed by Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda, no other country is empowered to launch a military intervention in Somalia.

Several sources agree, however, that the Kenyan intervention plan was discussed and decided in 2010, then finalised with input from western partners, including the US and to a lesser extent France. Nairobi seems to have seized on kidnappings of foreign nationals by Somali groups on Kenyan territory as an excuse to launch an operation ready and waiting.

The final decision, taken precipitously, apparently surprised allies of Kenya, such as Ethiopia, which also has plans to intervene in Somalia. It is thought that both countries want to carve out zones of influence. Nairobi plans to set up a semi-autonomous region, Jubaland. A puppet government would be used to control resources and facilities, starting with Kismayo, a port used by smuggling networks with Kenyan links, according to a UN report published in July.

If the Kenyan army took control of Kismayo and established a satellite region in Jubaland, who would run it? The former Somali defence minister, a French-educated anthropologist, Mohamed Abdi Mohamed, seemed a good choice. In April he formed the Azania group, made up of Somali soldiers belonging to the Ogaden clan and trained by Nairobi at Isiolo in Kenya.

• But plans for Azania have been cut down. Equipped by Nairobi with arms supplied by China, as revealed by WikiLeaks cables, Azania's 3,000-strong force did not live up to expectations in the field.
• Ethiopia also objected to an Ogadeni principality being established on its doorstep: Addis Ababa is already combating a rebellion led by the Ogaden National Liberation Front, which finds recruits among this clan. 
• So the task of governing Kismayo will be allotted to other influential clans, primarily the Marehan, and the most powerful armed groups in the region, in particular the Ras Kamboni militia, former Islamist combatants who have been "turned round" to fight al-Shabaab.

However, if Kenya does capture Kismayo, another solution is now being considered. Amisom forces from Mogadishu could be deployed there, at which juncture Kenyan troops could join the ranks of the African Union force. This would also pave the way for a major infrastructure project in the region. Lamu, Kenya's traditional port, mainly used for luxury tourism until now, would be converted into an oil terminal, providing an outlet for the as yet unexploited oilfields of southern Sudan and northern Kenya. Radiating out from Lamu, a rail and road network would connect Ethiopia and Sudan to the Indian Ocean.

This scheme, which is still under study, would be supported by almost $10bn in Chinese investments. But it is obviously not compatible with a zone of insecurity maintained by al-Shabaab.

However, the advance by the Kenyan military is not going as well as hoped: it rained steadily for the first fortnight of the intervention and heavy vehicles were bogged down.

The Rest @ the Guardian
This article was originally published in Le Monde

Al Sabaab Weapons Review

Look closely at these weapons

Al Shabaab Withdraws from Mogadishu Somalia

MOGADISHU – In a new development in the burning horn of Africa nation, al-Shabaab Islamist group pulled out on Saturday, August 6, outside the Somali capital of Mogadishu for the first time in the recent months.

"The Somali government welcomes the success attained by the Somali government forces backed by AMISOM (peacekeepers) who defeated the enemy of al-Shabaab," President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed told a press conference, BBC reported.

Somalia has sunk into abyss over the deadly fighting between government troops and militants of Al-Qaeda-inspired Al-Shabab militants.

Over the past months, African Union peacekeepers and government forces have been contained to small areas of the capital.

The Rest @ Islam Online

Recently they have been battling the rebels in a bid to secure delivery routes for emergency supplies of food, water and medication.

Affected by war waged by al-Shabaab Islamists against transitional federal government and draught, more than 100,000 Somalis have fled from the lack of rain in their country to shelter in Dadaab refugee camp.

Government spokesman Abdirahman Omar Osman told Reuters the rebel pullout from Mogadishu was a "golden day" for Somalia.

"For the last (four) years Mogadishu has experienced atrocities at the hands of terrorists," Osman said.

“But today they are out.”

Somalia has lacked an effective government since the ouster of former president Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

More than 14 attempts to restore a functional government have since failed.

The UN agency says that the fighting has displaced over 23,000 people from the city over the past few weeks alone.

About 200,000 civilians are believed to have fled the continuing violence in Mogadishu thus far this year, the UN affirms.

Military Tactics

The Qaeda-inspired group denied withdrawing from Mogadishu, describing the move as a "change of military tactics".

"We have abandoned Mogadishu but we remain in other towns," Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage, al-Shabaab spokesman said on the al-Shabaab-run Andalus radio station, Reuters reported on Saturday.

Al Shabaab has never previously entirely abandoned Mogadishu during the course of a four-year insurgency that has killed tens of thousands of people.

Rage added that their troops would hold their positions elsewhere.

"We aren't leaving you, but we have changed our tactics," Rage said.

“Every one of you will feel the change in every corner and every street in Mogadishu. We will defend you and continue the fighting.”

Analysts believe it is too early to predict a better, calmer future for the war-torn capital.

“It seems very premature to be putting this down as a victory seeing that al-Shabab have vowed to fight on in Mogadishu but with different tactics,” Will Ross, BBC’s East Africa correspondent, wrote on the BBC.

“They say they are going to switch to guerrilla tactics, so we could now see more suicide bombings, more grenade attacks and perhaps the use of more landmines.”

“These kind of triumphant noises were made at the end of 2006 when the Islamists withdrew, only f

A Call to al Shabaab for Peace

Thursday, July 14, 2011

It is said “all wars are evil;” even a just one, albeit necessary. “A son dies, and not born of war,” said also our Somali ancestors.

Today, in Somalia, people are facing the worst humanitarian drought disaster in 60 years.

• In the last 100 days, 200,000 Somalis fled to neighboring countries in search of food.
• This catastrophe is just unfolding.
• Thousands of Somalis have perished so far, and Millions more are most assuredly at grave-risk of starving to death.

With no effective government to respond, and a raging war, this looming cataclysm could not have happen to our people at a worst time.

While it is beyond human capability to prevent natural disasters, it is Man who always must prepare for and alleviate such disasters. Drought and a resulting famine are not new in the Horn of Africa. This has happened to us Somalis before, and not just to us but to the whole region, as it is happening now.

Most of us are old enough to remember about the not so long ago of early 70s drought, where our government then successfully evacuated drought-victims on planes and resettled them. We are not so lucky this time, and it should make us cringe about the potential cost to Somali lives in the offing with this just beginning tragedy.

It is this disaster in progress, more than any other reason, which impeaches the persistent war by Harakat Al-Shabaab Al-Mujahidin. It begs the question, “Al-Shabaab: For whom and what do you keep fighting?

• What benefit of your war, if it only brings death and misery to your own people?
• To carry on a war in the name of Islam, in a Muslim country, where the primary victims are the most vulnerable innocents is beyond basic human character.
• It certainly is not Islamic!

It is simply not enough, though much welcomed, that you the leaders of Al-Shabaab have allowed International Aid Agencies into areas under your control. Nor is it acceptable for you to see this human tragedy as a bonanza for public relations.

The stakes for innocent Somalis are much higher than Sheikh Dahir Aways and other Al-Shabaab leaders visiting drought victims in camps inside Somalia and distributing some aid. The people need, more than ever, a total cessation of the conflict.

What use of this war?

• Al-Shabaab, your so-called holy war, of which you so proudly claim to be martyrs of (Al-Mujahidin), is only destroying your country.
• It is killing, by bullet, famine or shear neglect, Somali babies and mothers.

Why [is] seeking peace-terms with your own follow Somalis, to save the people, so unacceptable to you?

Surely, it was more than acceptable for the last messenger of Allah, Muhammad (SAW), who left no stone unturned in search of peace with his pagan persecutors—his own people nevertheless!

Because of the pending devastation of famine, the people of Somalia are crying out for an end to their long suffering.

And, if you Al-Shabaab leaders are listening with your hearts (if they are not turned into stone completely), you will immediately confess of a willingness to an urgent and all-enveloping ceasefire followed by peace negotiations.

Take your terms for peace and put it on a negotiating table.

On your policy to-date, as the only organization, which sees “war” as a strategic option in Somalia, only you Al-Shabaab can end the war peacefully. Others can end your war by war.

There could be peace within Somalia in days, only if you are willing. It is up to you, for no other insists on war in Somalia—not the so-called government or Ahlu-Sunna! For the people, why not at least explore peace?

• By the way, the fastest way to remove foreign troops from Somalia (in case that is the only reason for continuing fighting) is for the Somalis to stop fighting each other!

Abdul-Aziz Mohammed

Amohammed4@insight.rr.com

The Rest @ Garoweonline

Abdiweli Mohamed Ali Named Somali Prime Minister

Somalia's Transitional Federal Government has named a Somali-American Economist as the next Prime Minister.

President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has chosen Abdiweli Mohamed Ali to replace Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed as prime minister. Ali has been serving as acting prime minister since the resignation of Mohamed on Sunday.

Speaking in Mogadishu, President Ahmed called Ali a good man and said he hoped he would improve the situation in Somalia.

A spokesman for the government, Abdifatah Abdinur, told VOA that Ali was chosen for his experience in the government and his extensive qualifications. “He is a very charismatic leader. He is one of the best educated men that we have in our country. He is experienced in the whole situation in Somalia and he was also playing a big role for the last administration. He is exactly what the country needs," he said.

Ali served as Minister for Planning and International Cooperation and as Deputy Prime Minister.

Ali, like his predecessor, is an American citizen who earned a living teaching in the Buffalo, New York area before returning to Somalia. He was a professor of economics at Niagara University, holds a masters degree from Harvard University and earned his doctorate in Economics from George Mason University.

Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed was forced out of the office by a deal struck in Kampala between President Ahmed and Speaker of Parliament Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden.

Ahmed and Aden had been engaged in a power-struggle over the future of the Somalia government. The TFG’s mandate was originally set to expire in August of this year, but the two agreed on a one-year extension on the mandates of both Parliament and the Federal Institutions in order to move the Somali government out of its transitional phase.

Mohamed’s resignation was reportedly a key demand made by the speaker, who was often at odds with the former prime minister during his seven-month tenure.

The deal provoked riots and demonstrations throughout southern Somalia, with many citizens angry over Mohamed’s ouster. While initially unwilling to resign, the popular prime minister eventually capitulated to pressure from the president and speaker and stepped down Sunday.

Mohamed was seen by average Somalis as a serious reformer who regularized pay for soldiers and civil servants and reopened schools within the war-torn capital, Mogadishu. But some observers believe he provoked the ire of Speaker Aden by failing to involve him in the formation of the Somali Cabinet.

Internationally, Mohamed received praise for abandoning the traditional clan-balancing formula and building a small, technocrat-heavy team.

A statement released by the Somali government said the new prime minister was “expected to consult with members of parliament and clan elders” as he forms his own Cabinet in the coming weeks.

Related Articles

• 

  Somali Prime Minister Resigns, Reversing Pledge to Stay

  Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed’s unexpected about-face comes days after an outpouring of support by Somalis opposed to his departure

• Somali PM Defies Kampala Accord, Refuses to Step Down

The Rest @ VOA

Al Shabaab to Punish 15 Women for "Public Expression of Joy"

Afgoye Somalia (Alshahid) -Somalia militants loyal to al-Shabaab, have seized some15 women accused of ululating at a wedding in the country’s town of Afgoye.

The women who were expressing joy were held in Afgoye district in Lower Shabelle region, some 30 kilometres south of Mogadishu by the radical Islamist group, alshabaab, which is strongly opposing to the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia.

Residents said that the women were taken to a detention centre in the district headquarter and have been charged with public expression of joy, which the fanatical Islamists prohibited.

Ululation is very popular among Somali women, especially among women in the southern and central regions who combine with songs and dances locally known as baraanbur to grace weddings and other celebrations.

Al-Shabaab also apprehended on Monday 10 youth in the so-called Afgoye-Mogadishu corridor, southwest of the Somali capital, where most of those who fled the war in Mogadishu found shelter.

The youngsters were accused of playing football, which the Islamists prohibited in May.

On 21st of May, an order from al-Shabaab office in Afgoye town ordered the youth to stop playing or watching football. Instead, they were instructed to attend the prayers at mosques and the religious sessions adapted to raise public consciousness on jihad (holy war).

If sentenced, residents in the district assume that the women and the boys may get fine, jail sentences or public disciplining like flogging.

The militants consider many social expressions like games, music and folk dances as incompatible with Islam. As a result, Radios and TVs in the al-Shabaab controlled areas have been banned from playing music and other lyrics since April 2009.

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.

The Rest @ Reuters

Shabaab Threat Continues in Uganda

By Elias Biryabarema

KAMPALA, May 27 (Reuters) - Uganda police warned soccer fans on Friday that Somalia's al Shabaab insurgents could attack them while they watch Saturday's Champions League final.

Abbas Byakagaba, the director of the police anti terrorism unit, told a news conference that the al Qaeda-affiliated insurgents could also strike on June 3, the Matyrs' Day public holiday and that they had boosted security in the country.

Al Shabaab, which has waged an insurgency against Somalia's Western-backed government, claimed responsibility for the bombings in Kampala while fans watched last year's World Cup final on television, killing 79.

The Somali insurgents have in the past issued warnings of possible strikes the east African country to try to force it to withdraw its peacekeeping troops deployed in Somalia, as part of an African Union mission (AMISOM).

"We have several events coming up: we have European Champions League finals, there's the Martyrs Day and the information we have is that al Shabaab is targeting these events," Byakagaba said, referring to the match at London's Wembley stadium between Manchester United and Barcelona.

Byakagaba said they had intelligence indicating that an unspecified number of al Shaabaab operatives had entered the country and were planning to launch attacks on crowded areas and big events, adding: "We have heightened our vigilance."

Earlier this week Uganda's opposition dismissed as scaremongering a police warning that al Shabaab was planning to assassinate their leaders and said it was a ploy to scare them off protests against food and fuel riots.

Al Shabaab has criticised Ugandans for re-electing President Yoweri Museveni, who they blame for invading their country.

AMISOM -- which also comprises soldiers from Burundi -- says its forces now control more than 60 percent of Mogadishu. Horn of Africa experts say they are all that prevent the insurgents from toppling an administration plagued by rifts and corruption. (by Elias Biryabarema, )Editing by George Obulutsa)

The Rest @ Alert Net (Reuters)

Internet Out in al: Bakara Market, Mogadishu Somalia

Nairobi — Telecommunications companies based in Somalia's largest open-air market have been hit by stray shells in the latest round of fighting, leading to internet failure in the past four days.

"Our internet service has been down since 24 May," a senior official of an internet service provider, who requested anonymity, told IRIN on 26 May.

The official said many people's livelihoods depend on internet use; "for many businesses and journalists, the internet is their lifeline".

He said his company was trying to revive the service. "We depend on the telecoms companies and when they get hit we are also hit."

A local radio journalist told IRIN he was unable to send his reports to his station based outside the country. "It is very frustrating."

The three major telecommunications companies, Nationlink, Hormood and Olympic, have their most important equipment at Bakara market, which has been a flashpoint in the fighting between insurgents and government troops backed by African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeepers in the past two weeks.

"When we were setting up, in the 1990s, Bakara market was the safest place but now it is the most dangerous," another official of a telecommunications company said.

The official told IRIN the headquarters of Hormood - the largest telecommunications firm in the country - in Bakara had been repeatedly hit by shells, killing and injuring staff and destroying equipment.

"It is not easy for us to move the equipment we have here, so we are caught in the middle of a war zone," the official said.

In the past eight days, government and AMISOM troops have intensified an offensive to dislodge Al-Shabab insurgents who control Bakara market and parts of the city.

AMISOM spokesman Maj Paddy Ankunda told IRIN on 27 May that the mission was urging civilians not to expose themselves to crossfire.

"We have secured the road nearest Bakara as well as the southern and western edges of the market; I cannot put a time tag on how long the fighting will go on but we are urging civilians to get out of entanglement [in the fighting] as they will become increasingly vulnerable," Ankunda said.

"About 80 percent of civilians [in Al-Shabab-held areas] have left for areas controlled by the government because of insecurity; if Al-Shabab chooses to continue fighting, they will bear the responsibility for the damage caused to Bakara market," Ankunda said

Al Shabaab Taxing Afgoye

May 15, 2011

al Shabaab taxing business people in Afgoye, L0wer Shabelle

****************

Afgoye — Al shabaab, which is in fighting in several frontlines in Mogadishu, southern and central Somalia, on Saturday, imposed strict financial orders on the businessmen in Afgoye town in Lower Shabelle region in south of the country.

Witnesses said that the officials of the group held a meeting local traders discussing to support their battles against Somali government and AMISOM forces.

After the meeting, the traders of small business stalls were ordered to pay amounts ranging between 20 and 40 $.

The officials of Al shabaab also ordered the businessmen with big stories and big businesses to pay 200 or 100 $.

Also, the IDPs, who live in the former government building in Afgoye town, about 30 km southwest of Mogadishu, have to give 10 up to 20 US $.

The Rest @ All Africa

Al Shabaab Enforces Teaching Radical Jihad in Somali Schools

MOGADISHU (Sunatimes)- Somalia’s extremist group of Alshabab has
ordered public schools to include Jihad subject to the school
curriculum, one of the latest pressing hardship being faced by the
war-weary Somalis.

Sheikh Ali Mohamed Hussein, an Al shabaab Mogadishu mayor has told the
reporters the move is aimed at training young students about the
“importance” of their Jihad version which Somali religious leaders
described as ‘interests follow-up’ not Jihad.

“ People are wanted to take part in the Jihad against the apostate
government and the Christian AMISOM. All schools are supposed to take
these news orders” he said.

Somalia’s ineffective government is busy with clashing itself and
sitting few blocks in Mogadishu as the world community finances their
futile moves. The government was supposed to crash the Al-Qaeda linked
militants beheading people and committing prosecutions in Somalia, but
instead its officials are filling their pockets with corrupt money.

Hundreds of Somalis are dying for hunger as the result of droughts hit
the country at the eyes of Somali government.

The horn of Africa nation has been without central government
since1991 after clan militias and warlords overthrown the dictator
regime of Siad Barre that lastly leashed out to constant violence for
more than 20 years.

The Rest @ Suna Times

President Obama Signs Executive Order to Continue Somali "Situation"

WASHINGTON, April 8 (UPI) -- Piracy and persistent violence in Somalia requires an extension of a national emergency as it pertains to U.S. interests, the White House said.

The transitional government in Somalia is struggling to expand its control beyond a small portion of Mogadishu as it battles against al-Qaida fighters in al-Shabaab bent on establishing an Islamic state.O

U.S. President Barack Obama issued an executive order describing an "unusual and extraordinary" threat to U.S. national and foreign policy interests.

Obama said there was a deteriorating security situation in Somalia complicated by acts of piracy off the Somali coast.

"Because the situation with respect to Somalia continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, the national emergency declared on April 12, 2010, and the measures adopted on that date to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond April 12, 2011," the presidential statement read.

Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for a February suicide attack at a police station that killed 10 people, including civilians and high-ranking police officials.

Four Americans were killed that month off the coast of Somalia after gunfire erupted during an attempt by the U.S. Navy to broker their release

The European Union, meanwhile, agreed recently to support the African Union mission in Somalia with around $92.5 million to help its work in the war-torn country.

Somalia hasn't had a functioning government since 1991.

The Rest @ UPI

New Somali State of Azania Declared

Somalia creates new state, Azania

MALKHADIR M. MUHUMED

Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya

Somali politicians on Sunday announced the creation of a new state in the battle-scarred nation, a move condemned by Somalia's fragile government, which said it could further fracture the already chaotic Horn of Africa country.

The creation of Azania was celebrated Sunday in a colorful ceremony in Kenya's capital. Its creation brings the total number of new states to more than 10.

Kenya supports the new administration as it creates a buffer zone near its border with Somalia.

Azania President Mohamed Abdi Gandhi said his first duty is to retake his territory from al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab.

"Our aim of establishing this administration is to first liberate these regions," he said. "We are not breaking away from Somalia."

Much of Somalia's southern and central regions, including large swaths of the capital of Mogadishu, are controlled by al-Shabab.

But Somali Information Minister Abdulkareem Jama said the new states are a bad idea.

"Taking that path is a disaster," he said. "The idea that every region and every group of people has to form their own government without the consultation of the national government will only create more differences among communities and encourage Somalis not to come together."

Somalia's interim charter allows for new states. The idea is appealing to many, who still bear hatred toward the country's last centralized government, which failed to accommodate many residents outside the capital. Somalia has been mired in chaos since the fall of that government in 1991.

In 1991, inhabitants of northern Somalia formed their own administration called Somaliland. The region is independent from Mogadishu but does not have international recognition.

In 1998, residents of the northeast followed suit by creating the semiautonomous region of Puntland.

"The whole process is being driven by local people who just said 'let's try at different options that are responsive to our local needs,'" said Rashid Abdi, a Somali expert at the International Crisis Group.

Many say the rush to form these states may create conflicts among communities because of the lack of demarcated borders. The national government can do little, as it can barely control a few blocks of the capital, where it is busy battling Islamist militants.

"The biggest danger of this trend is that in a few contested areas the declaration of regional administrations could trigger armed clashes between clans or other social groups," said Ken Menkhaus, a Somali expert at North Carolina's Davidson College.

By law, the government is required to promote and develop state governments to ensure that the process of federalism takes place within two and a half years.

"The government has failed those people who are establishing new administrations," said Asha Gele, Puntland's minister for women and family affairs, and one of the founders of the administration. "If the government gave them directions they would not have acted by themselves. What is missing is the government's role."

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Al Shabaab May be Sending Reenforcement from Kismayo to fight for the Kenya border cities

• 200 new al shabaab recruits possibly being moved from Kismayo in anticipation of attack
• 150 had been sent to Dhobley from Middle Juba

Somalia's Transitional Federal Government is preparing a new assault to seize more towns in regions bordering Kenya, while militant Islamist group al-Shabaab is sending hundreds of new recruits from its Kismayo stronghold to stop the rot, sources told Somalia Report.

The TFG's Kenyan-trained forces and local militia have been gaining ground along the border with Kenya, most recently seizing Dhobley in Lower Juba region. Locals say that Kenyan tanks and helicopters have backed TFG forces and the Raskamboni militia in fierce fighting that has left more than 20 al-Shabaab fighters dead and dozens wounded, including a senior commander.

A delegation of ministers, including deputy minister of defense Abdirashid Mohamed Hidig, this week paid the first visit in years to Gedo and Lower Juba regions, in a move seen as motivating troops and showing the gains made in recent months. One of the delegation, who did not wish to be named, said the plan now was to tighten the government's grip on the region.

"The government will take over Afmadow, Qoqani and Tabto in Lower Juba, and Bardera, Garbahare and Burduba in Gedo," he told Somalia Report. "That is our next plan, because it will be difficult for us to hold the towns we have taken if we do not spread our control."

"The offensive has bases and targets which I am not going to outline, but we are on the move to liberate the whole region," he added.

However, a local journalist in the port town of Kismayo, whose wanted to remain anonymous for security reasons, said that al-Shabaab is sending out forces from its stronghold to halt the advance. Kismayo, in Lower Juba, around 110 km from Afmadow, is a key town for the insurgents, as it provides as vital sea supply route.

The journalist said he knew of 200 new recruits that were being moved from Kismayo, while 150 had been sent to Dhobley from Middle Juba.

Rumours have been circulating in African Union peacekeeping circles that the TFG is aiming to take Kismayo, relying on the offensive in the border regions to draw off forces and make the crucial town easier to take.

Mohamed Mohamed, one of the TFG's Kenya-trained forces, said that other factors could slow up the advance, particularly an increasing al-Shabaab reliance on landmines as it loses ground.

"There are fears of landmines and the current drought is causing a problem ... but were are ready to start taking new areas," he said.

The Rest @ Somalia Report

Defeated Al Shabaab May Be Crossing Into Kenya

Somalia's al Shabaab rebels are on the verge of being defeated after a four-year insurgency and could be driven out of the capital Mogadishu, the country's president said.

Troops backed by pro-government militia took two towns from the Islamist group, which claims ties to al Qaeda, in fighting on Monday, said President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, clad in the military uniform he has worn since the government launched its offensive.

Battles have raged across central and southern Somalia in recent weeks as Somali troops backed by the moderate Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca militia struggle to reclaim territory from al Shabaab. "Al Shabaab is on the verge of collapse," the president told reporters.

"We shall also sweep them from Mogadishu. Our enemies have suffered a great loss, it is obvious they will run away from many towns."Residents said al Shabaab had deserted more towns after it was rumoured the Ethiopian and Somali troops had advanced further. Ahmed said on Saturday his fighters were receiving logistical help from Ethiopian troops.

• Kenyan police said suspected al Shabaab rebels had entered Kenya and warned the public to be on alert and provide any information to aid in arresting them.
• The rebels who crossed the border were fleeing the fighting in Somalia, Kenyan authorities said.
• They are concerned because the Islamists have threatened to strike at Kenya to punish the east African country for training hundreds of new recruits to bolster Somali troop numbers.
• Kenya has been twice hit by al Qaeda. The militants have waged an insurgency against the largely ineffective UN-backed government and control large chunks of southern and central Somalia.
• Counter-terrorism experts say the lawless nation is a haven for foreign jihadists. In the past few weeks, Somali forces have clawed back parts of Mogadishu and now control 70% of the city, the government says.
  

Government soldiers captured Luq, 80 km (50 miles) from the Ethiopian border, and Elwaq, a frontier town close to Kenya after taking Beledhawo over the weekend. "We have taken Luq town after a brief fight. Al Shabaab has fled," Abdi Fatah Mohamed Gesey, former governor for Bay region, told Reuters by telephone from the agricultural town.

The Rest @ Reuters

"We will not stop our operations against al Shabaab. The residents have warmly welcomed us and our next stop will be Baidoa." Sustained clashes over the past week have focused on the capital and Somalia's southern border with Kenya. Government troops and African Union peacekeepers say they have inflicted heavy losses on al Shabaab militants in Mogadishu, but have also sustained some casualties.

"Our troops have captured Elwaq, nine km from the Kenyan border, peacefully," Colonel Mahamud Ali Shire told Reuters by telephone. "They run away from the town. We are now headed for Garbaharey, we have heard their last convoy has left for Bardhere to keep their foreign fighters safe, but we will not for a minute stop our fight against them." (Reuters)