Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys Still alive

Somalia's hard-line Islamist opposition leader, Hassan Dahir Aweys, appeared before the media in the Somali capital to dispel rumors that he was gravely wounded last week during a battle in central Somalia. The Islamist cleric showed no visible signs of injury as he walked into a room full of journalists, opposition supporters, and curious residents.

Flanked by several armed bodyguards with their faces hidden behind scarves, Hassan Dahir Aweys told reporters he was "healthy and fit," mocking claims by a rival religious, pro-government group called Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a that Aweys was shot and possibly killed during last Friday's battle for control of Wabho town in the central Galgadud region.

Aweys says the fighting will continue in Somalia until Islamic law is implemented throughout the country and the African Union withdraws its 4,300 peacekeeping troops from Mogadishu.

Aweys made the same statement in April, when he returned to Mogadishu from exile and vowed to lead a bloody campaign against Somalia's weak, five month-old government of his former ally, moderate Islamist leader Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed.Aweys, who is on the U.S. and U.N. lists of suspected terrorists, was recently named the new leader of a coalition of militant anti-government groups called Hisbul Islam.

Hisbul Islam is in an uneasy alliance with Somalia's al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group to drive out A.U. peacekeepers and to oust President Sharif's U.N.-supported government from power.The government has ruled out ordering peacekeepers to leave Somalia.

But the Somali parliament recently agreed to install Islamic law in the country. The insurgents have not been appeased, insisting the law passed by parliament is not the version they want implemented.

Early last month, Hisbul Islam and al-Shabab attempted to take control of key areas in Mogadishu under the control of the government. But they failed, largely because of the presence of African Union troops. Since then, near daily fighting and violence in the capital has forced almost 100,000 people to flee their homes.

The separate fighting in central Somalia pits Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a against al-Shabab and Hisbul Islam. Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a is an established religious brotherhood of Sufi Muslims, which took up arms several months ago to defend against religious attacks by al-Shabab.

Al-Shabab members adhere to the Salafist-Wahabbist version of Islam and consider Sufism to be heretical.Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a and al-Shabab have clashed numerous times in central Somalia in recent months.

But sectarian tensions boiled over late last month when al-Shabab officials in the Bardhere district in Gedo region destroyed the graves of several revered Sufi religious leaders buried there. On Sunday, a human-rights group in Mogadishu reported that more than 120 people, mostly combatants, may have been killed in Friday's battle in central Somalia.

The Rest @ Garowe Online

Hizbul Islam and Shabaab kill Each Other 123 Dead

MOGADISHU, June 6 (Reuters) - Battles between rival Islamist groups in central Somalia have killed 123 people, a rights group said on Saturday, and a pro-government militia said militant rebel leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys had died in the fighting.



Aweys' militia denied that as propaganda.Witnesses said scores of bodies lay in the streets of Wabho town after fighters from the hardline al Shabaab and Hizbul Islam groups battled moderate Islamist group Ahla Sunna Waljamaca for control.

Most of the deaths were on Friday.The local Elman Peace and Human Rights Organisation said it had confirmed 123 fighters killed in one of the worst flare-ups of the year in the conflict-riven Horn of Africa nation.

Among the dead in Wabho, according to pro-government Alha Sunna, was Hizbul Islam leader Aweys, a 62-year-old cleric and hardliner whom the United States and United Nations have accused of links to al Qaeda.

The group said he died of gunshot wounds."Hassan Dahir died in El Bur," Alha Sunna spokesman Sheikh Abdullahi Sheikh Abu Yusuf told Reuters, referring to a nearby town with a hospital. "We seriously injured him yesterday. This is good news.

"If confirmed, Aweys' death would be a major blow to the rebels and a boost for Ahmed's government, which had tried unsuccessfully to broker peace talks with the cleric.But Hizbul Islam spokesman Sheikh Musa Arale denied the report of Aweys' death."Sheikh Hassan is alive and unharmed," he told Reuters.

"That is the propaganda of our enemies whose commanders and leaders we killed yesterday."Some residents of Wabho and a Hizbul Islam fighter said Aweys was injured and taken to hospital in El Bur.

"I understand Sheikh Hassan was hit by bullets in the back and thighs," the fighter, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. "He may be serious but I have not heard of his death."

Neither side controlled Wabho on Saturday, locals said, but the battles had halted for them to collect and bury corpses.

The Rest @ Reuters Africa

Abdirahman Farah Derow Dead, Ahmed Osman Abdalla Wounded in Car accident

MOGADISHU (Mareeg)—The deputy commander of Hiiran region in central Somalia has died on Sunday in a car accident that took place near the airport of Beledweyne town, where the Islamic Courts Union controls.

Sheik Ibrahim Yusuf, the commander of the Islamic Courts Union of Beledweyne confirmed that Abdirahman Farah Derow, the deputy commander of the Islamic Courts has died in the cart accident.

The commander of the Islamic Courts Union in Hiraan region Ahmed Osman Abdalla has also been wounded in the car accident.

Unidentified numbers of soldiers were also wounded in the car accident. It is not known the cause of the accident.

The Rest @ Mareeg.com

By Farah Ahmed Mohamed

Hassan Dahir Aweys flew on Capital Arilines Plane from Kenya

Farah Transport chartered a plane with Capital Airlines to Fly Hassan Dahir Aweys and Six others from Eritria to Mogadishu on 22 April, 2009.


Somalia Islamist Military Offensive

• It looks like Turki and his group is running the Logistics, and has brought at least one resuplly of fresh foreigh troops an supplies up from the south.
• There is a Sheikh Umal legedly raising Funds for Shabaab out of an Eastleigh, Kenya Hotel. The operation in Eastleigh is part of a network that extends to Europe and provides ready cash for radical fighters in Mogadishu.

but that is for another post...

See the article below..

-Shimron Issachar

Nairobi - Kenya has been sucked into the Somali conflict after a key radical on the US terror watch-list used a Nairobi-based airline to fly to Mogadishu from Eritrea.

The Somali government has written a protest note to Nairobi after Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys flew on a plane owned by Capital Airlines, which is based at Wilson Airport.

Sheikh Aweys and six other Somali nationals took the flight on April 22, 2009, and now the government in Mogadishu is accusing Kenya of aiding one of the men on the US list of wanted terrorists, who is also accused of links to Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda network.

• Sheikh Aweys’ Hizb-al-Islam together with fighters from the Al-Shabaab movement threaten to take over the capital, Mogadishu.
• “It is true that the said Kenyan aircraft flew Sheikh Aweys into Mogadishu and the Somali government has written to Kenya through the Foreign Affairs ministry to complain about it,” a source privy to the letter but who sought anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter said.
• The United Nations has placed Sheikh Aweys on a list of people “belonging to or associated with” al Qaeda while Washington has ruled out contact with Sheikh Aweys, who denies links to al Qaeda.
• Fighters from Hizb-al-Islam and Al-Shabaab are reported to be within 50 kilometres of the Somali capital.
• Sheikh Aweys has in the past called for the unification of all Somali-inhabited lands, including Kenya’s North Eastern Province, into a Greater Somalia.
• In the 1990s, Sheikh Aweys headed al-Itihaad al-Islamiya, an Islamist group that was responsible for terrorist attacks on hotels and markets in Addis Ababa and was originally funded by bin Laden and was linked to the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania.
• On November 7, 2001, Sheikh Aweys was named a “supporter of terrorism” and is also on the terrorist list of the United States.
• The fall of the Transitional Government in Mogadishu would see the return of an extremist Islamist administration in Somalia led by figures accused of being close to global terrorist networks.
• Sheikh Aweys was the leader of the Islamic Courts Union that ruled Somalia briefly in 2006 and 2007 before it was dislodged by Ethiopian forces supporting the Transitional government.
• The Ethiopian forces withdrew after the arrival of a token African Union force in Mogadishu, but since then renewed fighting that threatens to topple the government of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed has sent jitters in the region.

Kenya and Ethiopia are particularly concerned by the deteriorating situation and the rebound of radical Islamist forces.

• According to documents seen by the Nation, the flight from Eritrea to Mogadishu cost Sheikh Aweys and his compatriots $25,000 and was paid for by a firm known as Farah Transport.The names of th(Sh1.9 million) e pilots in charge of the flight are given in the manifest as Mr S. Khan and R. Parmar.

The other passengers on the flight are named as:

• Osman A. Hassan
• Aden W. Diriye
• Ali O. Mohamed
• Kheyre A. Ali
• Mohamed S. Ali
• Idris J. Abdi

When the Nation called Capital Airlines offices at Wilson airport, a woman who identified herself only as Jackie declined to comment and instead referred us to the operations manager.

The manager said he was not aware of the Asmara-Mogadishu flight.“I am not aware of such a flight but we will call you back in 10 minutes. Our MD is not in at the moment,” the manager said. They did not, however, call back.

• Captain Khan and flight officer Parmar were said to have been out of the office.
• The flight was allegedly booked in Nairobi by an unidentified man who claimed to work for Farah Transport.
• On Wednesday, a Kenya Ministry of Foreign Affairs official in the Horn of Africa Division, who could not be quoted because he is not authorised to talk to journalists, confirmed the receipt of the complaint letter from the UN backed Somalia government and said appropriate action would be taken.
• Ethiopia was on Wednesday hosting an Igad meeting that was also attended by Kenya’s Foreign minister Moses Wetang’ula.

Should Al-Shabaab and Hizb-al-Islam take the Somali capital, African Union’s peace-keeping operation, Amisom, would have to evacuate its 4,300 soldiers.

The token force of mostly Uganda soldiers has been frequently targeted by radical fighters.The force is commanded by Ugandan Major-General Francis Okello who has finalised evacuation plans, but the AU’s special representative for Somalia Nicholas Bwakira says the troops will remain in Mogadishu as long as they have the backing of the Transitional government.

He said at a press conference:“Our mandate is given by the international community. We are in Somalia at the invitation of the government. We intend to continue our work despite the position of Al-Shabaab.”

Already, reports from Mogadishu say that there are 250 foreign fighters who are leading the attack on the capital.

• The fighters are from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other Arab countries.
• Meanwhile, security sources in Nairobi suspect that there is stepped up fund-raising by Somali radical groups in Nairobi believed to operate from a hotel in Eastleigh.
• One top fundraiser is known as Sheikh Umal. The operation in Eastleigh is part of a network that extends to Europe and provides ready cash for radical fighters in Mogadishu.

The Rest @ Inside Somalia.org

Saturday, May 9, 2009

At least 12 killed in Somalia Clashes
MOGADISHU, May 8 (Reuters) -

At least 12 people were killed and scores wounded in clashes between Somalia's rebels and pro-government militias in the latest fighting in the anarchic Horn of Africa country, witnesses and militia said on Friday.

President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's government is struggling against a powerful insurgency and trying to woo other rebels over to his administration, seen by many as the best hope to restore peace after 18 years of war.

Al Shabaab fighters and those of an Islamist group loyal to the government exchanged mortar and anti-aircraft fire late on Thursday along an industrial road in the Somali capital, residents said.

"The stubborn opposition attacked our fighters and the government soldiers on our side," Sheikh Abdirahim Isse Adow, a spokesman for the pro-government Islamic Courts Union, told Reuters by telephone.

• "We killed eight of them and injured 30 others in one spot.
• I am sure more died. We also captured an anti-aircraft missile mounted on a battle wagon from them.
• From our side, four died and six others were injured. Innocent civilians were also injured."

Al Shabaab officials were not available for comment.

Residents said they saw at least 16 bodies and hospital sources said 55 people were injured in the fighting.

"We have no hope of peace ... I have not seen battle wagons fighting in Mogadishu for years," said resident Halima Ali.

In another incident in central Somalia, al Shabaab captured 200 new recruits heading for police training in Mogadishu, a local official said."Al Shabaab disappeared with them into the jungle and blindfolded them.

These recruits were not armed but I think they will not be killed," said Mohamed Barqadle, chairman of Buloburde district in the central region of Hiran.

(Reporting by Abdi Sheikh, Abdi Guled and Ibrahim Mohamed; Writing by Jack Kimball; Editing by Andrew Dobbie)

The Rest @ Revoultion Islam

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Statement from Abu Mansoor al-Amriki

What follows is most of a staetment from Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, alegedly a former US Special Forces trainer who went to Bosnia to fight, the fought and trained in Caucases, now Somalia.

He is now a Commander with the Shabaab in Somalia. He recently made a video recruiting American Muslims, and may have been involved in recruiting American Somalia Immigrant Parents to send their children, the Minnesotta Mujahadeen to Somalia, some of which ended up as suicide bombers.

What it reveals

• His believes are classic Sunni Salfist of the Qutbist vareity, cut from the same cloth as Ossamah Ben ladin, who who clearly holds in High Regard.
• His description of the differences between the Islamic Courts Union and the Shabaab is one of a first hand witness, and is therefore useful.
• He demonstrates that the Islamist's objectives will never be comfortable with any National identity for very long. That The Umma belong to the Calipha.
• He, along with other islamist true Mujahadeen, believe their lives have been and will be of the higest service to Allah, a distant and exacting God whom they love.
• He illustrates to western readers an example of the Mujadeens devotion. They will be armed Mujahadeen fighting Jihad whether on the battle field, working in western jobs, until they are in prison or dead. Then, they believe that will have earned paradise, to the best of theri ability.
• This is his life; he will choose no other.

It is saddnes to me that one of such devotion is based on a near-miss of his aim to reconcile with God. He seems destined for experiencing and creating tragedy and destruction, only to find that this his Aqidah is fraud, and that Paradise does not await him.

-Shimron

Abu Mansoor al-Amriki

I saw it very important in these recent days to clarify some facts that might be unknown to many. In specific I am referring to that which relates to the Islaamic Courts and the Shabaab.

It is well-know amongst the practicing Muslims of Somalia that these two groups have a long history and they are not from the new groups that have come on the scene. Rather, the founding officers of the Shabaab go back to the fall of Siad Barre and the first battles with the Americans.

However, more important than establishing their presence from a long time is establishing the large and essential difference between the two groups from the very beginning.

• While the Courts used to judge over each individual tribe, the Shabaab were made up of many different tribes and they used to cooperate with the Muhaajireen from the outside.
• Also, while the Courts had a goal limited to the boundaries placed by the Taaghoot, the Shabaab had a global goal including the establishment of the Islaamic Khilaafah in all parts of the world.

This difference did not go away in the days of victory nor has it gone away even up until today. But rather it has grown larger and clearer to everyone; including the stupid Kuffaar.

As for the days of victory, then it is known that the picture presented to the world was the “moderate” picture of the Courts (as they describe them) and they strived in that period to control the financial sources, the direction of the Jihaad, and the foreign affairs.

Despite these facts even the Kuffaar could see something else behind the scenes.

• They publicized that there is an “extremist” group (according to their description) lurking within the government of the Courts. They were right on about most of this except for mistakenly believing that the leader of this extremist group was Hasan Thaahir Uways.
• Therefore, more deservingly, the Shabaab also knew about this reality and they used to encounter many difficulties because of the policies of the Courts.
• Similar to them were the Muhaahijreen who were welcomed at the airport by the Islaamic Courts with terrible statements like: “We don’t need the Muhaajireen,” and they tried to send them back; if it were not for a few of the Shabaab (like Shaykh Fu’aad and Abu Talhah as-Sudaani) who saved many of these Muhaajireen at the airport and tended to their affairs.
• The situation remained like this until the defeat befell and some of the best of the Shabaab became shuhadaa’.

So due to that, many of these realities became hidden to the new fighters who had witnessed the unity in the early days (which was for the purpose of combining the strength of each group, to avoid fitnah in accordance with (Cooperate upon righteousness and piety and do not cooperate upon sin and transgression)), and in order to judge by what Allaah revealed, as all groups claimed to want)

but they did not witness the hidden reality that was lived by those who preceded them on this path.

Therefore, this matter was in need of clarification, without a doubt, but we did not realize the seriousness of this need until after the conferences in Asmara.

These conferences invoked doubt within us for several reasons:

The first : is that Eritrea has not ceased opposing the Mujaahideen in their land. So how could they want to help the Mujaahideen in the neighboring lands? There is no doubt that they are not looking out for what is in our best interest or what is in the best interests of the Jihaad.

The second : is that Eritrea rooted out the Mujaahideen in their land due to a very despicable trick on behalf of the Sudanese government. Namely, they opened the door of politics in order for them to forget armed resistance which is the true solution to the problems of the Ummah today.

So here we have the members of the Courts in the lands of the Kuffaar, underneath their control, sitting in the road of politics which leads to the loss and defeat they were running from.

The third : is that they chose a nationalistic look for these conferences. The very name of their party indicates that this issue is strictly Somali, leaving no room for interference from foreigners (as they call the Muhaajireen) unless the interference comes from John, or Tom, or George! In that case such interference is allowed!

• So, while they deny the presence of Muhaajireen in Somalia (despite the fact that I was seen on al-Jazeerah in a Somali training camp under the name of the Courts before realizing that the Manhaj had become extremely distorted)
• and while they say that they are not in any need of foreigners, their actions indicate that they ARE in need of the apostates from ‘Abdullaah Yusuf’s parliament and the original Kuffaar of Eritrea. Subhaan Allaah! How have the scales of allegiance and enmity been flipped!

The fourth : is that they tried to steal the efforts of the Shabaab by claiming that they are in control of the direction of the Jihaad and the events taking place on the ground from their hotels.All of these affairs would have lead- if not for the proclamation of innocence from these conferences on behalf of the Shabaab- to many problems:

• The first is a lack of clarity of the issue for the Muslims on the outside (even for those on the inside as we have seen from some of the fighters) who might aid us with self, wealth, or supplication.
• The second is a lack of a clear example to guide the Mujaahideen in the future. We see that despite the fact that the Ikhwaan had a good example in Sayyid Qutub and al-Mawdoodi –who both refused to accept entering into the kaafir governments as a solution- it seems that there is no other solution for the problems of the Ummah, according to those who ascribe themselves to the Ikhwaan today, except for the ballot box!

So how would it have been if their beginning was characterized by their exemplary figure compromising his principles and having an unclear manhaj?

• The third is that this matter will be unclear to the populace after coming to power. If the Shabaab differ with the Courts after obtaining victory, the people will see the Shabaab like the Khawaarij, or Jamaa’ah at-Takfeer, or benefit seekers (similar to how they said that the Courts are just one tribe and they didn’t really want to establish Shari’ah in the days of victory). This will lead to many tribulations and a loss of previous gains.
• The fourth is a lack of ability to control the direction of the Jihaad because the wealth and media is in their hands.

Therefore, due to this huge danger the Shabaab- may Allaah reward them- announced that they are free of these conferences.

• At the same time the Muhaajireen (who came to Somalia after the capture of Mogadishu in stages) also felt the need to do this. In due course the Muhaajireen wrote a word of advice to some of those in charge of the Courts regarding these matters.
• Then, after learning that they will continue upon this dangerous path, the Muhaajireen declared their innocence from the Courts alongside their brothers from the Shabaab.

Here now is their announcement that they are free of the deviant leadership of the Courts before all of the Muslims.

This is in regards to what we have seen of the Courts. As for the Manhaj of the Shabaab then we see that they are focused upon the pure manhaj which is adopted by the Mujaahideen in the rest of the blessed lands of Jihaad.

It is the same manhaj repeatedly heard from the mouth of the mujaahid shaykh Usaamah bin Laden. It is the same manhaj heard in the addresses of the lion, the genius, the doctor Ayman ath-Thawaahiri and the one heard in the advices of the shaheed (in shaa’ Allaah), the hero, Abu Mus’ab az-Zarqaawi .The list of the heroes of this time goes on.

We stress here that we are striving to establish the Islaamic Khilaafah from East to West after removing the occupier and killing the apostates.

We will do this while holding on to the Book and the Sunnah, upon the manhaj of the salaf, with the mus-haf in one hand and the sword in the other, beneath the black banner.

We do not care about the blame of the blamers or the threats of scarce provision and we do not need doubtful finances....

...Here is an important point that must be made. Indeed this point is that it is befitting to cooperate with any group from the Muslims (as long as they are truly Muslims) whether the group is the Courts or otherwise.

This must, of course, be in accordance with the guidelines of the correct manhaj.

Finally, before closing this address of mine I would like to mention that there has not ceased to be sincere people amongst the Islaamic Courts. I see them to be sincere, but Allaah is the One who will truly bring them to account.

Therefore, these words do not mean that all of them want to destroy the religion and betray the Somali Jihaad.

However, sometimes unmindful people require a harsh reminder to wake them from their deep sleep......

Abu Mansoor al-Amriki

The Rest @ Prisoner of Joy

Robow Gives Three Conditions for Shabaab to Stop Fighitng

Thursday in Baioda Mukhtar Robow says he has not met the
new Somali president and vows more war against the country's new government

Talking to the press on Thursday at the former parliament hall in Baidoa, he
said that he does not intend to meet the new Somali President Sheikh
Sharif Ahmed, as there is no difference between him and his predecessor
Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, a Xamar Radio correspondent reported from Mogadishu on Thursday.

Sharif, a former member of the United Islamic Courts, affiliated with al-Shabaab had told
reporters after spending three days in Mogadishu that he met with leaders of the insurgency,
including representatives from al-Shabaab and the Islamic Party, a new coalition. Yusuf Ahmed
had advised the incoming leader to confront al-Shabaab, which is listed as a terror organization
by the US government.

Robow has put forth three conditions for supporting the new government if:

• The president orders AMISOM and foreign troops to leave the country;
• Establish Islamic law;
• Give good posts to the government to al-Shabaab authorities.

If not, Mukhtar said, al-Shabaab has vowed to continue their attacks against the government and
foreign troops till they leave the country, our correspondent said.AMISOM, African Union peacekeeping contingent serving in Mogadishu, has a force of 3,500 soldiers.

The rest @Xmarradio

Somalia 2009 at a Cross Roads

Somalia, today you must choose

Life or death; to rule yourself or to be ruled.

What will you choose, for today, for tomorrow?

Your culture is Muslim, your spirit is cowboy;

The cowboy in you has been drunk with power

The Muslim in you tells you that the way to peace is through discipline,

but is that really Allah's way?

Remember, this was the teaching of Hitler and the Nazis.

One Road leads to the Caliphate;

will the kalifa respect you, love you, or will it sacrifice you

like the West, Like Italy, Like the Arabs?

Will the foreign fighters really go home. or will they train your sons

to fight in the wars of other lands, in Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, in Uganda?

Will your sons want to stay and work the Land and the business of Somalia,

Or will their minds be sold into the service of the Caliphate, to fight in foreign lands

leaving your daughters unprotected, your elders vulnerable.




The Other path leads to the rebuilding of Somalia.

A new way for clans to fight with honor

a new place for the Kalashnikov of your youth

to fight, to win, to live, and to come home to your daughters.


O Somalia you must choose to have a voice to Allah, or to have the discipline of man

Does Allah want the government to be your battlefield, or your water wells?

Is it the will of Allah to grow your food and your animals to feed your children,

or the ravenous mouths of foreign fighters?

Sharif Ahmed Steps Down from Islamic Courts Union

Sharif Ahmed Steps Down from Islamic Courts Union - I believe this is a concesion to Robow and the Shabaab- Somalia Islamists are aiming at reconcilation to make the Emirate of Somalia work.... Watch for other alignment or battles between groups as negotiations occur.

-Shimron


(Apprciation to Terror Free Somolia)

BELETWEIN, Somalia Nov 5 (Garowe Online) - Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the opposition leader in Somalia, has announced that he is stepping down as executive head of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU).

In a BBC Somali Service interview, Sheikh Sharif said the ICU is planning to hold a general congress and elect new leadership.

Nov. 4: Sheikh Sharif lands in Beletwein/GO"I am not ready to become a candidate because I have been holding [the post] for a long time and I must now give an opportunity to new people," Sheikh Sharif said.

He offered an ambiguous answer when asked whether or not he will join the Somali Transitional Federal Government a charge often voiced by ICU hardliners who have rejected the Djibouti Agreement.

• This week, Sheikh Sharif led a delegation to Somalia that includes other officers of the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS), an opposition coalition formed in Eritrea in 2007 but split into rival factions after the Djibouti Agreement was signed to end the two-year insurgency.
  
• The ARS delegation has been warmly received in Jowhar and Beletwein, two provincial capitals controlled by ICU forces.
• Ahmed Abdullahi, spokesman for Sheikh Sharif's delegation, told reporters Wednesday that the ARS delegation has met with ICU officials and traditional elders in Beletwein.
  "Sheikh Sharif presented our [ARS] political agenda and urged all groups to support the peace process," the spokesman said.
• He welcomed a recent fatwa issued by a group of Islamic scholars that called for the ICU to hold a general conference this month inside Somalia intended to settle internal political differences.
• READ: Big welcome for Islamist chief in central Somalia

The Rest @ Garowe Online

Relief Web - Shabaab may attack Ethiopia, Eritria, Djibouti or other COuntires in 2009

The following is a reliefweb assessmenbt of the Horn of Africa in 2009. I am in almost complete agreement with this assessment; hoever, I bleieve they have under emphasised the possibility that the Shabaab, fueled by al Qaeda money and claming the victory of after Ethiopian withdrawal, will expand into every country they can.

In fact, Robow has said they plan to expand their attacks until "all of Somalia is under Sharia", and their recent multi-city simultenouse sucicide bombings are a taste of more to come unless steps are taken by the international community.

Robow is in Charge in the South, and Islamic Courts Union no longer has a say in his plans. Make no mistake, his the emir of the Shabaab.


I believe Kenya should be added to Ethiopia, Eritria, Djibouti as countries into which Shabaab will conduct Jihad attacks.

-Shimron Issachar



Horn of Africa's challenges grow - 05 Nov 2008

SUBJECT: The political and economic outlook for the Horn of Africa in 2009.

SIGNIFICANCE: The region in 2009 will continue to see some of the world's worst humanitarian, political, and security crises, but major political changes are in the air that could yield new opportunities for stability.

ANALYSIS: After a turbulent 2008, the Horn of Africa will continue to face serious challenges into 2009, especially in Somalia.

Key insights

• Food insecurity will be a major factor across the region, contributing to economic pressures from high prices and decreased remittances.
• Somalia's TFG and moderate opposition face a steep challenge in implementing the Djibouti Agreement, despite likely Ethiopian withdrawal.
• Ethiopia's border stalemate with Eritrea will continue, though the cost of war is probably too high for both sides.
• Somalia's Shabaab militants may take their insurgency against Ethiopia out of Mogadishu, and into Ethiopia itself or third countries.

Somalia Developments in Somalia will reverberate across the region:

1. Djibouti Agreement. The June 2008 Djibouti Agreement represents a hopeful breakthrough between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and moderate elements of the opposition, the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS).

• The accord commits both sides to a ceasefire, establishes a joint security committee for eventual integration of forces, envisions power-sharing talks, and calls for a UN mission to bolster African Union peacekeepers in order to permit the orderly withdraw of Ethiopian forces.
• However, the new moderate coalition formed under the agreement already faces serious resistance from hardliners in the TFG -- including President Abdullahi Yusuf and his supporters, who control all of the TFG security sector -- and the hardline Islamist Shabaab militia.

2. TFG future. The TFG enters the fifth and final year of its mandate completely dysfunctional and divided.

• There will probably be major leadership changes, and there is a real possibility that the TFG will be driven out of Mogadishu entirely by the insurgents once Ethiopian forces withdraw.
• The TFG's main preoccupation in 2009 will be to convince foreign governments and the UN to extend its mandate, despite its lack of progress.
• Donors do not want to see the TFG fail, and may consider other options even worse.

3. Ethiopian policies. Ethiopia has already redeployed much of its occupying force and appears intent on removing itself from Mogadishu later in November.

• The occupation has proven very costly to Ethiopia financially and diplomatically, and has had a corrosive effect on its military.
• However, Ethiopia has powerful security interests in shaping politics in post-intervention Somalia. It will thus keep some forces along border areas and will provide support to local allies to ensure, at a minimum, that hardline Islamists cannot consolidate control over Mogadishu.

4. Armed opposition. The insurgents in Somalia have essentially won -- they now control most of south and central Somalia and much of the capital.

• However, deep existing divisions between groups will certainly become worse once Ethiopian forces withdraw from Mogadishu and the TFG is no longer viable.
• Sporadic clashes between Islamist and clan militias answering to the ARS and the Shabaab have already occurred, with much more deadly clashes very likely to erupt in 2009 -- fuelled in part by external influences.

5. Humanitarian crisis. Somalia is now the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with 3.2 million people in need of aid, and relief efforts undermined by attacks on aid workers.

• The longer the crisis continues, the greater the danger that displaced Somalis will face famine conditions.
• If security improves in the capital, a massive spontaneous relocation of up to 700,000 displaced persons could result, creating its own relief challenges.

6. Somaliland. October terrorist bombings in Somaliland's capital Hargeysa badly shook residents, and reinforced fears that spill-over from the south will engulf the would-be state.

• Nevertheless, the longer-term impact of the terrorist bombings, for which Shabaab has claimed responsibility, will instead be the discrediting of radical Islamism in Somaliland and a concerted public and government effort to clamp down on hardline Islamists in their community.
• Somaliland is still likely to hold closely contested but not destabilising general elections sometime after March 2009.

7. Puntland and piracy. Security and governance in the northeast state of Puntland deteriorated badly in 2008, a trend that will worsen in 2009.

• Unpaid security personnel are the source of a major crime wave and the region is now the epicentre of the worst concentration of piracy in the world.
• The piracy is likely to face an increasingly heavy-handed international response, including attacks on the mainland lairs of the pirates and on the financial holdings of the powerful patrons behind the piracy.
• Puntland will also face severe security crises in 2009 if the TFG collapses and the uncontrolled government militiamen recruited from Puntland return home.

Border disputes.

The UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea dissolved in 2008, and the stand-off over the disputed border between Ethiopia and Eritrea shows no signs of peaceful resolution.

• Despite a heavy military build-up on the border, the threat of warfare between the two states has abated somewhat; risks are too high to both sides at this time.
• Eritrea's inexplicable border skirmish with neighbouring Djibouti is unlikely to be rekindled, as Djibouti enjoys the support of France and the United States, both of which have military bases there.
• Nevertheless, Ethiopia and Eritrea will continue to engage in proxy wars aimed at destabilising the other.

Ethiopia.

In 2009, Addis Ababa's biggest crisis will be economic, with the possibility of serious public unrest if food insecurity worsens:

Food shortages. A combination of factors -- inflation, high food and fuel costs, drought and security operations -- has resulted in 12 million Ethiopians being in need of emergency food aid.

• This emergency is concentrated in rural areas of eastern and southern Ethiopia, but affects most of the country. Forecasts suggest the crisis will worsen into 2009.
• Violence limits humanitarian access in eastern Ethiopia.

Economic pressures. Years of impressive economic growth are coming to an end, with the IMF's growth forecast for 2009 cut back to 6.4%.

• Remittances from the large diaspora are expected to drop. Pressures on urban households are growing and could spark unrest in major cities, where the government enjoys little support.
• Political clampdown. In April, the government consolidated control of district level political units in elections that were boycotted by the opposition. The government is passing controversial legislation that would severely curtail the activity of civil society groups to engage in any advocacy or human rights work.
• This closure of political space is expected to continue through 2009 despite external protests.

Insurgencies and terror threats.

• Government forces will continue to mount counter-insurgency operations in Somali Regional State against the
• That region will remain very volatile, and military operations will continue to target civilian populations suspected of supporting the ONLF
• The expansion of Shabaab suicide bombings into Somaliland and Puntland, which in one case destroyed an Ethiopian government building in Hargeysa, suggests that Shabaab insurgents intend to take its war with Ethiopia beyond southern Somalia.
• Terrorist attacks against Ethiopian targets inside Ethiopia or in third countries are thus a growing possibility in 2009.

Eritrea.

• Eritrea will continue to face extreme economic duress, including very worrisome food shortages, but will continue to embrace a policy of isolation and autarky in 2009.
• Opposition to the government is too weak to pose any threat of regime change, but the threat of a coup is worth watching if the current leadership allows the country to slip much further into economic collapse.

Djibouti.

Djibouti's incumbent party, the Union for the Presidential Majority, won all 65 seats of parliament in 2008 elections that were boycotted by the opposition.

• President Hassan Gouled will face no serious opposition in 2009, but the threat of terrorist attacks in Djibouti is greater in the wake of the expanded campaign by the Shabaab insurgency.

CONCLUSION: Armed conflict will worsen in Somalia in the short term but is likely to subside in an inconclusive stalemate, as a partial Ethiopian withdrawal removes some of the main drivers of the armed insurgency. Threats of terrorist attacks are greater across the region in 2009, especially against Ethiopian targets. Economic woes and food shortages will be the main preoccupation across the region.

The Rest @ Relief Web

Nuriye Ali Farah Assinated by al Shabaab

Islamist groups waging war in Somalia against the country's feeble, foreign-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) have been riled by a new fatwa issued earlier this month by self-appointed Somali clerics.

A spokesman for the clerics, Sheikh Nur Barud Gurhan, told an October 27 telephone press conference that the clerics issued a six-point fatwa regarding the internal dispute among Islamic Courts Union (ICU) leaders, who are divided over the Djibouti Agreement.

The group of clerics, including well-known religious authorities of Somali and Oromo ethnicity, decided to hold the meeting and issue the fatwa due to "the colonization of Somalia, the massacre of our people and destruction of our religion and country," Sheikh Gurhan said.

The Rest @ Rantburg

• Point one of the issued fatwa declares that "it is a duty for the jihad to continue until all enemy soldiers leave the country."
• A key clause calls for an emergency gathering of ICU executive and legislative officials, inside and outside the country, to be held within one month.
• "The signing of agreements must be stopped until after the dispute is resolved," said Sheikh Gurhan, while reading the document.
• The clerics' fatwa prohibited the exchange of conflicting statements over the media that "divide up the fighters and the public," while warning fighters against acts that cause more harm than good.
• Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the ICU's executive head, signed the peace agreement with the TFG on October 26, which calls for a ceasefire effective November 5 and the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops within 120 days.
• But Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, chairman of the Shura (legislative) council, rejected the peace pact and urged guerrillas to continue the anti-Ethiopia insurgency.
• The two men helped form the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS) in Eritrea in 2007, which included exiled Islamist leaders, ex-lawmakers and Diaspora activists.
• However, after the signing of the Djibouti Agreement, the ARS split into two rival wings, with a Djibouti-based faction led by Sheikh Sharif and an Eritrea-based faction led by the hardliner, Sheikh Aweys.

A spokesman for the ARS-Djibouti faction, Dahir Gelle, dismissed the clerics' fatwa in early comments to the media as "servicing the interests of Hassan Dahir [Aweys]." However, unconfirmed reports told Garowe Online that Sheikh Sharif might be reconsidering the clerics' call for an ICU general conference.

Key Islamist figures associated with the ARS-Eritrea faction have publicly denounced the clerics' fatwa. Sheikh Omar Iman, who was recently crowned ARS chairman by the Eritrea-based faction, said he welcomes the new title while condemning the Djibouti-based peace process as "being organized by Ethiopia and the U.S."

"The jihad will continue and no one can stop it as long as the enemy is in the country," Sheikh Omar said from Eritrea, where he lives in exile with Sheikh Aweys.

On the clerics' fatwa, Sheikh Omar Iman rejected calls for an ICU emergency gathering while dismissing notions that the Islamic clerics take control of the war until the dispute is resolved.

• Another figure, ex-warlord Yusuf Indha Ade, rejected the fatwa and accused the clerics of supporting the Djibouti-based ARS faction. Indha Ade, who was a notorious warlord in the early 2000s before joining the ICU as defense chief, is closely associated with the Eritrea-based faction.

Sheikh Dahir Addow, the ICU chief in Middle Shabelle region, returned to the provincial capital Jowhar on Thursday after attending the peace talks in Djibouti.

• Local reports said Sheikh Addow traveled by land through Hiran region, where he held meetings with ICU officials.
• Also Thursday, the ICU administrator in Hiran region, Sheikh Abdirahman Ibrahim Ma'ow, told a press conference in the regional capital Beletwein that all groups should support the clerics' decision. He held the press conference to respond to Abukar Mohamed, a top ICU military commander based in Hiran, who rejected the Djibouti Agreement and dismissed the ceasefire. "His [Abukar Mohamed] comments do not speak for the ICU administration in Hiran region," Sheikh Ma'ow said

• More divisions became evident when one of ex-warlord Indha Ade's top lieutenants, Nuriye Ali Farah, was assassinated in Lower Shabelle region.
• Indha Ade's supporters immediately blamed al Shabaab, with unconfirmed reports saying three al Shabaab members were killed in retaliation.

Shabaab and Islamic Courts Union Shootout in Bal'ad

Somalia’s Islamist guerrillas battle each other, two killed20 Oct 20, 2008 - 10:07:13 AM

BAL'AD, Somalia Oct 20 (Garowe Online) - Islamist rebels fighting against Somalia's interim government battled each other Sunday in the town of which is located 30km north of the national capital Mogadishu, Puntland-based Radio Garowe reported.

The violence erupted in the western outskirts of Bal'ad town where the Islamic Courts militia set up a security checkpoint earlier in the day.

Local residents told Radio Garowe that a band of guerrillas loyal to Islamist opposition group al Shabaab attacked the checkpoint, sparking a bloody battle that killed at least two fighters and wounded eight people including civilians.

The Islamic Courts fighters withdrew only to return during the evening, when a second round of fighting over control of the checkpoint erupted and al Shabaab guerrillas withdrew.

"Gunmen shot directly at a vehicle transporting al Shabaab last night," said a witness in Bal’ad who did not want his name in print, saying most businesses were closed due to the violence.

The situation was reportedly calm but tense Monday, as Islamic clerics and traditional elders sought to diffuse the potentially dangerous state of affairs.

The Rest @ Garowe

Mogadishu Airport Nas No Landings in 2 Days AFter Shabaab Threat

MOGADISHU, Somalia Sep 17 (Garowe Online) - Somalia's Islamist al Shabaab insurgent group issued a public threat earlier this week, warning that the capital Mogadishu's Aden Adde International Airport will not work after September 16.

No planes have landed at the airport since Monday, airport employees told Garowe Online.
Secret talks at Mogadishu' s Bakara market between Islamic Courts officers, local business leaders, airline company officials and al Shabaab fighters, reliable sources said.

The talks are aimed at convincing al Shabaab not to attack commercial airplanes landing at the airport, which is guarded by African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeepers.
"Our planes cannot land at the airport," said an airline industry source who did not want to be named. But he declined to explain whether or not airline companies are worried about a possible al Shabaab attack.

Somali government officials have maintained that Aden Adde International Airport is open for business, but AMISOM spokesman Major Barigye Bahoku confirmed to reporters that no commercial airplanes have landed in the past two days.

Attacks

• Several people were killed in insurgent attacks in Mogadishu since Tuesday night, witnesses and officials said.
• The violence raged across three districts in Mogadishu, including the relatively quiet Kaaraan district and the violence-ridden district of Yaaqshiid.
• Abdullahi Mohamed Roble, Kaaraan's district commissioner, said the attack on his home and the local police station was "organized by clan militia."
• "Are there any Ethiopian soldiers here [in Kaaraan] or are some groups against the peace here [in Kaaraan]?" Mr. Roble said in comments to the media.
• Islamic Courts spokesman Abdirahim Isse Addow claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they killed a few soldiers who had "set up illegal roadblocks" in Kaaraan.
• In a separate attack, al Shabaab fighters attacked a police station and claimed to have killed six soldiers and lost two fighters during the battle. Somali military officials rejected the claims, arguing that the troops defended themselves against the insurgent attack.
  Witnesses told Garowe Online that two children died when a shell hit their home and a lso wounded their two parents.
• The Rest @ Garowe Online
  Source: Garowe Online
  More Articles
  

Islamic Emirate of Somalia breaking away from Somalia

Leaders of Shabaab, the Young Mujahideen Movement in Somalia, stated Friday that the group is preparing for the establishment of an Islamic Emirate and that an announcement is expected within days. The statement came as the group consolidated power in the Lower Juba region, which borders Kenya, and formed a sharia-based administration in Kismayo.Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Mukhtar Robow, who is also known as Abu Mansur, and top leader Sheikh Fuad Mohamed Qalaf told a Paltalk forum organized by the radical al Qimmah Forum that fighters "are close to uniting their ranks" and would integrate under the rule of the Islamic Emirate of Somalia. They said that the formation of the emirate is "imminent" and that an announcement would be made "very soon."..

The Rest @ The Longware Journal.

Ethiopia May Withdraw from Somalia

Ethiopia hints that they may withdraw from Somalia, and The Shabaab and Islamic Courts Union suggest that they have given the Somali people a great victory with repelling the invaders.

Ethiopia is right that African Union has dropped the ball, and the US then sees that they must intervene to prevent a the setting up a spot of land that al Qaeda has stated they will use as a base to establish a multi-national caliphate.

Below are links that describe both points of view:

-Shimron

Ethiopia's story (Reuters, August 28th, 2008)

Nairobi - Ethiopia could withdraw its troops from war-torn Somalia even if the transitional government is not stable, but will hold on at least until the AU deploys additional peacekeepers, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said.

Ethiopian troops invaded neighbouring Somalia in 2006 to help kick out the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) and put the transitional federal government back in power.

• Ethiopia has long worried that instability in Somalia and the existence of Somali separatist groups in Ethiopia's Ogaden region only increases the anxiety.
• "The operation has been extremely expensive, so we will have to balance the domestic pressures on the one hand and pressures in Somalia on the other and try to come up with a balanced solution," Zenawi told the Financial Times in an interview.
• The Somali government and some moderate opposition leaders recently signed a peace agreement, but Islamic insurgent group al-Shabaab - the armed wing of the UIC - has refused to recognise it.

Al-Shabaab says Ethiopian must leave Somalia before any kind of peace can be achieved.
UN agencies say over 6 000 civilians have died in the insurgency that exploded in early 2007. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis who fled fighting in the capital Mogadishu are now living in camps.

• Ethiopian troops, backed by a small contingent of AU soldiers, have struggled to contain the insurgents, who last Friday seized control of the strategic port town Kismayo.
• Despite Zenawi's apparent impatience with the state of play and also squabbles between the Somali president and prime minister, he said that Ethiopia would "hold the ring" until the AU could deploy more peacekeepers.
• However, he made it clear that Ethiopia was not happy with carrying the burden by itself, with little backing from the AU and no backing from the international community.

"We didn't anticipate that the international community would be happy riding the Ethiopian horse and flogging it at the same time for so long," he told the British daily.

Only a quarter of the planned 8 000-strong AU force has been deployed so far. The UN has also been mulling sending in a peacekeeping force, but has so far taken no action.

Shabaab - UIC's Story (August 29th, 2008)

UIC: We destroyed the Ethiopian dream Fri, 29 Aug 2008 20:48:09 GMT

Zenawi had said Ethiopia was to leave Somalia urgently. The Somali opposition has commented on the news about the 'urgent' Ethiopian withdrawal from Somalia saying they dashed the Ethiopians' hopes.

• We destroyed the Ethiopian dream and taught them an unforgettable lesson, the spokesman for the Somali opposition, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC)'s military wing Al-Shabaab, Abdi Rahim Isse Addow told a Press TV correspondent.
• The Al-Shabaab spokesman added that they were elated by the news about the pullout which would mark a turning point in Somalia's recent beleaguered history.
• He noted that Ethiopia brushed off the international community's advice against (the 2006) Somalia invasion which the troops carried out with US encouragement.

"Somalia is too great a nation to fall to Ethiopia. We form an independent state which won freedom a long time ago" - added the spokesman who had earlier vowed they would fight off the Ethiopians even throughout the holy month of Ramadan.

The Rest @ Press TV (Iran)

AMerican War Planes Fly over Kismayu, Somalia

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:21:13 GMT

American military aircraft have flown over the town of Kismayu in southern Somalia frightening the civilians out of their residences.

Hundreds of civilians broke into a gallop after the warplanes flew low-speed in threesomes over the town which is situated 500 kilometers (300 miles) south of the capital, Mogadishu, a Press TV correspondent reported.

The reason for the presence of the aircraft in the Somali airspace is yet unknown. Fighters from the Somali opposition, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) and its military wing Al-Shabaab together with other gunmen from Islamic Jihad of Somalia are expected to be on the move apparently taking the necessary precautions against the aircraft.

The Rest @ Press TV

Is there a Connection Between Piracy and Union of Islamic Courts?

Nairobi Mogadishu - Piracy off the coast of Somalia reached new heights last week when four ships - German, Japanese, Iranian and Malaysian - were seized within 48 hours.

• 'For many years, piracy was simply robbery, but now it has changed,' Andrew Mwangura, head of the Kenya-based East African Seafarers Assistance Programme told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
• We told people not to pay ransoms, but they started paying, he continued. Other gunmen realized that they can earn money and started taking ships hostage instead of robbing them.

Authorities in Somalia have also called on shipping companies and governments not to pay ransoms, but the sums of money changing hands have gone up and up.

• Mwangura said that the pirates were now largely ignoring African ships and going for the big money jobs - cargo ships and tankers owned by international shipping lines or tourists in their luxury yachts.

• The going rate now appears to be around one million dollars - the figure paid this month to secure the release of two German tourists who were seized from their yacht in June.

• According to Mwanguras figures, there were fewer than 100 gunmen operating in 15 groups in 2005.
• Now there 160 groups with a total of up to 1,200 pirates operating in Somalia coastal waters.

• Mwangura believes that at least some of the ransom money is finding its way into the hands of Islamist insurgents currently wreaking havoc in the Horn of African nation.
• "We think they are collecting money going to fund other projects onshore ... we can say they are doing this on behalf of organized crime and for terrorist activities."

• The peak in piracy has coincided with a gathering of strength among insurgent groups.

• Ironically, piracy fell during the six months the UIC controlled Mogadishu as the strict religious body brought relative order.

• The seven ships currently being held by pirates represent a potential seven million dollars that could partly finance the insurgency.
• The United Nations Security Council in June approved incursions into Somali waters to combat the pirates. But despite the resolution, and recent interventions by a coalition warships, piracy has continued to climb.
• The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) believes the situation is on the verge of spiralling out of control and wants nations with warships in the area to take the UN resolution to heart.
• The US Naval Central Command on Friday said it had ordered the set up of Maritime Security Patrol Area (MSPA) - basically coalition warships backed by aircraft - to patrol the Gulf of Aden.
• The idea is to deter destabilizing activities in the area, Lt Stephanie Murdoch, a spokesperson for the central command told dpa.
• This includes drug smuggling, human trafficking and of course piracy.
• Considering the IMB on Tuesday warned that three pirate motherships were believed to be lurking in the Gulf of Aden

The Rest @ Terror Free Somalia

Even More

Under Sharia Law in Kismayo,Somalia, Every Man is Mobilized for Jihad

Yusuf Ali of Garowe Online is again is serving as the propoganda mouth piece for the Islamic Courts Union and the Shabaab. You can read the full Story here, but he does provide an interesting look into what the Islaimists think life should look like under sharia law.
Mainly, that every man from 15 to 50 will be recruited as a fighter.

-Shimron

KISMAYO, Somalia Aug 26 (Garowe Online) - After years of militia violence, roadblocks and assassinations, the southern Somali port city of Kismayo is reportedly calm under the rule of a coalition of local clans and Islamist guerrillas.

• For the past two days, fighters who seized the strategic port town have been invited to feasts by the region’s traditional elders.
• Aqil Abdullahi Bile, a Kismayo-based clan chief, tells Radio Garowe that traditional elders are holding clan conferences as the first phase and are planning to hold an “all-clan gathering” soon.

“The second phase of the peace process is to bring together all clans,” the ‘Aqil told me during a telephone interview Tuesday.

• He pointedly stated that the traditional elders’ aim is to avoid marginalizing any of the local clans, especially the clan whose warlord-turned-parliamentarian, Col. Barre Hirale, was violently chased out of Kismayo after two days of fighting that claimed upwards of 50 lives.

The third phase of the peace process would involve a conference between Kismayo’s traditional elders – who represent the region’s various clan groups – and Islamist guerrillas who spearheaded the war to oust Col. Hirale and his militia.

• As part of the first phase, representatives from the Harti clan, including elders, religious persons and businessmen, held a private meeting and reached a three-point agreement, according to ‘Aqil Abdullahi.

“We agreed that Islamic [Shariah] Law is our constitution,” the ‘Aqil said. The other two points, he added, include an agreement that......

..... all men between the ages of 15 and 50 will be “recruited as fighters”......

and to invite Islamist fighters to feasts as a "show of appreciation."

He described the security situation in Kismayo as “100 percent safe,” adding that local businesses remained open until midnight.

Plane shooting

• On Tuesday, Islamist fighters standing guard at Kismayo’s airport shot at a small plane as it attempted to land.
• The airplane was “transporting a khat shipment,” according to airport sources, referring to a narcotic plant used widely across Somalia.
• One Islamist fighter who spoke with Radio Garowe on the condition of anonymity said the plane shooting “happened by accident." “Our men were not informed of an airplane that was supposed to land,” he said, adding: “When the plane attempted to land, they fired [bullets] but there was no damage and the plane flew away.”

Understandably, the security situation in Kismayo is tense, with Col. Hirale’s militia commander vowing to retake the town by military force during comments to the press.

Unconfirmed reports from Gedo region, where Hirale fled to safety, say the warlord was wounded in the leg as he fled Kismayo.

In Bardhere, an agricultural town in Gedo, Hirale’s militias are reorganizing while fighters loyal to al Shabaab are reportedly “in the outskirts of the town,” according to locals.

On Tuesday, business activity was minimal in Bardhere as buyers and sellers remained anxious about new security developments and feared an armed clash between al Shabaab and Hirale’s militias.

Yusuf Ali, managing editor GaroweOnline.com

Robow Abu-Mansur Gives Speech in Kismaayo, Somalia

August 25, 2008, (Terror Free Somalia)

Terrorist , Al-Shabaab, has addressed Kismaayo city residents for the first time. Terrorist Robow (Abu-Mansur), the spokesman of the armed religious movement al-Shabaab, delivered a multifaceted lengthy speech to a gathering of people in Kismayo city, Jubadda Hoose Region (Southern Somalia).

• "Our fighters are pursuing Marehan clan army" (jubbland army)that controlled Kismayo]
• He also stated that jehadist administration would be set up for the city.
• Speaking on the recent fighting in Kismayo city and other places in lower Jubba Region, the al-Shabaab jehadist spokesman claimed that they attained major victories in the fighting.
• [Robow] said the war they were waging would not be confined to lower Jubba and middle Jubba regions but it would be carried out "elsewhere as well" "Thank God for granting us victory over those who brought the enemy into the country, and we say to them that we will follow them every place where they set foot," the Terrorist said.

This is the first time the al-ShabaabTerrorist spokesman has delivered a speech in Kismayo since they [Islamists] captured the city.

(The Islamic Courts Union (ICU) said on Sunday that it had wrested control of the southern port city from clan militias a day earlier. ICU Terrorist forces moved into Kismayo at the request of its residents, and the city "will remain under Islamic control", said Terrorist sheik Ibrahim Shukri, a spokesman for the ICU in , which controlled the capital, Mogadishu, and much of the south for six months in 2006.

Two foreign journalists - a Canadian woman and an Australian man - were kidnapped while travelling near Mogadishu on Saturday, two Somali civilians said.

Journalists and relief workers are frequently abducted for ransoms in Somalia, even those who travel in convoys heavily guarded by freelance armed men.

A report on the website of Canada's National Post newspaper identified the woman as 27-year-old Amanda Lindhout, her father, John Lindhout, as saying she had recently arrived in the country with an Australian friend who was also kidnapped.

An official at the hotel where the two were staying in Mogadishu identified the man only as Nigel, a 27-year-old from Australia.Their Somali translator was also kidnapped, according to reports from Mogadishu.

In Kismayo, the International Committee of the Red Cross delivered by plane two tons of medical supplies to Kismayo Hospital on Saturday, said Nicole Engelbrecht, an ICRC spokeswoman.

Also there was fighting in Afmadow, about 110km northwest of Kismayo, during which 135 people were wounded.She said the agency did not have details of fatalities.

The Rest @ Terror Free Somalia

Posted on August 6, 2008

A new report, released recently from the United Nations, cited grave children rights violations - including child soldier recruitment - being committed by all fighting forces in Somalia, including the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), and Al-Shabaab (designated a terrorist organization by U.S. Dept of State in March). From UN.org.

… Mr. Ban called on the TFG and opposition groups to renounce the recruitment and use of children in their armed forces…

• The widespread use of children in almost all fighting forces in the country was noted, particularly in Mogadishu.
• ...children have been used to plant roadside bombs and other explosive devices, leading to a few deaths and several injuries among the children…
• It has been reported that street children are being used for the planting of these devices, frequently without their knowledge.

It has also been reported that Al-Shabaab is training children as young as 8 years of age in special camps to plant bombs and carry out assassinations, offering a financial reward for those acts.

The report by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon strongly urges Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government to stop all new recruitment of children and to demobilize unconditionally all children who participate in any capacity in its armed forces.

href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/document/activities/cont/200806/20080623ATT32492/20080623ATT32492EN.pdf" target="_blank">Here is a resolution from the European Parliment on the Routine Killings of Civilians in Somalia from June.

The Rest @ Child Soldier Relief