Somalia Telecoms

In Somalia, telecommunications are quite sophistsicated and effective, and among the cheapest in Africa, even during their civil war.

Note this article published April 23rd, 2007 by Afrol.

-Shimron

Somalia is a country in ruins. With 70 percent of the population living below the poverty line and international relief largely cut-off by civil war, it's a place where survival is a full-time occupation.

Yet, in an anarchic country divided into vague fiefdoms subject to the whims of roaming warlords and freelance militias, one thing is strangely in order: telephone services.

Under the shadow of ruined buildings and in the middle of dusty streets, large numbers of Somalis walk about with a mobile phone in their hand.

For a country that does not even have its own government, Somalia has an amazingly developed telecoms industry.

It's one of the few industries that have managed to grow since the socialist government of Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991.

Telecommunication now reaches all 83 main districts as well as 18 regional capitals in a place the UN describes as a 'failed state'. And the system is more advanced than in most African countries.

Now, telephone calls from Somalia to anywhere in the world cost no more than US$ 0.5 a minute

The number of telephone lines operating in the country is estimated to be 100,000 (pop. about nine million), according to Diini.

Although most of them are in the capital Mogadishu, they are still more than 10 times the number in 1991.

By comparison Ethiopia had 263,000 lines for 66 million people and Kenya 307,000 lines for a population of nearly 31 million in 2000 (the latest year for which figures are available).

The Rest @ Afrol

Here is an incomplete list of Telecoms and their current situation as far as I can discover.
-Shimron

Astel

Barakat,

• Al-Barakaat, partner with American AT&T
• Following the September 11 attacks, the US government closed down the bank accounts of the biggest foreign exchange remittance company, Al-Barakaat, as well as its international telecommunications network, suspecting that they may have links with the al-Qaeda terror network.

Golis Telecommunications Company Ltd

• Network Information Roaming Partners Services

Hormuud

• Hormuud Telecom Inc.[HorTel] claimed to bethe leading telecommunication services provider in the southern Somalia.
• Hormuud Telecom Inc. owns and operates a telecommunication network covering the entire territories of the southern Somalia; it provides national and international telephone services.
• HorTel is a privately owned company that was established in April 2002, in Somali capital, Mogadishu.
• HormTel has its headquarters in Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia,
  Provides fixed and mobile solutions to its customers.
• Network Information Roaming Partners Services

Somali Internet Company

• Barakat, Astel Nationlink -- joined forces to form an ISP called the Somali Internet Company.
• The service links to the Internet at 128 kilobits per second via a satellite link from ArabSat.
  

Nationlink

• Owned by Thuraya , the largest seller of Satellite Phones in Africa and the Middle East.
• Network Information Roaming Partners Services
• Abdulkadir Diini, head of technical development for Nationlink (read here, here, and here
• Somafone FZ LLC

Network Information Roaming Partners Services

Somali Telecom Group (STG) Recently the Somali Telecom Group (STG) was formed.

• STG was recently able to negotiate direct access with Intelsat.
• STG has a presence in all sectors of the telecom industry - ISP, GSM and fixed lines.
• Cities served: Ba'adweyn, Berbera, Bosaso, Burao, Burtinle, Erigabo, Galkiao, Garowe, Goldogob, Hargeisa
  Suite B-803, Baniyas Complex
  Al Nasir Square,
  Deira, Dubai
  P.O. Box 39130
  Tel: (+9714) 229 - 2117/8
  Fax (+9714) 229 - 2119
  Email: info@stg.ae
  Web Site: http://www.somalitelecomgroup.com/index.php

TELENOR

Telsom Mobile Somalia

• Network Information Roaming Partners Services

Somalia Update

July 22
Somalia: Chairperson Optimistic About Reconciliation Conference
Somalia's national reconciliation committee chairman, Ali Mahdi Mohammed, told journalists on Saturday that he was pretty much optimistic that the clan-based reconciliation congress going in the Somali capital, Mogadishu would end in success.

Shabelle
Somalia: Islamist Leader Blames Govt. of Daily Bombings
The chairman of the defeated Union of Islamic Courts, Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, who is Asmara, Eritrea, accused the Somali transitional government of being responsible for the daily bombings in Mogadishu, the Somali capital.

Shabelle
Somalia: Ethiopian Troops to Secure Central Part of the Country
Local administrators in Hiran province, central Somalia, and number of Ethiopian officers have had a meeting over the escalating insecurity in the region on Saturday.

Shabelle
July 21
Somalia: New Fighting Forces 10,000 to Flee
The United Nations refugee agency today reported that renewed violence has forced 10,000 people to flee Mogadishu over the last week, reversing a trend where those displaced from the conflict-torn Somali capital had been returning.

UN News
Somalia: Peace Talks to Focus On Resolving Clan Conflicts
Somalia's national reconciliation congress which resumed on Saturday concluded peacefully with hundreds of the country's clan elders gathered at the venue of the conference in north of the capital, Mogadishu.

Shabelle
Somalia: Officials to Reopen Mogadishu's Bakara Market
The business committee of Mogadishu's Bakara market and officials from Somalia's security department met in the capital on Saturday after the government troops have closed down the market for more than two weeks.

Shabelle
Somalia: Explosions Kill 2 in Mogadishu
At least two civilians have been killed and three others have been wounded after three grenade explosions targeting government soldiers based in Mogadishu's Bakara market occurred minutes of one another on Saturday.

Shabelle
Somalia: Ethiopian Troops Kill One in the Capital
One person was killed and number of other people has been wounded after Ethiopian troops opened fire at a crowd of Somalis in Yaqshid neighborhood, north of the capital, Mogadishu, on Saturday.

Shabelle
Somalia: Government Official Killed Overnight
Unknown gunmen killed the chairman of Hodan district in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, last night. The victim was in his drugstore doing his private business when unknown gunmen shot him dead.

Shabelle
Somalia: Mogadishu Under Bomb Explosions
At least three bomb blasts occurred inside and outside of Mogadishu's Bakara market where the Somali government soldiers are based. The sounds of gunshots could be heard after the blasts that rocked the neighborhoods near the market.

Shabelle
Africa: UN Body Urges End to Use of Child Soldiers in Uganda And Somalia
The Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict today adopted recommendations regarding children in armed conflict in Uganda and Somalia, as well as examining recent reports by the Secretary-General on the situation in Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

UN News
Somalia: Malaria Kills Three in South
Three children died from malaria related diseases in Afgoi district, west of the capital, Mogadishu, in the past 24 hours. Our reporter, Hassan Mayow, said the children died in Awdhegle settlement where there is no formal clinic.

Shabelle
July 20
Uganda: The Good And Bad Side to Extended Somalia Mission [editorial]
The extension of the Ugandan peacekeeping mission in Somalia is both a good and bad thing. It is good to the extent that we shall be continuing in the noble duty of helping that scarred country gradually find its way.

Monitor
Somalia: Bishop Appeals to Insurgents to Give Peace Meeting a Chance
Somali insurgents attempting to disrupt a national peace conference do not have the interest of their people at heart, a Catholic bishop said.

CISA
Somalia: Somaliland Authorities Free Newspaper Reporter After Seven Days [press release]
Reporters Without Borders has hailed the 19 July 2007 release of Abdirahman Mohammed Habane of "Jamhuuriya", a daily based in Hargeisa, the capital of the breakaway state of Somaliland. He had been held since 12 July because of a controversial article about the swearing-in of a traditional leader.

This and more is from AllAfrica.com , who has a daily Somalia update

North African Al Qaeda Offensive Failed

July 17, 2007: Apparently, al Qaeda attempted to plan and carry out spectacular terror attacks in the capital, during the current All Africa Games. But tight security prevented the terrorists from even getting close to the city. Police still believe that there are only a few hundred Islamic terrorists, most of them openly proclaiming allegiance to al Qaeda, and hiding out in rural areas east of the capital. Most of the population is hostile to the terrorists, providing the police with lots of tips about terrorist activities. The terrorists have not found a way to get around this, other than trying hard to keep their activities secret from everyone. This is a major handicap.

July 16, 2007: Police arrested six men who were found to have master keys to hotel rooms used for participants in the current All Africa athletic competitions. The men are believed to be thieves, not terrorists, and are cooperating with police.


July 14, 2007: Police cornered four Islamic terrorists 170 kilometers east of the capital. The terrorists resisted arrest and were killed in a gun battle. One policeman was wounded. In a village 100 kilometers, about fifty Islamic terrorists tried to attack two police stations, but fled without causing any injuries. They left several roadside bombs behind, which were found and disposed of.


The Rest @ Strategy Page

Italiana Energia e Servizi & Mario Conti

Italiana Energia e Servizi, a Mantua-based oil refinery, which is majority-owned by Mario Contini and purchased crude from Iraq under Oil-for-Food.

Direct Aid Interational - African Muslim Assocation's Role in Jihad

E-Prism Just wrote an excellent Occasional Paper on slamist NGOs. In it, they use the African Muslim Association as an example of theWhat Follows are the highlights:
.
..It should be noted that the term Jihad encompasses a wider range of meanings than just militant holy war. Its relevance to the subject of relief and development stems from its general meaning of "striving" or "struggling". According to this worldview, the Zakat—a duty every Muslim must pay—can be rightfully spent on some kinds of Jihad including: military preparedness or defense; propagation of Islam; payment of salaries to religious teachers and to others, who impart other knowledge on which the people's progress and prosperity depends; and, for bringing about improvements in matters of faith and state.

• Islamic community development projects go hand in hand with Da'wah and Islamization projects.
• Rural poor in Africa are the main target for Da'wah and Islamization projects.
• The primary missionary feature of the Da'wah in Africa has been the training of Muslim teachers, leaders, imams, and legal experts, alongside building of mosques and of schools attached to them.
• Since the 1970s, future imams and youth leaders have become increasingly involved with the Islamic NGOs after an initial training in Africa.
• Then, they have been sent by these NGOs for further education abroad in Islamic institutions, universities, and advanced seminaries.
• Finally, they bring back to their countriesa version of Islam that has been emphasized by these NGOs-Which leads to local African radicalization.
• The Countires most involved in Funding these activitiues are Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates
  

Kuwait-based African Muslim Agency (AMA), which is one of the most active Islamic NGOs in the whole of the African continent, and probably the only Arab NGO whose activities have been exclusively devoted to sub-Saharan Africa.

• Founded in 1981 as the Malawi Muslim Agency (Lajnat Muslimi Malawi), focusing its activity in Malawi.
• Later, when it expanded its scope of activity throughout sub-Saharan Africa, it changed its name to the African Muslim Agency
• It change its name again in 1999 to Direct Aid International (Jami’ayyat al-'Awn al-Mubashir). As for now, it is still called the African Muslim Agency and in some cases it is presented as a branch of the Direct Aid International.
• AMA has three general websites: http://www.direct-aid.org/ http://www.labaik-africa.org/index.php and the website of the AMA branch in the Republic of South Africa: http://www.africamuslimsagency.co.za/.

The founder and head of the AMA is Abd al-Rahman Hamoud al-Sumait, who was born in Kuwait in 1947.

• His Education and acocmplishiments are many. An analysis of his Boaard memberships and founding member organizations over the years demonstrate that he is a pioneer of the Islmic NOG movement.
• What seemed to ignite his passion was AMA's ground research, which discovered that millions of Sub-Saharan African Muslims do not know much about Islam, and worse still, their children tend to convert to Christianity.
• Al-Sumait regarded the phenomenon of the conversion to Christianity as the greatest challenge confronting the Muslims in general and Africans in particular.
• Thus, his main aim was to do his best to struggle against this conversion, especially by aiding the local population with relief projects, hoping that these might cause the local population to convert to Islam, and by propagation of “true Islam,” i.e., Salafism or Wahhabism, among the local population.
• Al-Sumait underlined the strategy that must be taken by AMA in its activity in Africa in an article titled "The Relief Propagation Organizations (Direct Aid International – African Muslim Agency)" ("al-Mu’asasat al-Khayriyyah al-Da’wiyyah": Jam'iyyat al-'Awn al-Mubashir – Lajnat Muslimi Ifriqya"),

When AMA began its relief and Da'wah work in Malawi, the work was limited to building some mosque, digging some wells, and giving some aid to the local population.

• Later on, when AMA widened its scope of activities to other countries in Africa, al-Sumait became aware of the challenges confronting the Muslims in Africa.
• He came then, to the conclusion that in order to strengthen the Islamic identity of the African Muslims and societies, the Da'wah needed here should be much more comprehensive than its literal meaning and should include first of all development projects—such as building schools, orphanages, center for women's training, computer centers—in order to raise their standard of living.
• These projects, in turn, will support the propagation of Islam in a specific area, "saving" its peoples from "entry into hell", if they happen to convert to Christianity.
• Therefore, AMA's Da'wah programs have targeted entire tribes and groups and not individuals.
• However, the Da'wah strategy in use has been different from area to area and thus, had to be adjusted to the special conditions prevailing among the Muslims or the local African tribes dwelling in specific areas.

This strategy is based on three basic assumptions.

1. In the African countries with Muslim majority the aim is to support and strengthen the Islamic religious life of these people.
2. In African countries with Muslim minorities the aim of the Da'wah is the same, in addition to the provision of Islamic high school and academic education in those countries or abroad.
3. Yet, in pagan or Christian African societies, the Da'wah strategy is somewhat different and its aim is to convert these people to Islam through launching relief and Da'wah projects.

One strategys is the instigation of civil wars, in which each party has a foreign ally. These civil wars have been prevalent throughout Africa. In order to resolve these conflicts and to strengthen the Muslims.

The AMA is active in 33 African Countries. Here are some highlights:

• In Niger, which is ranked by the UN as the second poorest nation in the world, AMA is also active, especially following the premature end of the rainy season and the big locust invasion that hit the country in 2004.
• As a result, the fields of sorghum and millet were decimated and the sparse pasture which the nomads rely on to feed their cattle disappeared, triggering a major food crisis affecting millions of people.
• AMA has organized an annual Free Eye Care Week. It has also bought and distributed food to the rural population, accompanied by active preaching. It has provided loans for traders and scholarships for students.
• Thousands of copies of the Qur’an have been distributed free of charge in primary schools and the headmasters have even been asked to encourage their pupils to attend Islamic classes on the days when they do not have to go to school.
• AMA, just like other Islamic NGOs active in the country, does not aid Christians. If Christians wish to receive help, they would have to convert to Islam.
• Thus, a number of Christians have converted to Islam. For example, two church officials went on pilgrimage to Mecca since they had been promised material help from Muslims.
• In Zimbabwe, only an estimated one percent of the population is Muslim, according to the International Religious Freedom Report from 2005. Yet, this number is expected to grow since AMA has had increased success in preaching the word of Islam among the majority Black indigenous population, in part because of its relief projects in rural areas, where the government has difficulty to reach.
• Some chiefs and elders in the rural areas have converted from Christianity to Islam.
• In Mozambique, Muslims number between 17.8% and 20% of the population, or around four million people, although some Muslim clerics claim that a much larger number of the population is Muslim. Whatever the truth is, Islam is growing in the country. This growth is mainly due to the intensive activity of AMA.
• As a result of the AMA activities, dozens and even hundreds of people have converted to Islam in Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Zambia (where it has been involved in building and running of schools, hospitals, orphanages and mosques),
• They haved active Projets in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, the Central African Republic, Togo, Rwanda, Senegal, Ethiopia, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Malawi, and other African countries
  
  See the excellent full 12 page report at the Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center THE PROJECT FOR THE RESEARCH OF ISLAMIST MOVEMENTS (PRISM) AFRICAN OCCASIONAL PAPERS. GLORIA is part of the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, ISRAEL Volume 1 (2007), Number 2 (July 2007)

15 Terror Suspects Arressted in Morocco

Morocco has raised the security alert to maximum, suggesting an attack was imminent [AFP]Moroccan police have detained 15 people on suspicions of plotting terror attacks in the North African country.

Ahmed Bouzouba, the Moroccan justice minister, said in an interview on Friday that the arrests had been made, according to the information from the Kingdom's public prosecutor. "Fifteen detainees are in custody, three of them had been extradited by Libya," he told the Moroccan Assabah newspaper.

"Indeed, these people were arrested as they prepared terrorist attacks," he added, declining to give details because of what he called the secrecy of the ongoing investigation. Bouzouba gave no details on the three Moroccans arrested in Libya before their extradition to Rabat.

"Indeed, security services had arrested 100 suspects since March and 15 others in the latest days," Bouzouba added in an interview to L'Economiste newspaper, also printed on Friday. He did not elaborate, citing the secrecy of the yet to be completed investigation. Police sources said dozens of "radical Islamists" had fled a police crackdown in Morocco in the 1980s and 1990s to settle in Libya.

Last week, Morocco raised the security alert level to the highest rating of "maximum", suggesting an attack was imminent. Morocco's Interior Ministry said it obtained intelligence information on the threat in recent days but gave no details.

Alert The region has been on alert since al Qaeda's affiliate in North Africa, the Al Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb which is based in Algeria, threatened to escalate its war against "corrupt" governments in the region and their Western allies.

The al Qaeda affiliate claimed responsibility for attacks in Algeria in the latest four months, including three in Algiers on April 11 when 33 people were killed and another on Wednesday that killed eight soldiers at an army barracks in Lakhdaria, 120 km, east of the capital.

Morocco on 'maximum' security alert


The Rest @ Media with a Conscience

Morocco Pledges Security Pact with Algeria

In a message to Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on Friday (July 13th), Moroccan King Mohammed VI called for increased co-operation with Algeria in the fight against terrorism. The message, which expressed condolences to the Algerian people after an al-Qaeda attack killed 10 Algerian soldiers and wounded 35 on Wednesday, said that peace and stability in Algeria "are an integral part of Morocco's security".

The King called for solid bilateral co-operation "to eradicate terrorism in our region".
Morocco raised its terrorism alert to its highest level last week, following reports of an imminent terrorist attack. The Interior Ministry confirmed Friday that 15 terror suspects have been arrested this week.


The Rest @ Magharebia.com