Thursday, October 9, 2008

All at sea in Somalia

THE seizure of at least 30 vessels so far this year and the high ransoms demanded and paid for the release of ships' crews underscore how piracy has become big business in Somalia. With some 130 crew members from at least seven vessels, including two tankers from Malaysia, being held hostage in the village of Eyl, piracy has reached new heights in the Gulf of Aden. The busy maritime waterway to the Suez Canal has become more dangerous than ever before not only to merchant shipping but also to vessels carrying international aid to Somalia.
While the establishment of a Maritime Security Patrol Area is a positive step, it remains to be seen whether enough nations will dedicate sufficient naval and air forces to fully patrol and monitor coastal waters the size of Somalia's and bring about a significant reduction in pirate attacks. In any event, it will be difficult to assure safe passage. Moreover, whatever action is taken on the seas will prove to be inadequate because the root of the problem of piracy on the high seas stems from dry land. It was rare before the fall of the Barre regime in 1991 and during the short rule of the Union of Islamic Courts in 2006, because there was a measure of law and order. But Somalia has become a haven for pirates because the present government can't even control the capital, let alone the country. There's infighting between the president and the prime minister, and rebel forces have made a comeback after being ousted by government troops backed by Ethiopian soldiers. The Djibouti Agreement has done little to restore order and quell the violence, which has displaced thousands of people. Without political stability and a strong central authority in Somalia, it will be difficult to tackle piracy.Now that the killings and bombings have been compounded by inflation and drought and triggered a humanitarian crisis that aid agencies fear may be the worst in Africa, and pirates have made its waters the most perilous in the world, there should be no forgetting Somalia. But at the moment, there's little hope that it will get the attention it needs. Given other priorities and commitments, it is unlikely that the West will commit significant resources to resolve the crisis in Somalia. Despite their best efforts, the peacekeepers from the African Union will not be able to bring stability. The best that Malaysians can hope for is that the negotiators will be able to free the Malaysian hostages as quickly and safely as possible.

from .. Malaysia



Somalia Opens its Waters to Nations Wanting to Fight Piracy



A major blow to piracy along the African coast was struck Wednesday when the government of Somalia announced that it was authorizing foreign powers to enter its territorial waters to use force against pirates. A similar edict was handed down in June by the U.N. Security Council when it passed a resolution establishing the rights of nations to send warships into Somalia it prevent piracy, as long as those nations do so with the cooperation of the Somali government. The declaration comes in response to a recent act of piracy where a Ukrainian ship transporting 33 Soviet-made T-72 tanks, along with light and heavy weapons was taken hostage by pirates to be held for 20 million dollars in ransom. The US Navy routinely patrols the waters off of the African coast to reduce piracy, and Russia has sent a warship to offer protection to the few Russian hostages on board the ship, but neither has made any indication that it will be entering Somali waters to attack the pirates. Several European Union nations also offered Wednesday to join together in creating a patrolling force to help police the increasingly dangerous area. Among those offering to work together are Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden. According to the EU charter, however, they cannot take action until a formal EU meeting is held.

Somali pirates free Japanese tanker for ransom
BOSASSO, Somalia (Reuters) - Somali pirates freed a Japanese chemical tanker and its crew on Thursday after a $1.6 million ransom was paid, a regional government official said.
The MT Irene was seized by gunmen on August 21 as it traveled to India from France through the Gulf of Aden. more.http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4981KO20081009?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews

An Asian answer to Somalia's pirate plague

The confrontation between foreign warships and well-armed pirates off the coast of lawless Somalia is a dramatic reminder to Asia of the importance of safeguarding busy channels used by international shipping, particularly the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. This is the shortest sea route between the energy-rich Persian Gulf and voracious energy consumers in Northeast Asia, especially China, Japan and South Korea....more..http://www.scmp.com/portal/site/SCMP/menuitem.2c913216495213d5df646910cba0a0a0/?vgnextoid=3330b93d7bcdc110VgnVCM100000360a0a0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=teaser&ss=Insight&s=Opinion

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Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

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The Foundation is dedicated to networking like-minded Somalis opposed to the terrorist insurgency that is plaguing our beloved homeland and informing the international public at large about what is really happening throughout the Horn of Africa region.

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The threat is from violent extremists who are a small minority of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims, the threat is real. They distort Islam. They kill man, woman and child; Christian and Hindu, Jew and Muslim. They seek to create a repressive caliphate. To defeat this enemy, we must understand who we are fighting against, and what we are fighting for.

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