Thursday, February 26, 2009

Editorial: A critical juncture for local Somalis

It had all the trappings of a typical community celebration -- colorful balloons, great food, happy families and easy conversation. But there was a tense undercurrent at Wednesday's open house at the Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Center in the Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis.
On Monday, FBI Director Robert Mueller told the Council on Foreign Relations that a Somali-American man from Minnesota, one of several suicide bombers in an October terrorist attack in Somalia, had apparently been indoctrinated and recruited by a militant group while living in Minneapolis.
Although Mueller didn't name Abubakar, Shirwa Ahmed, the first known suicide bomber with U.S. citizenship, attended the mosque -- as did other young Somali men who have disappeared from the Twin Cities in recent months, sparking speculation that they were recruited to fight in their country's civil war.
Leaders of the mosque have repeatedly denied any connection, and the open house was an attempt at transparency in the face of increasing news media and law enforcement scrutiny. Retaining that openness -- and developing a proactive relationship with federal authorities -- will be an important challenge for leaders of the growing Somali community in Minnesota.
This could be a critical turning point for the 25,000 or so people of Somali background who began arriving in the Twin Cities in large numbers in the 1990s. As they continue to work to demystify Islam in their adopted home, they must just as strongly denounce the dangerous extremism that apparently led Ahmed to drive a vehicle packed with explosives that killed as many as 30 people in Somalia.
Federal authorities have said Ahmed left the Twin Cities after being recruited by the Shabab, a militia linked to Al-Qaida that is warring against the Somali government. Several local families fear their sons have also been lured back to their homeland by terrorist groups. In a chilling story earlier this month, the Star Tribune's Richard Meryhew described the mysterious disappearance of 18-year-old Mustafa Ali, who fled his family's St. Paul apartment six months ago and never returned.
The stories of Ahmed and Ali -- along with growing problems with drugs, gangs and violent crime among Somalis in Minnesota -- were topics of conversation at the Abubakar open house. "I think the Somali community needs help more than ever now,'' said Abdulahi Farah, 27, a community outreach worker who came to the United States as an 11-year-old.
Minnesota remains a mostly tolerant, supportive home, but Farah knows that relationships built on hard work and trust over the past few decades are in jeopardy today. The soul-searching and community building in the Somali community is healthy. Parents whose sons have disappeared deserve answers, and Minnesotans need reassurance that the Twin Cities area is not a training ground for terror. It was encouraging to hear that leaders of the mosque have reached out to the FBI. For too long, many Somalis have feared the very law enforcement agencies that provide the safety and security they were seeking when they left east Africa.
Some of the clan loyalties that divided Somalis in Africa live on in Minnesota, making it especially difficult for authorities to build productive relationships. At the same time, Somali-Americans who have made great strides in building better lives in this country need local leaders who can unite the community in the face of growing fear and suspicion.
"We need more coming together and working together,'' Farah said as he surveyed the crowd at Wednesday's open house. "What affects one of us affects all of us.''http://www.startribune.com/opinion/editorials/40452037.html

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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 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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