Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Kidnapped journalists' 15 months of hell is over...Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.Freed journalists leave Somalia


Freed foreign journalists leave Somalia
Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan says he was kept isolated and tortured during the 15 months he was held captive in the troubled African country of Somalia.
Mr Brennan says he is OK after he and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were released on Wednesday. It has been reported that their families paid a $US1 million ($1.09 million) ransom to the kidnappers to secure their release, but that has not been confirmed.

Relieved relative warns: 'Not out of harms way yet'
'My day was sitting in a corner, on the floor, 24 hours a day for the last 15 months'



Brennan said he was relieved and safe and looking forward to going home after being released after 15 months in captivity.He has spoken to his sister in Australia, but had been instructed not to talk any further, the Seven Network said.But he also spoke to the Reuters news agency, saying it had "been pretty arduous, the last 15 months"."Locked in a room, very little light. I haven't been able to exercise at all. You know, simple things like being told not to smile, not to laugh - not that there was much to laugh about," he told Reuters by phone from his hotel in Mogadishu."But my friend Amanda had a pretty rough time, I know that. She was severely beaten and we were both tortured both mentally and physically."Being pistol whipped is sort of torture, being completely stripped of everything and then locked in a room, no one to speak to, is a form of torture really."Mr Brennan's sister-in-law Kellie Brennan will make a brief statement to the media in Sydney at 11am (AEDT). Australian and Canadian government officials have made no comment so far.Mr Brennan said he and Ms Lindhout - who were held separately - had no idea they were about to be released."Tonight we were ripped out of our rooms, stripped of everything, told to put on new clothes and then thrown in a car and then driven - we had no idea what was going on," he said."We've been through a pretty rough time, both of us. Just to be free is amazing."Ms Lindhout told Canadian television she was beaten and tortured during her captivity."It was extremely oppressive. I was kept by myself at all times. I had no one to speak to. I was normally kept in a room with a light, no window. I had nothing to write on or with. There was very little food. I was allowed to use the toilet exactly five times a day," Lindhout told CTV."So, basically, my day was sitting on a corner, on the floor, 24 hours a day for the last 15 months."There were times that I was beaten, that I was tortured. It was an extremely, extremely difficult situation."Earlier, Somali MP Ahmed Diiriye announced the release.
"We have now brought both foreign journalists to the Sahafi hotel. We have been working for eight days on their release, but finally succeeded."I don't want to comment on how we released them now."Brennan started his media career in the Queensland city of Bundaberg, where he is from.Bundaberg state MP Jack Dempsey said he was incredibly relieved to hear Brennan had been freed."It’s fantastic news," he told ABC Radio."It’s quite unbelievable ... it's like a whole sense of joy to hear the news and also a sense of relief for the community of Bundaberg as well as the family."He described Brennan as "very enthusiastic and passionate"."He had a lot of friends, he was a very loving and caring character," he said."It will be great to be able to have him back in the community and the community will certainly be overjoyed."Reminder of the dangers of journalismChris Warren of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, Australia's journalists' union, said it was "fantastic news to hear that they're out and they're alive".He said the capture of the two journalists was a reminder that journalism could be an incredibly dangerous occupation."It's also a reminder to the world journalism community that we should never forget colleagues when this happens to them."We should always be trying to persuade others, such as governments and those that have got influence, to get them out."15-month captivityBrennan, a freelance Australian photojournalist, and Lindhout, a Canadian freelance reporter, were kidnapped in Mogadishu in August 2008.A Somali journalist, Abdifatah Mohammed Elmi, who was working as their interpreter, was also kidnapped. He was released in January."We are happy. Our health is OK. We could not believe that we are free," Lindhout told The Associated Press."Tonight is a big day for us. We sent our family and friends a message that we are free and will be with them soon after a long time in captivity."Police spokesman Colonel Abdulhai Hassan Barise said Brennan and Lindhout were at the hotel with Somali lawmaker Botan Isse Alin. Barise and Alin declined to say if ransom was paid for their release.
"We are happy the two are released," said Alin.
Ransom
A kidnapper, who refused to identify himself, told Agence France-Presse a ransom of $US1 million had been paid for the release.Lindhout told Canadian television from her hotel room that she and Brennan were released after a ransom "was paid by our families" to the kidnappers.
"I believe [the kidnappers] are taking that money and, as far as I understand, they plan on leaving the country," Lindhout told CTV."It’s a long story. It’s been sort of going on for the last couple of weeks, and tonight finally everything came together and the men who had kidnapped us turned us over to the Federal Government in Somalia," Lindhout said."They seemed to think that if they beat me enough, then when I was able to speak to my mother - which they would put me on the line with her every couple of months - that I would be able to say the right thing to convince her to pay the ransom for me, which was $US1 million."Of course, my family didn't have $US1 million and it didn't matter what I said to them. But they didn’t really understand that. They thought: she’s Canadian, everyone in Canada is rich. She must have $US1 million."
Pierre Ambrose, the Africa co-ordinator for Reporters without Borders, told smh.com.au he could confirm that the duo's detention conditions were harsh...more..http://www.smh.com.au/world/kidnapped-journalists-15-months-of-hell-is-over-20091126-js52.html
Stinking filthy habar-gidir hawiye Taking people hostage. Shows what animals the hawiye bastards are.

Thank goodness! I never dreamed this was possible.

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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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