Wednesday, December 15, 2010

The Last, Worst Place

December 15, 2010: Rival Islamic terror groups Hizbul Islam and al Shabaab continue their civil war, pushing each other out of towns in villages in southern Somalia. Al Shabaab is a larger group, but is itself torn by internal divisions and unruly commanders. While al Shabaab has the benefit of several hundred foreign Islamic radicals (who are either more experienced, or simply more fanatic), most Somalis resent these foreigners, even if they are devout Moslems. More to the north of this mess, the Sufi Ahlu-Sunnah Waljama militias battle al Shabaab, which likes to torment Sufis for not being Moslem enough. The Sufi group is still allied with the TNG (Transitional National Government), which is strongest in central Somalia. All four of these groups are loose coalitions, often very loose, and sometimes coalition factions fight each other. Welcome to Somalia.
The fighting continues in Mogadishu, where al Shabaab, sometimes assisted by Hizbul Islam, have been trying to conquer the city, which is the traditional national capital. Currently, with more AU peacekeepers moving into Mogadishu, and al Shabaab suffering more internal problems, and attacks from Hizbul Islam and Sufi militias, al Shabaab has been losing ground. There have been more surrenders of al Shabaab fighters, or defections of small groups to competing militias. All these groups have to worry about their fighters being called away by clan feuds. These regularly turn violent, and result in major gun battles.
It was revealed that, nine days ago, another al Shabaab commander in Mogadishu was killed. Like many other such leaders, this guy, Rajah Abu Khalid, was a Yemeni member of al Qaeda. Islamic terrorists are fighting on both sides of the Gulf of Aden to turn Somalia and Yemen into bases for Islamic terrorism. More and more Islamic terrorists are heading for Somalia, because it's marginally safer. But it's still a struggle, and it's more difficult to get into and out of Somalia.
While the AU peacekeepers are seen as a possible solution to the mess in Somalia, but there are problems here as well. Uganda, which supplies most of the AU infantry, has had corruption problems in past peacekeeping operations. While there's not much to steal in Somalia, there are opportunities. For example, the Ugandan government took $200 of the $750 a month the AU pays for each peacekeeper. The AU suggests that governments take only $100 a month. This is what Burundi (which supplies nearly half the AU force in Somalia) does, and this has caused morale problems among Ugandan peacekeepers. Under pressure from the AU, Uganda agreed to only take $100 a month. But there are other opportunities for ambitious and corrupt Ugandan commanders. This was demonstrated in Congo, where Uganda had peacekeepers stationed for years. Ugandan commanders and troops took every opportunity to make something on the side. Higher ranking officers took control of mining and lumbering operations. Lower ranking troops took whatever opportunities they could, which included prostitution, smuggling or even extortion and outright theft.
Then there is the involvement of Uganda (the younger brother of the Ugandan president-for-life) in the formation of a thousand man coast guard in Puntland. Foreign trainers and equipment is involved, and the cash is coming from a Gulf Arab nation. Kind of scary, but at this point, any help in controlling the pirates is an easier sell. This mercenary coast guard operation is very secretive, so it's unclear exactly what they plan to do. On one extreme, they could go old-school and shoot on sight any suspected pirates. Until the traditional anti-piracy laws were repealed after World War II, this was how you handled outbreaks of piracy. On the other extreme, the new coast guard could try to intimidate the pirates, firing only when fired on. This would slow down the piracy, but not stop it. But it would also avoid a lot of bad press, as the media, some NGOs and many nations are ready to pounce (in terms of criticism) if there is any indication that innocent (or even semi-innocent) seafarers are being killed by these mercenaries.
As more merchant ships are seized along the East African coast, people ashore are feeling the impact. Ships taken often contain shipments of goods people in the nearby country cannot easily find a substitute for. Since it takes at least three months to arrange ransom and free the ship, prices for the goods on that ship go up 10-20 percent or more in the African country the ship was headed for, at least for a month or so. For international traffic passing through the Gulf of Aden, ships carry goods that are more easily, and quickly, replaced. But for East Africans, the impact of the pirates is more immediate and personal.
December 11, 2010: Somali pirates are getting closer to the Indian coast. Today, a 70,000 ton cargo ship was seized about 900 kilometers from the west coast of India, and over 2,000 kilometers from Somalia. The pirates have calculated that the payoff is larger if they try to get more mother ships (sea going ships, often hijacked fishing boats carrying or towing speedboats) way out to sea. There, the mother ships are harder to find. The pirate gangs are believed to have contacts in shipping companies, where a sufficient bribe will provide the course of merchant ships that can be intercepted at night and hijacked. This year, the pirates have taken ships as far as 2,300 kilometers from the Somali coast. The pirates are also working their way down the African coast, towards South Africa, and north into the Red Sea. The pirates apparently will go anywhere the anti-piracy patrol ships and aircraft are not.
December 8, 2010: In Puntland, police caught up with and killed two al Shabaab assassins who had earlier tried, and failed, to kill a senior government o StrategyPage.com

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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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