Thursday, June 16, 2011

Museveni sneaks into Somalia , Obama urged to support democratic change in Somalia

President Yoweri Museveni secretly visited Somalia on his way to South Africa last weekend, The Observer has established.An impeccable State House source has told us that the commander in chief rushed to war-torn Mogadishu on Saturday to reorganise and morale boost Ugandan soldiers following an attack by Al Shabaab fighters that left a lieutenant colonel and 12 other soldiers dead.The attack angered the President because it came on the heels of major gains on the part of Somali Transitional Government (TGF) forces and African Union peacekeepers (AMISOM) comprising Ugandan and Burundian troops.We have been told that the President had to skip the Bunyoro Empango celebrations so as to be able to make a stop-over in Mogadishu before proceeding to Pretoria in South Africa for the second tripartite meeting of regional trading blocs.Lt Col Felix Kulayigye, the army spokesman, said he was not aware of President Museveni’s brief trip to Somalia.“He met the Somali president recently; why would he then travel?” Kulayigye said.On more deaths arising from the recent skirmishes in Mogadishu, the army spokesman advised us to contact AMISOM when he was told that information available to The Observer indicated more deaths had occurred.The stop-over came with major changes in the army command in Somalia, with the commander in chief removing Maj Gen Nathan Mugisha who had been overall commander, and replacing him with Fred Mugisha who was with “immediate effect” promoted from Brigadier to Major General.Fred Mugisha had previously been attached to the UPDF’s artillery section. Maj Gen Nathan Mugisha, who has been the commander, was reassigned as Uganda’s deputy ambassador to Somalia, while a civilian, Ngoma Ngime, who has been serving in that position, has been recalled and referred to the ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kampala for reassignment.
The Observer has also learnt from a reliable military source that more soldiers have died from injuries sustained in the devastating attack last week that claimed the life of Lt Col Patrick Sibihwa and five others. That brings to 13 the number of UPDF soldiers killed in that attack.Unlike his last visit back in November 2010 that was publicised, but only after he had returned to Uganda, the Saturday visit was kept a secret until now. Museveni’s daring stop-over came on the heels of the killing of Fazul Mohammed, the Al Qaeda chief in East Africa, by the Somali forces.Fazul, believed to have masterminded the twin bombings of the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in 1998, was the most wanted African man after the US put a $5 million bounty on his head. Al Shabaab, the Somali-based militant group affiliated to Al Qaeda, has vowed to avenge his death.Jolted by the manner in which the UPDF were attacked, and the magnitude of the loss, Museveni decided to make drastic changes.In a communication to the Chief of Defence Forces, the commander in chief also promoted Col Michael Ondoga, currently attending a military course, to the rank of Brigadier, rewarding him for his exemplary command and handling of the terrorist offensive in Mogadishu last year while he was in charge of the Ugandan troops in Somalia.The fact that Museveni chose to remove Maj Gen Nathan Mugisha immediately and praise his predecessor at the same time suggests that he was dissatisfied with the way his men handled the latest attack.However, other military sources have revealed that Nathan Mugisha’s tour of duty ended in April. According to this source, Museveni is happy with the military gains in Somalia so far, but concerned about lack of progress on the political front.His appointment of Nathan Mugisha as a diplomat is, therefore, seen by this source as an attempt to hasten political progress. UPDF soldiers came under attack during operations against insurgents who still control as much as 50% of Mogadishu, notwithstanding recent TGF and AMISOM gains.The attack, in a part of the war-torn city known as “Bondere district”, left Lt Col Sibihwa, Lt Lawrence Tugume, Cpl Abdalla Isabirye, Pte Augustine Kuloba, Pte Ismail Mugisha and Pte Geoffrey Atopi dead on the spot. Another seven soldiers who were injured in the same attack have since died in hospital.These have been identified as: Lt Wilson Agaba, S/sgt Paul Bamwine, Pte Peter Okello, Pte Peter J. Anguyo, Pte Micheal Wasajja, Pte Paul Ochaya and Pte Grace Alanyo. Uganda has an estimated 5,000 soldiers stationed in Somalia. Burundi has an estimated 3,000 or so men.Recently, Somali leaders met in Kampala to discuss the transition in Somalia and it was agreed that the current government gets a one-year extension in order to consolidate the gains so far made with the help of AMISOM.The transitional government’s term expires on August 23, 2011, a situation that has created a political impasse after the parliament extended its mandate for three years.Museveni told the international meeting on Somalia that it would be a “win-win situation for all parties” to extend the  current Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo TFG’s mandate for a period not exceeding one year.

Obama urged to support democratic change in Somalia

The Obama administration is being pressed to support Somali’s embattled Prime Minister in a political showdown that holds the key to ending the country’s two decades of war.
Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed has refused to resign, ignoring the terms of an agreement recently reached between Somalia’s President and Speaker of Parliament.
Signed last week, the “Kampala Accord” brokered by President Yoweri Museveni resolved a showdown on how to manage elections slated for August by deferring them to next year. It also required Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed to step down and a new premier to be appointed by mid-July.
The Kampala Accord’s provision requiring the prime minister’s resignations was inserted, some analysts say, because the president and parliament speaker resent Mr Mohamed’s political popularity.
On his part, Mr Mohamed, in power for seven months, says the Kampala Accord cannot be imposed by the president and must instead be ratified by parliament.
“I will respect the wish of the Somali people who want me to stay in office, rather than implementation of the Kampala Accord,” Mr Mohamed told a press conference in Mogadishu last week.
The Obama administration had earlier this year voiced frustration with the TFG’s seeming inability to capitalise politically on the military advances made by Amisom forces. US diplomats signalled that the White House and Congress were losing patience with a set of squabbling and corrupt politicians in Mogadishu who owe their power mainly to US underwriting of the TFG.
Now Mr Obama is being urged by US lobbyists to support Mr Mohamed’s call for parliamentary review of the Kampala Accord.
“We hope that the US government will come to the side of democracy and parliamentary inclusion... with respect to the future of the TFG,” says John Zagame, vice president of Park Strategies  more

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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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