In-depth Look At how did somalia became terrorist haven

Part One

Somali society exploded into violence and anarchy, and Siad Barre goverment were forced to flee Somalia in January 27, 1991. Long before the government collapsed, however, the armed forces, the police force, the People's Militia, government ministries, and institutions such as the People's Assembly, schools, and health facilities, for all practical purposes, had ceased to operate. Siad Bare administration fled Mogadishu, and, after a stay in Kenya, ultimately sought refuge in Nigeria. The USC announced the formation of a provisional government in February 1991, with 'Ali Mahdi Muhammad of the Hawiye clan as president and 'Umar Arteh Ghalib, of the Isaaq clan, asprime minister. However, former army commander General Muhammad FarahAidid opposed Muhammad's presidency and eventually split off to form hisown USC faction. In the Mogadishu area, each of the opposition groups drew support from particular sub-clan and each resorted to arms to further its claims. The result wasdisintegration of government, civil society, and essential services by September1991 if not earlier. Serious fighting in Mogadishu began in September 1991, intensified in November, and by the end of March 1992 was estimated to havecaused 14,000 deaths and 27,000 wounded. Ali Mahdi Muhammad, a member ofthe Abgaal sub-clan of the Hawiye clan and leader of one USC faction that hada force of about 5,000 fighters, gained control of northern Mogadishu. He waschallenged primarily by Farah Aidid, of the Habar Gidir sub-clan of the Hawiye,who led a USC faction of about 10,000 guerrillas that advocated cooperation withthe SNM. During 1991 and 1992, outside parties, such as Djibouti, the Leagueof Arab States, the Organization of African Unity, the Organization of IslamicConference, and the United Nations made numerous unsuccessful attempts toend the fighting in Mogadishu.

The USC's establishment of a provisional government angered otheropposition groups who felt they had not been consulted. In the subsequentclashes, the SSDF and the SPM aligned themselves against the USC. In thecourse of the fighting, control of various towns such as Kisimayu and Baidoachanged hands several times. A number of cease-fires were announced betweenearly April 1991 and the latter part of 1992, but none remained in effect long.Meanwhile, in the north the SNM refused to participate in the unity talksproposed by the USC. In May 1991, the SNM proclaimed the Republic ofSomaliland as an interim government, pending 1993 elections, and decreeingthe shari'a as its legal base. The formation of Somaliland occurred as a result ofthe settlement of issues between the Somali National Movement (SMN) and thepro-Siad Barre Gadabursi Somali Democratic Alliance (SDA). Although de factoindependent and relatively peaceful compared to the tumultuous south, it hasnot been recognized by any foreign government. Thus, instead of peace, Somalia experienced a power struggle among various clan- and region-based organizations: the Somali National Movement (SNM, Isaaq-affiliated); the SSDF (Majeerteen); the Somali Patriotic Movement(SPM, Ogaden); Somali Democratic Alliance (SDA, Gadabursi); and the SomaliDemocratic Movement (SDM, Rahanweyn). Lineages and sub-lineages, fightingover the spoils of state, turned on one another. The state collapsed and Somalisociety splintered into its component clans.

The collapse resulted from certain features of Somali lineage segmentation.Somali clan organization is an unstable, fragile system, characterized at alllevels by shifting allegiances. This segmentation goes down to the householdlevel with the children of a man's two wives sometimes turning on one anotheron the basis of maternal lines. Power is exercised through temporary coalitionsand ephemeral alliances between lineages. A given alliance fragments intocompetitive units as soon as the situation that necessitated it ceases to exist.In urban settings, for example, where relatively large economic and politicalstakes are contested, the whole population may be polarized into two opposingcamps of clan alliances. To varying degrees, the poles of power in the politics ofindependent Somalia generally have tended to form around the Darod clan anda confederacy of the Hawiye and the Isaaq clans.

Two features of lineage segmentation require further comment. First, thesystem lacks a concept of individual culpability. When a man commits a homicide,for example, the guilt does not remain with him solely as an individual murdereras in most Western societies; the crime is attributed to all of the murderer's kin,who become guilty in the eyes of the aggrieved party by reason of their bloodconnection with the perpetrator. Members of the aggrieved group then seekrevenge, not just on the perpetrator, but on any member of his lineage theymight chance upon. In the Somali lineage system, one literally may get awaywith murder because the actual killer may escape while an innocent kinsman ofhis may be killed. Second, the system is vulnerable to external manipulation by,for example, a head of state such as Siad Barre, who used the resources of thestate to reward and punish entire clans collectively. This was the fate of the Isaaqclan and Majeerteen sub-clan, which suffered grievous persecutions under SiadBarre's . In a syste administration m of lineage segmentation, one does not have a permanent enemyor a permanent friend - only a permanent context. Depending on the context,a man, a group of men, or even a state may be one's friends or foes. This factpartially explains why opposition Somalis did not hesitate to cross over toEthiopia, the supposed quintessential foe of Somalis. Ethiopia was being treatedby the Somali opposition as another clan for purposes of temporary alliance inthe interminable shifting coalitions of Somali pastoral clan politics.Lineage segmentation of the Somali variety thus inherently militates againstthe evolution and endurance of a stable, centralized state. Although exacerbatedby Siad Barre's exploitation of inter-clan rivalries, institutional instability isactually woven into the fabric of Somali society. The collapse of the Siad Barreregime in early 1991 led to inter-clan civil war that has been continuing eversince.Thus, the severe fighting that broke out in Mogadishu in September 1991and spread throughout the country in the following months with over 20,000people killed or wounded by the end of the year led to the destruction of theagriculture of Somalia, which led to starvation in large parts of Somalia. Theinternational community began to send food supplies to halt the starvation.However, vast amounts of food were hijacked by Aidid's personal militia andbrought to local clan leaders. The hijacked food was routinely exchanged withother countries for weapons. An estimated 80% of the food was stolen. Thesefactors led to even more starvation of which an estimated 300,000 people diedand another 1.5 million suffered from between 1991 and 1992.The situation in the country as a whole deteriorated rapidly, as a result notonly of the civil war but also of the drought in central and southern Somaliathat left hundreds of thousands starving. By August 1992 Somali refugees werereliably estimated at 500,000 in Ethiopia, 300,000 in Kenya, 65,000 in Yemen,15,000 in Djibouti, and about 100,000 in Europe.

The civil war destroyed Somalia's infrastructure and brought all economic

Activities, apart from minimal subsistence agriculture, herding, and internal trade,

To a virtual halt. Following an official visit to Somalia in early August 1992 by Muhammad Sahnoun, theUN Special Representative, and Bernard Kouchner,

The French minister of health and humanitarian affairs, an estimate was released

That approximately one-fourth of the population, about 1.5 million people,

Was in danger of death by starvation - other estimates ran as high as one-third

Of the population. The problem of food distribution to the starving was

Aggravated by armed bandits.

These bandits, who recognized no authority except occasionally thatof local warlords, looted warehouses in Mogadishu and other major centersas well as shipments of food to the interior. The rise of local warlords, whocontrolled the cities, including harbors and airports, as opposed to traditionalclan leaders, clan councils, and clan-recruited militias in the hinterland, was arelatively new phenomenon in Somali society. Their rise has been attributed tothe breakdown of central government authority and the lack of strong, well organizedopposition parties. The availability of vast quantities of arms in the country from

Earlier Soviet and US arming of Somalia (between the early 1980sand mid-1990,

The US provided Somalia with US$403 million in military aid), from the large

Caches of arms gained in gray and black markets, and from the cross-border trade, particularly in ammunition, as well as the military training that the Said Bare government

Required all school and college graduates and civil servants to undergo further facilitated the rise of warlords.

Following the eruption and escalation of the civil war in Somalia in 1991, theUN and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) strived to abate the sufferingthat was caused as a result of the high-intensity conflict. The UN was engagedin Somalia from early in 1991 when the civil strife began. UN personnel werewithdrawn on several occasions during sporadic flare-ups of violence. A seriesof Security Council resolutions (733 , 746) and diplomatic visits eventuallyhelped impose a ceasefire between the two key factions, signed at the end ofMarch 1992. These efforts were aided by other international bodies, such as theOAU, the Arab League, and the Organization of the Islamic Conference.The UN, with the active support of all rebel faction leaders, felt that somesort of peace keeping force would be required to uphold the ceasefire and assistthe humanitarian relief effort, in conjunction with other relief agencies andNGOs. By the end of 1992, the Security Council adopted resolution 751, whichprovided for the establishment of a security force of 50 UN troops in Somalia tomonitor the ceasefire. This detachment would be known as the United NationsOperation in Somalia (UNOSOM) and it existed at the consent of those partieswho had been represented in the ceasefire. The resolution also allowed for anexpansion of the security force, with a number of around 500 troops initiallydiscussed. The first group of ceasefire observers arrived in Mogadishu in earlyDespite the UN's effort, all over Somalia the ceasefire was ignored, fightingcontinued, and continued to increase, putting the relief operations at great risk.The main parties to the ceasefire, General Muhammad Farah Aided and AliMahdi Muhammad, once again showing the difficult and troubled relationsbetween the warlords, proved to be difficult negotiating partners and continuallyfrustrated attempts to move the peacekeepers and supplies. In August 1992, theSecurity Council endorsed the sending of another 3,000 troops to the region toprotect relief efforts. However, most of these troops were never sent.Over the final quarter of 1992, the situation in Somalia continued to getworse. Factions in Somalia were splintering into smaller factions and splinteringagain. Agreements for food distribution with one party were worthless whenthe sores had to be shipped through the territory of another. Some elementswere actively opposing the UNOSOM intervention. Troops were shot at, aidships attacked and prevented from docking, cargo aircrafts were fired uponand aid agencies, private and public, were subject to threats, robbery andextortion. Meanwhile, hundreds, if not thousands of refugees were starvingto death every day. By November 1992, General Muhammad Farah Aided hadgrown confident enough to formally defy the Security Council and demandthe withdrawal of peace keepers, as well as declaring hostile intent against anyfurther UN deployments.

In the face of mounting public pressure and frustration, UN Secretary-General, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, presented several options to the SecurityCouncil. Diplomatic avenues having proved largely fruitless, he recommendedthat a significant show of force was required to bring the armed groups to heel.Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations allows for "action by air, sea orland forces as may be necessary to maintain or restore international peace andsecurity". Boutros-Ghali believed the time had come for employing this clauseand moving on from peacekeeping. Significantly, this invocation of Chapter VIIwaived the need for consent on the part of the state of Somalia; effectively, it wasthe first time ever that the UN secretariat had endorsed such an act (See on-lineat: http://www.un.org/aboutun/charter/chapter7.htm).

However, Boutros-Ghali felt that such an action would be difficult to applyunder the mandate for UNOSOM. Moreover, he realized that solving Somalia'sproblems would require such a large deployment that the UN secretariat did nothave the skills to command and control it. Accordingly, he recommended thata large intervention force be constituted under the command of member states, but authorized by the Security Council, to carry out operations in Somalia. Thegoal of this deployment was to prepare the way for a return to peacekeepingand post-conflict peace-building.

Following this recommendation, on December 3, 1992, the Security Councilunanimously adopted Resolution 794, authorizing the use of "all necessarymeans to establish as soon as possible a secure environment for humanitarianrelief operations in Somalia". The Security Council urged the Secretary-Generaland member states to make arrangements for "the unified command andcontrol" of the military forces that would be involved (the full text of Resolution794 can be found online at:http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/ N92/772/11/PDF/N9277211.pdf?OpenElement). Prior to Resolution 794, already in November 1992, the US had approached the UN and offered a significant troop contribution to Somalia, with the caveat that these personnel would not be commanded by the UN. Resolution 794 did not specifically identify the US as being responsible for the future task force,but mentioned "the offer by a member state". On the evening of December 4, 1992, President George Bush made an address to the nation, informing themthat the US would send troops to Somalia. Known as Operation Restore Hope, the mission would formally become UNITAF. The first elements of UNITAFlanded on the beaches of Somalia on December 9, 1992. Thus, UNITAF wasauthorized to utilize "all necessary means" to ensure the protection of the reliefefforts. Accordingly, the Security Council suspended any further significantstrengthening of UNOSOM as UN affairs in Somalia were subsumed byUNITAF. With only a handful of the 3,000 plus troops envisaged for UNOSOMever put in place, the Security Council left it to the discretion of the Secretary-General as to what should be done with the abortive mission.UNITAF was comprised of forces from 24 different countries, with thevast bulk contributed by the US. UNITAF soon secured the relief operationswhich were being coordinated and carried out by UNOSOM, which wasalso attempting to negotiate a political end to the conflict. Indeed, althoughUNOSOM had been replaced by UNITAF, it was technically still in operationand would remain ready to resume its function when UNITAF had met its goalsof creating a secure environment for humanitarian relief.

United States forces and those of their allies gradually branched out fromthe airport and harbor of Mogadishu to the surrounding area. In successionthey secured the Soviet-built airport at Baled ogle (halfway to Baidoa), Baidoa,and then kisimayu, Baardheere, Oddur, Beledweyne, and Jalalaqsi. The planentailed setting up food distribution centers in each of the major areas affectedby the famine and bringing in large quantities of food so as to eliminate lootingand hoarding. By doing so, the operation would ensure that food was no longera "power chip," thereby eliminating the role of the warlords. As the provisionof food to southern Somalia reached massive proportions, however, it becameclear that as a result of the August rains and resultant domestic crop production,it would be necessary to sell some of the donated grain in local markets at asuitable price in order to safeguard the livelihood of local farmers in thehinterland.

The question of the security of food shipments proved a difficult one withrespect to disarming the population. The commander in chief of the United StatesCentral Command, Marine General Joseph P. Hoar, announced on December14, 1992 that the United States would not disarm Somalis because the carryingof arms was a political issue to be settled by Somalis. However, by January 7, 1993, after completing the first stage of Operation Restore Hope, United Statesforces began to pursue "technicals" and raid arms depots in order to safeguardthe operation and protect US and allied personnel and Somali civilians.Meanwhile, on the political level, in an effort to further reconciliation, Aidedand Muhammad met several times, as arranged by former US ambassadorto Somalia, Robert B. Oakley, who served as special presidential envoy. OnDecember 28, 1992, the two Somali leaders even led a peace march along theGreen Line separating the two areas of Mogadishu controlled by their forces.Yet, there were other factors complicating a political settlement. These were thecontrol of Baardheere by Muhammad Said Hersi Morgan, the son-in-law of SiadBare and leader of the Somali National Front, a Mareehaan-based organization; and the control of Kisimayu by Colonel Ahmad Omar Jess, a leader allied withthe SDM and the Southern Somali National Movement (SSNM). Jess was reliablyreported to have killed between 100 and 200 individuals whom he regarded aspotential enemies before United States forces reached Kisimayu.As a symbol of support for United States forces and their efforts in Somalia, President Bush arrived on New Year's Eve for a one-day visit and receiveda warm welcome from Somalis. In contrast, the UN Secretary-General facedan angry reception from Somali crowds on January 3, 1993. The Somalisremembered Boutros- Ghali's former cordial relationship with Siad Bare whenBoutros-Ghali served as Egyptian minister of foreign affairs. They also faultedthe UN for its long inaction in relieving the starvation in Somalia; voluntaryorganizations, particularly the International Committee of the Red Cross, hadproved much more effective than the UN in sending food to Somalia and insetting up kitchens to feed hundreds of thousands daily. Despite this negativereception, on January 4, 1993, the leaders of fourteen Somali factions attendedmeetings in Addis Ababa chaired by the UN Secretary-General, at which the USwas also represented. After considerable discussion, on January 15, the factionleaders signed a ceasefire agreement and a disarmament pact and called fora national reconciliation conference to be held in Addis Ababa on March 15.Despite the ceasefire, fighting and instability in Somalia continued to exist inlate January.Thus, on March 3, 1993, the UN Secretary-General submitted to the SecurityCouncil his recommendations for effecting the transition from UNITAF toUNOSOM II. He noted that despite the size of the UNITAF mission, a secureenvironment was not yet established and there was still no effective functioninggovernment or local security/police force. The Secretary-General concludedtherefore that should the Security Council determine that the time had comefor the transition from UNITAF to UNOSOM II; the latter should be endowedwith enforcement powers under Chapter VII of the UN Charter to establish asecure environment throughout Somalia. UNOSOM II would therefore seek tocomplete the task begun by UNITAF for the restoration of peace and stability in Somalia. The new mandate would also empower UNOSOM II to assist the Somali people in rebuilding their economic, political and social life, through achieving national reconciliation so as to recreate a democratic Somali state.UNOSOM II was established by the Security Council in Resolution 837 onMarch 26, 1993 and formally took over operations in Somalia when UNITAF was dissolved on May 4, 1993. UNOSOM II was the second phase of the UN activeintervention in Somalia. The objective of UNOSOM II was to initiate "nation building" in Somalia. This included disarming the various factions, restoringlaw and order, helping the people to set up a representative government, andrestoring of infrastructure. UNOSOM II had 28,000 personnel strength, drawnfrom 26 countries.On June 5, 1993, 24 Pakistani troops were assassinated and more than 80 werewounded by Somali militia members while inspecting an arms depot belongingto Muhammad Farah Aided, the most powerful of the Somali warlords. It waswidely reported that the bodies of the UN peacekeepers had been mutilated.Some were even skinned. Aided and his followers were accused of being behindthis massacre. On June 12, US troops started attacking targets in Mogadishurelated to Aided, a campaign which lasted until June 16. On June 19, a $25,000warrant was issued by US Admiral Howe for information leading to the arrestof Aided, but he was never captured.

Thus, the hunt for Aided characterized much of the UNOSOM II activity.The increasing tempo of military operations carried out in Mogadishu beganto cause civilian casualties and affected the relationship between the foreigntroops and the Somali people. The UN troops were easily portrayed as evilforeign interlopers by the militia leaders, particularly after incidents of civilian casualties caused by wholesale firing into crowds.On July 12, 1993, a US-led operation was launched on what was believed to be a safe house in Mogadishu where members of Aidid's Habar Gidir subclanwere supposedly meeting to plan more violence against US and UN forces.In reality, elders of the sub-clan, and not gunmen, were meeting in the house.According to UN officials, the agenda was to discuss ways to peacefully resolvethe conflict between Aidid and the multi-national task force in Somalia, andperhaps even to remove Aidid as leader of the sub-clan. During the 17 minutecombat operation, US cobra attack helicopters fired 16 TOW missiles andthousands of 20-milimeter cannon rounds into the compound, killing morethan 50 of the sub-clan elders. It would also lead to the deaths of four journalists, who were killed by angry Somali mobs when they arrived at the scene to coverthe incident. This attack turned many Somalis, including moderates and thoseopposed to the Habar Gidir sub-clan, against the US and UN, and helped toraise the Somali nationalist spirit against foreign intervention.

Paradoxically, Somalis disappointed by the failure of the UN to disarm thewarlords in Mogadishu actually began to support those same warlords in an "usversus them" mentality. The specter of radical Islam also began to rise, as militialeaders sought to use religion as a rallying point for anti-UN sentiment. As theAmericans became more insular, the warlords began to reassert control of manyMogadishu districts. With each failure to apprehend Aidid, the militias grewbolder. Serious rifts between nations contributing to UNOSOM II also began todevelop, with Italy in particular being a major critic of the American methods.On August 8, 1993, Task Force Ranger was deployed. It was composed ofDelta and Ranger forces not under UN control and so able to conduct more aggressive operations. Fighting between Aidid forces and UNOSOM II forcesescalated until the battle of Mogadishu, or for Somalis, "The Day of the Rangers",that was fought on October 3 and 4, 1993, in Mogadishu. The assault force ofthe task Force Ranger was composed of nineteen aircrafts, twelve vehicles, and160 men. During the operation to capture several Aidid faction leaders, two USMH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were shot down by rocket-propelled grenades,and three others were damaged. Some of the soldiers were able to evacuatewounded back to the compound, but others were trapped at the crash sites andcut off. An urban battle ensued throughout the night. Early the next morning,a joint task force was sent to rescue the trapped soldiers. American Rangerand Delta Force were rescued by the 10th Mountain Division, who was partlyhelped by UN troops, notably those of Malaysia and Pakistan. Somali casualtyfigures are unknown, but American estimates are that between 1,000 and 1,500Somali militiamen and civilians lost their lives in the battle, with injuries toanother 3,000 – 4,000. Eighteen American soldiers died, while two of them hadtheir bodies dragged through the streets, and 73 were wounded. Among UNforces, one Malaysian soldier died and seven were wounded, along with twoPakistanis.

Following the Battle of Mogadishu, the 1st Battalion, 64th Armored Regimentof the 24th Infantry Division, based at Fort Stewart, Georgia, was sent to restoreand maintain order in Mogadishu. This deployment, under the name TaskForce Rogue, established Victory Base in the west of the city in October 1993.With the use of heavy tanks and a strong overt military presence a semblance oforder was maintained in Mogadishu until President Clinton, under pressure ofAmerican public opinion and Congress, ended the US deployment in Somalia,setting a deadline of March 31, 1994 for their complete withdrawal.Other nations – such as Belgium, France, and Sweden – also decided towithdraw at this time. In early 1994, the Security Council set a deadline forthe mission of March 1995. Various reconciliation talks were carried out overthe next few months providing for a ceasefire, the disarmament of militiasand a conference to appoint a new government. However, preparations forthe conference were repeatedly postponed and many faction leaders ignoredthe agreement at will. So, with no real progress occurring and a dwindling ofsupport from member states, UNOSOM was disbanded in March 1995.Thus, the first US and UN intervention in the Somali civil war ended in failure,especially due to the shift in these forces' objectives from merely peacekeepingwork and assisting the humanitarian relief work, which might have beenwelcomed by Somalis, to a much more aggressive policy aimed at initiatingnation building in Somalia, including disarming the various factions, restoringlaw and order, helping the people to set up a representative government,and restoring of infrastructure. This, together with the occasional targeting ofcivilians during its actions, helped to raise the Somali nationalist banner againstwhat was perceived as an aggressive foreign intervention in internal Somaliaffairs that could be settled only by the Somalis themselves. So, the US and UN

Forces left Somalia to its destiny for the time being

Part( 2) the birth of al Shabaab

I. INTRODUCTION

Since the mid-1990s, three extremist groups operating from Somalia have chalked up a deadly track record.The most dangerous -- and most wanted by counterterrorism agencies -- is an al-Qaeda cell composed of militants responsible for the 1998 bombing of theAmerican embassy in Nairobi, the 2002 bombing of atourist hotel on the Kenyan coast and the simultaneous attempt to shoot down an Israeli charter aircraft.The second includes leaders of al-Itihaad al-Islaami, a Somali Islamist and nationalist political grouping with some long-standing links to al-Qaeda that aimed to establish an Islamic emirate in the Somali-inhabited territories of the Horn of Africa.

1. During its heyday inthe early 1990s, al-Itihaad had a militia more than 1,000strong and was funded in large part by Islamic charitiesfrom Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States. It established military training camps staffed by foreign jihadis.

including members of al-Qaeda, and in the mid-1990s was implicated in several terrorist attacks in Ethiopia.Following Ethiopian retaliatory raids on its Somali basesin early 1997, however, al-Itihaad's military and political architecture was dismantled and the movement formally disbanded. Some leaders remained active and may haveplayed a supporting role in the 1998 Nairobi embassy bombing.Since 2003,

2 .a third group has also emerged: a small bu truthless independent jihadi network based in Mogadishu and with links to al-Qaeda.The notoriety and effectiveness of these militants has contributed to perceptions of Somalia as a breeding ground for Islamist extremism and a hub of terrorist activity. AMarch 2005 UN report portrayed Somalia as home to an"army" of jihadi fighters supported by a network of at least seventeen terrorist training camps.

3 In reality,jihadism is an unpopular, minority trend among Somali Islamists. Al-Itihaad's military wing has been largely dismantled, the new jihadi network's effective membership probably is in the tens rather than the hundreds, andranking al-Qaeda operatives in Somalia probably numberless than half a dozen. Several Western countries host larger and more sophisticated jihadi networks.What makes Somalia an object of special concern is it slack of a functioning central government, which rendersthe country a "haven for terrorist groups"

4. In theabsence of functioning police, immigration, customsand intelligence agencies, foreign security services --pre dominantly from the U.S. -- have taken up the challenge of countering terrorism in Somalia. An American military presence -- the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn ofAfrica (CJTF-HOA) -- was established in neighbouringDjibouti in 2002 to coordinate and underpin regional counter-terrorism initiatives. But for many of the same reasons that Somalia is a focus of concern, it is unlikely ever to become a refuge for al-Qaeda on a par with Afghanistan under the Taliban: there is no sympathetic authority to provide protection; the flat, open terrain offers few opportunities for concealment; and a rich oral tradition makes it difficult to maintain secrets.Over the years, Somali leaders have, nevertheless,attempted to exploit the small jihadi presence for their own political ends. After 9/11, faction leaders queued upto declare their country a potential haven for terrorists.

5 Ethiopia backed these claims and denounced theTransitional National Government (TNG) as a front forIslamist groups and terrorists.

6 In 2001, Addis Ababa backed formation of a coalition of opposition factions,the Somali Restoration and Reconciliation Council(SRRC), which soon set to work providing "intelligence"about the TNG and its supporters. SRRC reports included lengthy lists with names of its political rivals and their alleged affiliations with various "extremist" groupsincluding al-Itihaad and a shadowy group with Egyp tian origins, Takfir wa'l-Hijra.

7 Some leading TNG figures were indeed associatedwith al-Itihaad and the more progressive Islamistmovement, Harakaat al-Islax, but the claims wereabsurdly exaggerated: much of the TNG cabinet andthe nucleus of Mogadishu's business elite were alleged to have extremist affiliations, as well as their sponsorsand business partners in Djibouti.Concerns about the TNG's Islamist ties and the threat ofter rorism provided much of the impetus behind an initiativeof Somalia's neighbours, acting within the framework ofthe regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development(IGAD),

8 to replace the floundering TNG with a morereliable partner. In October 2004, peace talks conductedin Kenya under IGAD's auspices established a TransitionalFederal Government (TFG) for Somalia, based in Kenya,that was headed by President Abdillahi Yusuf, a central figure in the SRRC, and dominated by his clan andfactional allies.

9 Yusuf earned his credentials as anti-Islamist campaigner by fighting and defeating al-Itihaadmilitarily in northeast Somalia in 1992 and has lived onthis success ever since.

10 As president of the regional government of Puntland, he cooperated closely with the Ethiopian and American intelligence services, andmany observers expected him to win the enthusiastic endorsement of both governments. Addis Ababa did back Yusuf to the hilt but Washington -- like many othercapitals -- remained noncommittal because it harboured deep reservations about his ability to build consensus among the Somali actors and lead a continued reconciliation process.International concerns appeared justified when Yusuf appealed for a 20,000-strong multinational military forceto return his government to Somalia and later announced he would relocate his government not to Mogadishu butto the towns of Baydhowa and Jowhar. Unpersuaded bythe request and over stretched by commitments else where,including the Sudanese region of Darfur, the African Union(AU) vacillated, prompting IGAD member states to propose their own intervention force of 10,000. Although routinely described as a peace keeping mission, the operation was in fact proposed as peace enforcement,involving "all measures necessary" against any party deemed to threaten the process: precisely the kind of mission that brought U.S. and UN forces into conflictwith Somali militias in the early 1990s. The original concept also included a reference to counter-terrorism,indicating that peace keeping was not the only consideration of Somalia's neighbours.11These critical issues polarised the TFG between Yusuf's SRRC wing and a coalition of mainly Mogadishu-based faction leaders. The transitional parliament dividedsimilarly, with one wing -- led by Speaker Sharif Hassan --returning to Mogadishu, while the other, led by PresidentYusuf and Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Geedi, remainedin Nairobi. The Mogadishu-based group rapidly set towork, galvanising a coalition of civil society organisations,women's groups and former military and police officersin order to restore security and stability to the capital, in the hopes of demonstrating it was a suitable location forthe TFG, and no foreign troops were required. Yusuf'swing continued to insist that Mogadishu was too insecure,and foreign troops were essential. The impasse threatenedto fracture the TFG into hostile armed camps, derailing the fragile peace process and plunging Somalia back intocrisis. .... stay toon ... next week

newly formed JUBBALAND ARMY prepares to retake port city from al shabaab Terrorist

The administration which was defeated in Kismayo has held meetings with the administration of Bulo Hawo District and traditional elders while at the same time making preparations. A meeting attended by the former Kismaayo administration led by MP Barre Hirale, district administrations in Gedo Region and elders of the Sede clan(MAREHAN) was held in Abdinur Hotel in Bulo Xawo yesterday.The meeting discussed military preparation to attack the port city of Kismayo from which mareehan clan(jubbaland army) had been driven out by al shabaab jehadist forces. MP Hirale himself has been in Ethiopia for the last days to ask Ethiopian government to help him to push out the islamists from Kismayo. Further reports say that officers accompanying Barre Hirale wish to go further into Ethiopia to meet with other Ethiopian officers. Meanwhile, the first deputy governor of Gedo Region, Muhammad Abdi Kalil, that they support JUBBLAND ARMY efforts to recapture Kismayo city.The islamist fighters are still controlling the town.Some Islamists, including the spokesman Robow, have rejected a United Nations-backed truce between moderate Islamists and the government reached in June,

jubbaland

Somalia: MP's Against Islamists
http://marehansade.blogspot.com/2007_07_01_archive.html

Rival Somali Islamists feud over control of port city

NAIROBI (AFP) - A radical Somali Islamist faction linked to Al-Qaeda which took control of the southern port city of Kismayo has angered moderate Islamists who accused them Monday of short-changing local leaders.
A commander of the moderate Somali Islamic Courts Union (ICU) rejected a new administration set up by the hardline Shebab, less than a month after the groups jointly drove out a pro-government militia after battles that left scores dead.more,,http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080908/wl_africa_afp/somaliaunrestislam_080908123932;_ylt=AvMHXwJjFvMMI6ZGBE.MDxGXsdEF

Somalia is full of miracles but where are the stories?

Nature and indeed life have their miracles. How else would you explain the fact that Somalia sent a delegation to the just concluded Beijing Olympic Games? If you live outside Somalia and you follow the news, this is not possible at all. Or at least, this is what the pessimists would make us believe. But two athletes and officials attended the Games and caused the Somalia flag to fly with all those of other nations. My attention was caught by the athletes Samira (Samia) Yusuf Omar and Abdi Said Ibrahim. They participated in the 200m and 5000m events for women and men respectively. They returned to their motherland unnoticed on Tuesday,August 26. Samira is a young woman (17 years) while Abdi is a young man (18 years).Although they did not win any medals, just like so many other participants from other countries, they provided inspiration and admiration to many of us who learnt of their story. Theirs was a story of dignity, pride and courage. They may have for a moment united Somalia as a country. more. http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/opinions/Somalia_is_full_of_miracles_but_where_are_the_stories_71166.shtml

Somalia’s runners provide inspiration

5 Killed In Attack On Kenya Camp Near Somalia Border - Police

NAIROBI (AFP)--Suspected Somali raiders attacked a Kenya border camp and killed five people, a Kenyan police official said Monday.The heavily-armed attackers struck the camp near the border town of Mandera on Sunday, killing three civilians and two police. They stole four rifles and about 250 rounds of ammunition, said area police commander Christopher Okello."They killed five people, injured seven others and torched houses," Okello said. "We suspect they were raiders from neighboring Somalia. We are pursuing them but so far, no recovery has been made."The Kenya-Somalia border has been insecure since the Somali government collapsed in 1991, setting off civil war and unrest that have defied numerous attempts to restore peace.

East Africa: Regional Experts Discuss Ways to Combat Terrorism

More than 60 counter-terrorism experts from East Africa are meeting in Dar es Salaam this week to discuss ways of combating terrorism in the region.Lt-Gen Abdulraham Shimbo, Chief of Staff of the Tanzania People's Defence Forces (TPDF) last week said the experts are discussing strategies on capacity building in peace and security for the region.The six-day meeting, which ends on Thursday, is being attended by participants from Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania.Lt-Gen Shimbo said the meeting, organised by the East African Community secretariat, is in line with implementation of the Community's memorandum of understanding on co-operation and defence.The Dar meeting is the second in a series that are being held in the region. The first one on disaster management was held in Uganda from August 25-29, while one on peace support operations will be held in Kenya from September 15-19. Another meeting on managing defence in a democratic society will be held in Rwanda from October 20-24, while another one on conflict prevention, management and resolution will be held in Burundi from September 17-22. East Africa is vulnerable to terrorism attacks by al Qaeda operatives believed to operate active cells in Somalia.Just last month, Kenyan security agents alerted Tanzanian authorities over the crossing into Tanzania of Fazul Abdul Mohammed, al-Qaeda's linkman in the region and suspected mastermind of the August 7, 1998 bombing of US embassies in Dar es Salaam and Nairobi. However, Fazul has not been found.The Dar meeting coincides with the TPDF's 44th anniversary. The force contributed significantly to liberation struggles in Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe and South Africa. It has in recent years been participating in

Iranian Ministry of Defense threatened to use mine water

pirates still sieze 10 other vessels at Eyl coast, Nugal region

Mr. Hassan al-Nouri and Minister of Minerals and Petroleum of the Government of Puntland state of somalia . press...the ship was carrying a secret cargo of military equipmen to asmara and The regional American Navy in Djibouti asked puntland to surrender the hijacked Iranian ships from pirates, TFG also accuses iranian ship carrying military equipment to asmara and weapons variety, the regional official said . that about one hundred combatants Somalis in the region «Il» marine vessel, after the international waters in the Indian Ocean immediately after his arrival to the region to the Truth. The immediate improvement is that belongs to the tribe pirates in this region a number of clan elders to solve the problem before it becomes excessive and disaster, and said «will return to his country« Il »because Preparations are in full swing to receive the ship's crew and its cargo». He added that «all arrangements ready to receive the ship at sea or on the beach area and await approval by the leaders of the pirates». According to press sources and security in Puntland that the Iranian Ministry of Defense threatened to use mine water, thumping big bombs on the territory of north-east Somalia if the authorities provided the north-east Somalia information from one of its vessels to U.S. forces, and warned of the consequences of approaching the vessel to enter the political and security differences existing between them and Washington. The Tehran government called in a letter addressed to the President of Puntland, General Adde Musa Hersi to release the vessels and crew Iranian abducted from the Gulf of Aden, currently detained in the «Il» which is considered one of the biggest bases of Somali militias who organized attacks against foreign ships, formerly the region center For local fishermen. On the other hand expressed the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in Somalia, Ahmedou Ould Abdallah was disturbed due to a rise of acts of piracy on the coast of Somalia and its impact on stability in the region. t is noteworthy that the pirates are currently detained more than 10 vessels with local authorities indicate that trade faces many obstacles, especially in the north of the country. , The pirates threatened to kill French citizens unless the release of six fellow prisoners in Paris after a wild chase freely and carried out in the French town of Alcolmandos «Graad» last April, after the short notice of payment of ransom and the release yacht «Le Pen» The French hostages, and regained French half of ransom amounting to two million dollars in the process of rebuttal. He threatened Al-Hussein - one of the pirates to kill the two hostages

New hijacked Malaysian vessel taken to Eyl, official says

Somali pirates are taking a hijacked Malaysian tanker to their coastal base, a local official said on Sunday.The Bunga Melati 5 was carrying 30,000 tonnes of petrochemicals to Singapore from Saudi Arabia when it was seized on Friday in the Gulf of Aden.“The Malaysian ship is being sailed towards Eyl where another six vessels are held,” Abdulqadir Muse Yusuf, assistant minister for fisheries in the northern Puntland region,says.He accused villagers in the coastal Alula, Bargal and Eyl districts for their providing the pirates with supplies and said radio operators on the coast were also helping the gangs.“The pirates are increasing dramatically in numbers and in strength,” Yusuf said.The Bunga Melati 5, which is owned by Malaysian national carrier MISC, has 36 Malaysians and five Filipinos on board.Somali pirates have hijacked at least 30 ships in the area so far this and holding five ships at the moment, making the waters off the Horn of Africa nation the most dangerous in the world.

3 sattacks by pirates off Somalia hips thwart

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenades attacked three vessels off Somalia's coast but failed to hijack them because of quick action by crew members, a maritime official said Monday. A Chinese cargo ship, a Singaporean liquefied gas carrier and a Thai bulk carrier managed to thwart the pirates in the Gulf of Aden by increasing speed and taking evasive maneuvers, said Noel Choong of the International Maritime Bureau. more..http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080908/ap_on_re_as/malaysia_somalia_pirates

Pirates demand ransom for Egyptian ship - agency

CAIRO, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Somali pirates who hijacked an Egyptian ship last week have demanded a ransom payment for the vessel and its 25 crew members, and Egypt is optimistic the crisis will end soon, Egypt's state news agency said on Monday.http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L844831.htm

Pirate Ransom Helped Somalia Islamist Militants Seize Port

Al shabaab Terrorist kill Other humanitarian workers TODAY IN KISMAYU

Residence city of kismayo are outraged by what appears to be an organized attack resulting in the killing of humanitarian worker at one pm local time in his house in city of kismayo . humanitarian worker was from gedo region. jubbaland state of somalia .. Civil society groups and the local are organised protest, according to Hawo Ugas Farah, leader of a women's group and one of the organisers. "We are demonstrating to show our anger and dismay at the murder of people who had came to help us," Farah said. She said it was also meant to show the families and friends of the victims that "the people of Kismayo were grieving with them". The al shabaab Terrorist are in controlling the town. Al-Shabab is an armed group, once connected to the Islamic Courts Union, which is now in conflict with the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and the Ethiopian military forces supporting them.
On Thursday 8 May 2008, Muqtar Robow now in kismayo with hassan turki was reported in Somali press as saying that Al Shabab “will kill American citizens in Somalia, even if they are journalists and aid workers”. This threat was issued the day after a driver contracted by the World Food Program was killed by members of a militia after being stopped at a roadblock 30 kilometers north of Galkayo in Mudug region. This is the second driver contracted by the WFP to have been killed during a militia attack in Somalia this year. None of the militia is considered to be linked to Al-Shabab.
The Food Security Analysis Unit for Somalia has recently warned that the dire humanitarian situation in Somalia continues to worsen. The combination of drought and rising food prices, in addition to persistent insecurity and armed conflict, has pushed 2.6 million Somalis to the point where they require essential humanitarian assistance.
There is no excuse for attacks on humanitarian workers in any conflict, regardless of their nationality. Amnesty International calls on all armed groups to end attacks on civilians, including humanitarian workers, and to give assurances that their status as neutral non-combatants will be respected. Armed groups that are preventing humanitarian access during this period would be contributing to, and increasing, the risk of widespread starvation among the Somali people. If threats and attacks continue, the results could be catastrophic.
These threats and attacks by armed groups follow a U.S. airstrike in Dusamareb on 1 May 2008 that reportedly killed at least 11 people, including Aden Hashi Ayro, a leader of Al-Shabab.



AL SHABAAB KILL THREE MSF workers January 29 2008 Kismayo, the country's third largest city In Memoriam http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/pr/release.cfm?id=2490

al- shabaab Attack AU Troops in Mogadishu

Residents of Hodon, Waberi and Madina districts in Mogadishu heard heavy gunfire being exchanged by Somali insurgents and forces serving the African Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) early this morning.
The battle occurred at the strategic Km 4 Area where AU peacekeepers keep a unit from Uganda. The first gunfire was heard before Sahur or Daku that is the late supper regularly eaten by Muslims before start of fasting in the month of Ramadhan, from dawn to dusk, according to Mr Ismael Ahmed Abdulle who resides in Hodon district.more.http://allafrica.com/stories/200809080039.html

Insurgent Attacks in Mogadishu, Baidoa

http://allafrica.com/stories/200809070144.html

Al shabaab Terrorist establish jehadist administration in Kismayu

Terrorist Abuukar Al-Zeylici
Terrorist abdiqani Maxamed Yuusuf
Terrorist abdirahmaan Cali Axmed
Terrorist Maxamed Sahal Iidle

Terrorist weli Aadan Dheriyow
Terrorist Ibraahim Axmed Cusmaan
Terrorist Khaalid Maxamed Aadan
Terrorist abdirahmaan Axmed Aadan
Terrorist hasan Yacquub
Terrorist Abdifatax Ibrahim abdi

Delegates from al shabaab in Kismayu town

delegates from the al shabaab the Asmara group has flown from the Eritrean capital Asmara and landed in the far southern seaport town of Kismayu the headquarters of lower juba

region which has recently fallen into the hands of the Islamists Terroris who are day-to-day carrying out raids against the Ethiopian and Somali soldiers on Friday. Some of the individuals Terroris among the delegates include.1-Terroris Hassan Mahdi 2-Terroris Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed ( Mohammed Dhere ) 3-Terroris Ishmaeil Hajji Adow 4-Terroris Muse Abdi Arale 5-Terroris Dirshe Ahmed Waiys s6-Terroris Mohammed Adeec t7-Terroris Abdinasir Serar Mah In the course of their tour of duty these delegates are scheduled to meet with the eminent HassanTerroris Turki, and to establish strong regions Terroris in the area. They have with brawny confidential message from HassanTerroris Dahir Aweys the chairman of the al shabaab and OmTerroris ar Iman Abu Bakar. On their way to Kismayu the delegates were seen off from the Asmara international airport Hassan Dahir Aweys The loss of Kismayu to the al-Shabaab insurgents was another blow for Somalia's interim government

Plans for a new state between the Juba River and the Kenyan border

Plans for a new state between the Juba River and the Kenyan border, while his parliamentary and TFG government counterparts are busy fighting them self Baidio building or Mogadishu where mostly shabaab from hawiye tribe is waging war against TFG, People in jubbaland region are planning and formulating a new constitution for a jubbaland state of Somalia and they are stromgy agianst jehadast coming to jubbaland land area . Since then the (TFG) Government has been functioning in the best way it can and under very difficult circumstances. It is time for the peoble live in the jubbaland region to move on... and think about there future. Where and how did the idea originate? What are the basic principles behind the idea? What are its chances of success? What are the repercussions that may follow its frustration? Jubbaland state: The concept of “Jubbaland” was hatched immediately after shabaab take control kismayu, jubbaland e composed of lower juba. Middle juba, Gedo regions of Southwest Somalia. . Slowly but surely jubbaland can't built a strong army and administration. Jubbaland will get revenues from the trade to Kenya and Ethiopia, deals with fishing operations in Somali Coast and providing securaty from neabring countries kenya and ethiopia . The events of the last few weeks in kismayu baidabo and Mogadishu do not hold a good prospect for peace in Somalia in the near future in Somali. If anything, the past way for Somalia is run the country into defferant , mutually exclusive enclaves that will be governed by local government with connection to the Federal authorities. With Somaliland & buntland region having gone its independently negotiating with foreign companies for mineral explorations with total disregard for Somalia’s sovereignty, the fact is the Somalia capital Mogadishu is in flames , the central regions being totally depopulated and what is left of it turning into bandit country where pirates hide their loot, daahir riyaale (eedoor tribe) (Somaliland) adde muse al (harti tribe (puntland )running away with the into their personal property where they can dig oil and collect taxes from everybody and all things including schools and mosques, will the Federal authorities be satisfied with the anarchic villages that make up Biadbo and Mogadishu

The country shall be divided into 5 administrative regions and create 5 States of Somalia. Somaliland. Puntland ,jubbland, midland and bay\bakoolland . President Abdullah Yusuf is total agreement with the concept of “Jubbaland.” he will give his consent to the creation of “Jubbaland” that is the wishes of the vast majority of the peoples of that region. That would be the best for jubbaland residence and the people will have. Charter on which jubbaland intend to build a just and equitable society . all we know all those five states can be identified with one particular dominant group there are sizable minorities whose rights will be protected. It would therefore is very important creation of five state .will create a balance that would be acceptable and totally necessary to say the least. The Somali people have had more than their fair share of problems in the last 18 years and, jubbland resedence can not afford any more. We hope that this time around, the Somali Government with the help of International community will put their feet down and say NO to the hawiye clan warlord’s usc \icu usc \sna al shabaab. To add a final word for the leaders of Bay and Bakol need to get state them self. Rahanwaynland. You need to for m an administration for those two regions with which you should identify .

jubbaland Somalia: MP's Against Islamists

http://marehansade.blogspot.com/2007_07_01_archive.html

Malaysia deploys navy to Somalia

Malaysia is sending three navy ships to the coast of Somalia to protect merchant vessels from piracy. The ships, carrying troops and helicopters, are expected to begin patrolling in the Gulf of Aden in the next few days. Two Malaysian tankers from the shipping line MISC Berhad were seized last month by Somali pirates. The seas off Somalia, close to busy shipping routes, have some of the highest rates of piracy in the world. The country has been without a functioning central government for 17 years and has suffered from continual civil strife more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7600177.stm

Somali pirates hijack South Korean cargo ship

Somali pirates have hijacked a South Korean cargo ship off the coast of the Horn of Africa nation with 21 crew members aboard, a regional maritime official confirmed on Wednesday. Andrew Mwangura, the coordinator of the East Africa Seafarers Assistance Program (SAP) said the bulker Bright Ruby was seized in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday as it was sailing from Europe to Asia with cargo. more http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=7842825920252114461&postID=8925649807265931424

Al-Qa'eda's American-born propaganda chief may have died in predator attack

Months of attacks by unmanned US predator aircraft have caused carnage among the middle ranks of terrorist leaders in the lawless lands along the border with Afghanistan, where al-Qa'eda remains dangerous despite suffering a serious defeat in Iraq.
Their victims have included experienced Arab leaders and, it is now thought, Adam Gadahn, a former heavy-metal fan and so-called "killer computer nerd" originally from California. Nothing has been heard from him for months, leading intelligence experts to conclude that he may be dead.
Mr Gadahn has been credited with helping transform al-Qa'eda's al-Sahab propaganda wing into a slick operation which communicates in fluent English and produces professional quality DVDs, including one for Osama bin Laden last year.
But he may have fallen victim to an expanded programme of predator assassinations which in the last year has targeted and killed many of al-Qa'eda's military commanders, terrorist trainers and facilitators.
Jihadists around the world will be watching as closely as intelligence officials this week to see whether Mr Gadahn - also known as Azzam al-Ameriki - produces a new video message to mark September 11, as he has done every year since 2003.
If there is no message it will be taken as near certain confirmation that he is dead – killed either in a strike by Hellfire missiles, or perhaps by jihadi colleagues who have grown jealous of his success. more..http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/2695294/Al-Qaedas-American-born-propaganda-chief-may-have-died-in-predator-attack.html

Somalia: Troops Dissolved After Islamists Seizure

Walaweyn city somalia

The administration of Walaweyn district of lower Shabelle region has suspended the troops of the town after alshabab fighters have seized the town from the regional forces on Friday officials said more..http://allafrica.com/stories/200809080784.html

Terrorist Apologist Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah. speaks out against piracy off Somali coast frist time

Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah addressing a Security Council meeting – The top United Nations envoy to Somalia today said that he is extremely alarmed by the rise in piracy off the Horn of Africa nation's coast and deplored the destabilizing effects of the attacks in the region.
“This piracy is increasingly a threat to international navigation and free trade in an already fragile environment,” said Special Representative Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah. “The millions of dollars in ransom paid to the pirates and their associates inland and overseas has become a multi-million dollar business which threatens stability in Puntland and in Somalia as a whole.”
Currently, as many as 10 ships are being held by pirates, and local authorities report that trade has been severely obstructed, particularly in the north of the country more..http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=27943&Cr=somali&Cr1=

Pirate Ransom Helped Somalia Islamist Militants Seize Port

UN peacekeepers ready for Somalia

THE Security Council hailed a recent UN-brokered inter-Somali peace deal and restated its readiness to consider deploying UN peacekeepers in the lawless Horn of African country.
It unanimously adopted a non-binding statement that reaffirmed its willingness to deploy "at an appropriate time" a peacekeeping operation to take over from the African Union mission to Somalia, AMISOM, "subject to progress in the political process and improvement in the security situation on the ground".The 15-member body recalled UN chief Ban Ki-moon's contingency planning for a UN integrated peacekeeping mission in Somalia, "which recommends that plans are put in place for the deployment of an international stabilisation force". It called on Mr Ban "elaborate on his contingency plans and provide, in consultation with the parties and other relevant stakeholders, a detailed and consolidated description of a feasible multinational force, its mandate and derived tasks".It further asked the UN chief to urgently approach states that can contribute financing, personnel, equipment and services necessary, and it called upon states to "respond favourably".he council welcomed the August 9 signing of the Djibouti Agreement reached last June by Somalia's Ethiopian-backed transitional federal government (TFG) and the opposition Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS). It underlined "the crucial importance of the parties taking all necessary measures to ensure, without delay, unhindered humanitarian access and assistance to the Somali people, and of the parties and their allies terminating all acts of armed confrontation".The Council reiterated its strong support for AMISOM and again pressed the world community to provide support and resources for the full deployment of that mission. Last August, the council voted unanimously to renew for another six months the mandate of AMISOM, which has tried to bring some semblance of order to Mogadishu. AMISOM has been in Somalia since March 2007 and is to ultimately number 8000 men. It is currently made up of 2600 Ugandan and Burundian troops. Some leading Islamist officials and military commanders have rejected the UN-brokered Djibouti accord, insisting that Ethiopian troops propping up the Somali government unilaterally pull out of Somalia before peace talks can start. The Horn of Africa country has been plagued by an uninterrupted civil war since the 1991 overthrow of president Mohamed Siad Barre. A string of previous peace initiatives and truce deals have failed.

After al Shabaab allegations, Somaliland state of somalia releases politician

HARGEISA, Somalia Sep 4 - A Somali politician in the country's northwestern breakaway republic of Somaliland was released Thursday after spending a month in jail, Radio Garowe reported. [ READ: Somaliland opposition dismisses govt al Shabaab allegations]
Hersi Haji Ali, who resigned from the Somaliland Election Commission, was released by order from President Dahir Riyale. Mr. Hersi was not formally charged with any crime, but Somaliland Interior Minister Abdullahi Irro had accused the politician of having "links to al Shabaab," a militant group spearheading an anti-Ethiopia insurgency in south-central Somalia.
Sources in the Somaliland capital Hargeisa said Mr. Hersi's arrest was linked to his opposition to the Somaliland administration's agreement with Saudi Arabian company al Jabberi, which gave the company exclusive rights to export livestock via the Port of Berbera.
The Somaliland Livestock Traders' Union, for which Mr. Hersi was deputy chairman, opposes the al Jabberi deal on grounds it gives a foreign company a "monopoly" in the most important sector of the local economy.
Source: Garowe Online

POLITICS-SOMALIA: U.S. Policy Likely to Bring

WASHINGTON, Sep 3 (IPS) - U.S. counter-terrorism policies and support for the Ethiopian-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Somalia have helped create an increasingly desperate humanitarian and security situation in the East African nation, whose population has become increasingly radicalised and anti-U.S., according to a new report by a major U.S. human rights group.The report, authored by Ken Menkhaus, a Davidson College professor who is regarded as one of the foremost U.S. experts on the Horn of Africa, calls for a thorough re-assessment of U.S. policy, including its support for the TFG and the primacy it has given to its "war on terrorism" in Somalia. "U.S. counterterrorism policies have not only compromised other international agendas in Somalia, they have generated a high level of anti-Americanism and are contributing to radicalisation of the population," concluded the report, entitled "Somalia: A Country in Peril, a Foreign Policy Nightmare". more..http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43781

Hunger and terror

There has been no pause in the country’s relentless downward spiral

IT HAS been a long, dreadful summer for Somalia. The UN says that 3.2m Somalis (out of about 8m) now need aid just to stay alive: a 77% rise on last year. A sixth of Somali infants are at risk of starving to death. Due to what aid organisations call “intolerable insecurity”, almost all international charity workers have left. Offshore, Somali pirates are as bold as ever. They are holding around ten vessels, including three large tankers with 130 crewmen captured this week.
Foreign governments still wrangle over Africa’s worst humanitarian and political crisis. UN people working for a deal between Islamist insurgents and the weak Somali government want 8,000 peacekeeping troops to replace the few thousand beleaguered African Union and Ethiopian soldiers. But more senior people in the UN’s peacekeeping office, already failing to get enough troops into Darfur, rule that out. A multinational force would be the next best thing, but who would pay? Mooted Saudi cash has not materialised. more http://www.economist.co.uk/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12059342

Somali pirates seize French boat

Two French citizens and their sailing boat have been seized by pirates off the Somali coast, French officials say.
The BBC's Ahmed Ali in Puntland says a delegation of officials from the semi-autonomous northern region has gone to Eyl port to investigate.
In April, French commandos made six arrests in a helicopter raid against pirates after they freed a French yacht's crew.
The seas off Somalia have some of the highest rates of piracy in the world.
The country has been without a functioning central government for 17 years and has suffered from continual civil strife ..more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7595727.stm
Malaysia Sends Navy to Protect Ships Near Somalia From Pirates
Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysia will send two naval vessels to the Gulf of Aden after pirates hijacked two tankers operated by MISC Bhd., the country's largest shipping line, in less than a fortnight.
The vessels will accompany four MISC ships operating in the area, Akmal Hisham, press secretary for Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, said by phone today. He declined to say when the ships will depart. more..http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601116&sid=alryYpQbbqbM&refer=africa

Pirate Ransom Helped Somalia Islamist Militants Seize Port

Somali pirates extend spree, seize Egyptian ship

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L4152229.htm

Egyptian ship with 25 crew hijacked by pirates off Somalia's coast

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-malaysia-somalia-piracy,0,3491105.story

Unidentified warship captures 14 Somali pirates

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L7473933.htm

Al-Shabaab Terrorist vow more attacks during Ramadan

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Mortar shells slammed into Somalia's capital on Wednesday as insurgents vowed to intensify attacks during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Somalia already sees near-daily explosions of bloodshed, and thousands of Somalis — most of them civilians — have been killed since mostly hawiye Terrorist(al shabaab ) began an Iraq-style insurgency in December 2006, after they were driven from power in Mogadishu and much of the south. At least four people were killed early Wednesday, said several witnesses who reported seeing the dead in two different neighborhoods of southern Mogadishu. It was not possible to get official confirmation because Ethiopian forces never speak to journalists and Somali authorities do not normally offer casualty figures or share other information about the violence in the capital. The two sides exchanged mortar and heavy machine-gun fire in a two-hour battle, forcing terrified residents to cower in their homes.
Wednesday's violence was the worst since Aug. 21, when four hours of fighting outside the presidential palace killed 12 Terrorist and injured 17 Terrorists. The insurgents are trying to topple the government and drive out Ethiopian troops who are propping up the administration.
"If we die while fasting for the sake of Allah, we will go to heaven," a 26-year-old ,Terrorist Abdi Yusuf, told The Associated Press by telephone. "So there is no reason why we shouldn't intensify the fighting." During Ramadan, Muslims are expected to abstain during daylight hours from food, drink, smoking and sex, to focus on spiritual introspection. But the Islamists' spokesmanTerrorist Abdirahin Issa Adow said fighters have "decided to redouble attacks against the Ethiopians and their stooges during the holy month of Ramadan," which began this week.
He said the Ramadan attacks do not violate the Quran because his fighters are battling "enemies of Allah." Somalia has been at war since 1991, when hawiye clan (USC) -Terrorist mohamad farah aideed ousted somalia Government and then fought for power among themselves. The conflict is complicated by ali mahdi (abgaal) hawye sub- clan and aideed( habargidir) sub-clan Fight Each Other and destroy somalia. .loyalties and the involvement of archenemies Eritrea and Ethiopia, who back opposite sides in the fighting. The last U.N. peacekeeping force in Somalia included American troops who arrived in 1992 and tried to arrest hawiye Terrorist warlords . That world somalia nation-building ended in October 1993, USC hawiye Terrorist shot down a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter during a battle that killed 18 American soldiers. Since then, Ethiopian troops are helped Somalia's transitional government push the Islamists Terrorist from power in Mogadishu and much of the south, . -->1991 Warlordism, terrorism ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .

Negotiations underway to free Canadian kidnapped in Somalia: report

The Toronto Star is reporting that negotiations are underway to secure the release of a kidnapped Canadian journalist and her Australian and Somali colleagues.
Amanda Lindhout, 27, and Australian photographer Nigel Brennan were taken at gunpoint 10 days ago about 20 kilometres outside Mogadishu. more..http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/09/03/kidnap-journalist.html

Kidnappers want 2.5 mln dlrs to free journalists in Somalia

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080907/wl_africa_afp/somaliaunrestmediakidnap_080907215201

Somalia: A Country in Peril, a Policy Nightmare

Somalia: A Country in Peril, a Policy Nightmare Wednesday, September 03 2008, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Presentation of the report written by Ken Menkhaus, former political advisor, UN Operation in Somalia; commentator Chris Albin-Lackey, Senior Researcher, Africa Division, Human Rights Watch; moderator Howard Wolpe, director, Africa Program

Video of Event

http://www.wilsoncenter.org/common/dsp_popup.cfm?media_link=AFR/AFR_20080903.wmv&title=Video%20of%20Event

EU court overturns decision to freeze assets of Saudi and charity suspected of al-Qaida links

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) _ The European Union's highest court on Wednesday overturned a 2001 decision by EU governments to freeze the assets of a Saudi businessman and a Sweden-based charity suspected of funding al-Qaida terror groups.The Court of Justice ruling breaks with a U.N. anti-terror order obliging U.N. member states to freeze assets of people and entities it believes suspect of funding terror groups.The court acknowledged that the reasons for freezing the assets of Yasin al-Qadi and the Al-Barakaat International Foundation may be justified. But it said the order failed to offer those on a terror blacklist any legal rights to a judicial review under European law."The rights of the defense, in particular the right to be heard and the right to effective judicial review of those rights were patently not respected," the court ruling said. more..http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-eu-court-terror-list,0,6319553.story

Ahmad and James on Swedish bank's blacklist

http://www.thelocal.se/13946/20080826/

Senior al Qaeda operative killed in Somalia

Al Qaeda has reported one of its senior operatives in eastern Africa was killed during fighting in Somalia more than one year ago. Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a senior al Qaeda operative in eastern Africa, announced the death of Abu Talha al Sudani while discussing the May 1 airstrike that killed Aden Hashi Ayro, the leader of Shabab in Somalia.
"And before him [Ayro], more than a year ago, our leader was martyred, the leader of the mujahideen in Somalia, Abu Talha al Sudani, while he was leading one of the battalions of the mujahideen,” according to a translation provided by Nick Grace. “And this is the first time that we make it public." Grace monitors al Qaeda and other jihadi forums.
The disclosure was made in a tape released last night on jihadi Internet forums by As Sahab, al Qaeda’s propaganda arm, Grace told The Long War Journal.
It is unclear if Sudani was killed while the fighting against the Ethiopian Army or in a US airstrike. The US military targeted both Sudani and Nabhan in an airstrike in early January 2007. Several other US airstrikes have targeted senior al Qaeda and Islamic Courts leaders over the past 20 months.

A look at some of the leaders of the Islamic Courts, Shabab, and al Qaeda in East Africa. Click to view.
Sudani, also known as Tariq Abdullah, was al Qaeda’s ideological and strategic leader in East Africa. He was behind the 1998 bombings of two American embassies in Africa. Nabhan is wanted for his involvement in the 2002 car bombing attack in Kenya and missile attack on an Israeli airliner.
Shabab seeks to formally join al Qaeda
The videotape is the latest signal that Shabab, an offshoot of the Islamic Courts, seeks to formally merge with al Qaeda. While the group’s leader have numerous ties to al Qaeda and many of its members trained in camps in Afghanistan, Shabab has not officially joined the central al Qaeda organization.
Grace said Nabhan’s tape “seems to be Shabab's formal request to join al Qaeda.”
Nabhan said Somali forces would continue to wage “jihad” in Somalia even after the death of senior leaders. “Did the Jihad in Somalia stop [after Ayro’s death]?” Nabhan asked. “No, by Allah, instead we renewed the oath to death upon which died the noble martyrs.”
Last week, Shabab spokesman Sheikh Mukhtar Robow admitted the group is closely aligned to al Qaeda and seeks to merge with the terror group. "We are negotiating how we can unite into one," Robow said.
Shabab has taken over much of southern and central Somalia in a vicious insurgency against the poorly supported Transitional Federal Government forces and the Ethiopian Army. Ethiopian forces invaded Somalia in December 2006, forcing the Islamic Courts to go underground.
For more information on the current state of Somalia and the rise of Shabab, see Al Qaeda-linked Shabab in control of southern Somalia.
Find related articles: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/09/senior_al_qaeda_oper_1.php

Insurgent commander speaks at Mogadishu press conference

Yusuf "Indha Ade" Mohamed Siad, who ruled Lower Shabelle region and was instrumental in the rise of the Islamic Courts in mid-2006, spoke in person with a group of reporters and allowed TV cameras to record his press conference.
READ FULL STORY

SOMALIA: Southern town tense after clashes

Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author's alone.
NAIROBI, 2 September 2008 (IRIN) - Tension is high in the strategic town of Jowhar, 90km north of Mogadishu, two days after factions of opposition militia clashed in the area, locals told IRIN.
The weekend clashes pitted militias of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which support the Djibouti agreement with the Transitional Federal Government, against a faction of the opposition Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia. In June the TFG and a faction of the Eritrea-based alliance signed an agreement in Djibouti on the cessation of hostilities. more..http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/d4ec529b17828a84287c50981e409391.htm

EU to set up anti-Somlia pirates coordination

BRUSSELS, Sept 2 (Reuters) - The European Union is preparing a mechanism to help coordinate protection of vessels from Somalia piracy and is considering a more beefed up operation at a later stage, diplomats said on Tuesday.
Gunmen from Somalia have seized at least 30 vessels so far this year, making the waters off the Horn of Africa nation the most dangerous in the world.
"We are setting up a mechanism to coordinate assets in the area to ensure security and allow vessels to circulate," one EU diplomat said.
"That would allow us to know which vessels are there, to organise a relay, to plan," the diplomat said, adding that the French EU Presidency hoped this could be agreed on at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on Sept. 15 in Brussels .more http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L2162207.htm

Somalia’s Downward Spiral Continues

Last week, the “Transitional Federal Government” (TFG) of Somalia and the rump faction of the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS) led by Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmad signed a peace deal after United Nations-brokered talks in the neighboring statelet of Djibouti. The accord, inked on August 18th, calls for the withdrawal of the Ethiopian National Defense Force troops which have been propping up the TFG and their replacement with a UN peacekeeping force. Ahmed Abdisalam, the “deputy prime minister” who led the TFG delegation, pronounced the talks “very successful,” a view echoed by Robert Wood, acting deputy spokesman at the United States Department of State, who declared that America “welcomes” the agreement and “reaffirms its support for rapid deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Somalia, and calls on all Somalis who seek peace and stability to support implementation.” Unfortunately, the comity has been less than universal: beginning the day after the peace was announced, a constant barrage of mortars has rained down on Mogadishu’s Villa Somalia, sometime seat of the TFG’s largely-absentee “president,” Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmad, underscoring both the would-be regime’s utter lack of capacity and the consequent likelihood of continued, if not escalating, violence, peace accords and wishful thinking notwithstanding. more.. http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.982/pub_detail.asp

Dr. J. Peter Pham we Terror Free Somalia Foundation agree assessment .. 100% We have only disagreement on issues such as recognition of Somalialand. a touchy subject in our somali community. recognition is matters for somalia community.we should be focused on the big picture . Change can only come to Somalia through reconciliation and mutual trust and respect for one another, and never on greed and clan politics! There's a perception in our somalia community DR J .Peter phan and David Sheen are pay lobbyists from Somaliland (eedoor clan).

Somali government vows to retake fallen southern town

MOGADISHU, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Somali government on Tuesday says it will recapture Kismayu, the strategic southern port town, from the Al-Shabaab Islamist fighters who seized it last month. "We will return Kismayo in government hands and we will form anall-inclusive administration for it soon," Abdiresak Ashkir Abdi, Minister for Reconciliation, told reporters in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. Fighters of the Al-Shabaab group last month seized control of the strategic city of Kismayu after three days of fierce fighting with local clan militia that had been controlling the town for nearly a year. Nearly 70 were killed in the fighting that also left more than 150 others wounded. more..http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/02/content_9758542.htm

Ethiopia Prepared To Pull Out Of Somalia

Ethiopia Prepared To Pull Out Of SomaliaBy VOA Washington, DC31 August 2008 Akwei's interview with Rashid Abdi - Listen (MP3) audio clip

New Video Released. terrorist Abu Yusuf Saalih Nabhani, ..with terrorist Mukhtaar Roobow Abu Mansuur ..........did we kill him?"

somalia - Alqaida member calls for Jihadists to come in Somalia

Salah also spoke on the current situation in Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia, in the audiovisual broadcast which lasted for some 28 minutes.

"Hi Muslims, Somalia is the frontline we can oust the enemy of Allah so we have to come here to defeat the enemy of Islam" Saleh said in the less minutes lasted disk on the internet.

Alqaida members have been viewing in the latest months Somalia as "forefront of islamists fighters.

In June, al Qaeda released a video seeking to undermine a UN-brokered peace deal that had recently been reached between the Somali transitional government and some opposition factions. Moderates rejected the call to violence, but more radical and militant groups, such as the notorious Shabab, stepped up their attacks, including toward UN personnel. They had not affirmed the connection with al Qaeda, however -- until now at least. On the heels of another peace deal -- the timing likely is not coincidental -- Shabab is proclaiming its allegiance to bin Laden.

"We are negotiating how we can unite into one," said Muktar Robow, a top military commander of Shabab, which the U.S. State Department designated a terrorist organization this year. "We will take our orders from Sheik Osama bin Laden because we are his students."

U.S. strike kills terrorist

Tuesday, March 4, 2008 ..U.S. forces found, targeted and killed in a Somali desert city the senior al Qaeda operative who masterminded the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa and had since spent a decade in hiding, The Washington Times has learned.
Whitman
Abu Yusuf Saalih Nabhani, , who is one of the FBI's most-wanted terrorists, was the target of a U.S. missile strike on a residence in Dobley, a small town in southern Somalia near the Kenyan border, according to a U.S. military official who spoke to The Times on the condition of anonymity because of the nature of the operation. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/mar/04/us-strike-kills-terrorist/t..

the new video go to Terrorist Al-Shabaab wedsite SOMALIA AL-SHABAB GROUP LINKS TO AL-QAEDA THEY HAVE WEBSITE WWW.KATAAIB.NET IN VANCOUVER WA, http://www.kataaib.net/09-2008%20Saalax%20Nabhaani.html

Barre Hirale steps up campaign against islamists

Somali MP Colonel Barre Aden Shire Hirale has heaped on aligned to the islamist fighters seized Kismyo town from His militiamen.
Militias regrouping and arming process goes in Gedo region led by the administration of the region to get rid the Islamist of Kismayo town a previous stronghold of Mr. Hirale. Hirale himself is in Ethiopia to ask Ethiopian government to help him to push out the islamists from Kismayo. Further reports say that officers accompanying Barre Hirale wish to go further into Ethiopia to meet with other Ethiopian officers. Meanwhile, the first deputy governor of Gedo Region, Muhammad Abdi Kalil, told Shabelle online that they support Barre Hirale's efforts to recapture Kismayo city.
The islamist fighters are still controlling the town. Civilians have borne the heaviest brunt of battles between Islamist fighters and the Ethiopian forces. At least 6,000 have died in the past year alone, many in Mogadishu, the scene of almost daily attacks. Some Islamists, including the spokesman Robow, have rejected a United Nations-backed truce between moderate Islamists and the government reached in June, insisting that the Ethiopians must pull out.

CAIR Gets Failing Grades at Running Ohio Charter Schools

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) released their annual school report cards this week, and the results show that two taxpayer-financed Islamic charter schools operated by officials of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) have failed miserably yet again. But protected by powerful political connections, including Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, and apparently indifferent to their exploitation of the Somali children that comprise the vast majority of their students, the Islamic extremists running the operation appear to have no fear of losing their cash cows. In fact, Ohio educrats have renewed one school’s contract after five years of complete academic failure.
The two schools, International Academy and Westside Academy, are run by a group of local Islamic leaders, including CAIR national board vice chairman Ahmad Al-Akhras, CAIR-Columbus president and CAIR-Ohio board member Abukar Arman, and Islamic Society of Greater Columbus president and imam Mouhamed Tarazi (who serves as principal of one of the schools). At one time or another, all have served on the board of the local private Islamic school in Central Ohio, Sunrise Academy.
Beginning operations in 2002, International Academy has a long track record of failure. According to the school’s most recent state report card, the school only meets two of the 19 indicators measured (one of the two indicators it met was attendance). The performance index score of 73.9 fell well short of the 100 points required (of 120 total; the state median is 96.6), but since that was slightly more than the 72.2 scored the previous school year (2006-2007) the school received a “continuous improvement” designation. Only in the Orwellian world of union-controlled, taxpayer-financed public education does this performance rate a grade of C-, thanks to some grade inflation in this year’s report cards courtesy of the ODE. more..http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/cair-gets-failing-grades-at-running-ohio-charter-schools/

Somali Christians struggle in Kenya

In a secluded house just outside the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, a group of men and women meet at least once a week to worship in secret. more http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7464035.stm