Africa's Leaders Anxiously Await Somali Presidential Vote

The African Union is awaiting the possible election of a new president of Somalia. The Horn of Africa nation's parliament could choose a new leader at a session in Djibouti later Friday, allowing him to make his debut at a gathering of AU heads of state Sunday in Addis Ababa. The prospect of fresh leadership is providing a glimmer of hope for one of Africa's failed states.Two of Africa's top diplomats, AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping and Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra have been relentlessly optimistic about the chance for a return to stability in Somalia. They are both predicting that several countries will come forward in the coming days with the troops and equipment needed to sharply increase the size and strength of the AU Somalia peacekeeping mission AMISOM.more..http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-01-30-voa1.cfm

States ink new anti-piracy deal

NEW deal to enhance co-operation between states fighting Somalian piracy has been signed by nine countries. The code of conduct was signed by eight African coastal nations and Ethiopia at a high level meeting organised by the International Maritime Organization in Djibouti this week. Signatories to the code have agreed to share information and co-operate on anti-piracy operations in the region. The agreement makes specific reference to cooperation in the “arrest, investigation and prosecution” of suspected pirates as well as boarding and seizing suspected pirate vessels. “The adoption of this instrument shows that countries in the region are willing to act concertedly and together, contributing to the ongoing efforts of the broader international community to fight the scourge of piracy and armed robbery against ships in the area,” said IMO secretary-general Efthimios Mitropoulos following the meeting. The agreement also provides for the creation of three information centres in Mombasa, Dar es Salaam and Sanaa and a training centre for anti-piracy units in Djibouti. The code is open for signature by 21 regional states however only Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania and Yemen have so far signed the deal.
Prosecuting pirates
I know it's not right. But the amount of ransom you can get is wonderful. Nowhere in Somalia is safe. You be shot or hit by a mortar just walking down the street. So rather than die poor, why not join the pirates and earn a lot of money."
Somalia: a haven for pirates Ali Ibrahim Hussein voices the opinion of a lot of young men in Somalia. He's 22 and his father is a pirate. And while Ali hasn't yet hijacked a ship himself, he is planning to follow in his father's footsteps. more,,http://www.radionetherlands.nl/thestatewerein/otherstates/tswi-090131-prosecuting-pirates

I thought I was going to be executed, says Briton taken hostage by Somali pirates on oil supertanker

A Briton taken hostage on an oil supertanker relived his 57-day ordeal at the hands of Somali pirates last night - and spoke of the moment he feared he would be executed.
Chief engineer Peter French, 45, and the 25-man crew of the Sirius Star - the largest ship ever to be hijacked - were rounded up by gunmen who had already warned them: 'If they try to rescue you we will shoot you all.'
He recalls: 'They saw flashing lights in the distance and thought it was special forces coming to storm the ship.
'They were running around shouting and screaming and waving AK47 rifles around. What they saw was from a lighthouse - but it took the captain ages to convince them. We were frightened.'more..http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1127259/I-thought-I-going-executed-says-Briton-taken-hostage-Somali-pirates-oil-supertanker.html?ITO=1490

Somali MPs electing new president Somali members of parliament are voting to elect a new president in a secret ballot in Djibouti.

Somali members of parliament are voting to elect a new president in a secret ballot in Djibouti. Frontrunners from a field of at least 14 candidates include Prime Minister Mr. Nuur Hassan Hussein (Nuur Ade)TFG from Mugdishu , the former Prime Minister of the TFG Mr Ali Mohamed Gedi from Mugdishu , , former Prime Minister of the TFG Mr. Mohamed Mohamud Guuleed Ga’mo Dheere TFG from mugdishu, Dr Ali Khaliif Galayr from somaliland the former Prime Minister fail TNG government . Mr. Ade Gaabow TFG from Mugdishu, Yusuf Omar Azhari A senior advisor to President Yusuf TFG from puntland state, and independent candidate General Masalax Mohamed Siad Barre from jubbaland state of somalia .the son of the late Somali Honourable president Mohamed Siad Barre. Mohamed Qanyare Afrah a hawiye clan former warlord from mogadishu . MPs are meeting in Djibouti because of instability in Somalia, where Islamist militias control much of the country. The election comes after the resignation of President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed in December. This week, 149 new opposition members from the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS), which is led by Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, were sworn in to parliament. But the Islamist al-Shabab militia says it will not recognise the new government. ,more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7860295.stm
Somali Lawmakers to Elect a New President Friday
http://www.voanews.com/english/Africa/2009-01-30-voa5.cfm

Fighting between Hawiye jehadist continue Hawiye town in Somali Central Region

6 dead bodies found in Dhusamareb town, about 500 kilometers (300miles) north of the capital Mogadishu, witnesses on Friday.Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca took control of Dhusamareb town from al-Shabaab after fierce fighting that killed at least 13 people and injured more than 20 others on Thursday.Residents say al-Shabab militants attacked mortars to the town last night which killed 1 person and wounded other people.Local hawiye(habar gidir) elders condemned the shelling of the town and described as brutal actions against civilians.The group Ahlu Sunna defeated al-Shabaab in Guriel town in fighting that killed 30 people on the 11th of this month including top al-shabaab officials as the Shabaab spokesman, Sheik Mukhtar Abu Mansoor confirmed.Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca is a moderate religious organization with no political ambition, but Al-shabaab militant group is fighting for to rule the country and impose their version of Sharia law.Al-shabaab has been capturing towns for the last two months, but since the Ethiopian troops withdrew their popularity decreased.
background.
death shabaab Terrorist
http://www.jamestown.org/single/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=4111
Somali Sufi Islamists seize town from Alshabab
Somalia's Al Shabaab Terrorist seize central town
Hundreds flee hawiye jehadist town
Calm returns to central somalia hawiye jehadist town
Fresh fighting starts in Central Somalia hawiye Fresh fighting starts in Central Somalia hawiye Heartland
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/08/al_qaedalinked_shaba.php

Somali MPs choose new president

Moderate Islamist leader Sheikh Sharif Ahmed has been elected Somalia's new president, after a secret ballot of members of parliament.
Mr Ahmed comfortably won a majority in a second round of voting after one of the frontrunners, Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, withdrew.
The election followed the resignation of President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed.
MPs met in Djibouti because of instability in Somalia, where Islamist militias control much of the country. more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7860295.stm
Horn of Africa nation of some 8 million people has not had a functioning government for a generation, since (usc)hawiye clan isaaq clan (snm)- militias Terrorist overthrew Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 Dark Day Dark Day .history of Somalia .January 26, 1991.Collapse of the somali nation( Key Plays) .then turned on each other hawiye barbaric and genocidal funded, very sick and twisted vediohawiye barbaric and genocidal funded, very sick and twisted vedio
Geography teacher new Somalia president
NAIROBI, Kenya -- Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, once depicted as the dangerous leader of "Africa's Taliban," has emerged from Somalia's violent chaos as a moderate figure to claim the war-torn country's presidency.The young cleric was elected by parliament during a session in Djibouti on Saturday and succeeds Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, who resigned from the helm of the transitional administration last month after a bitter power struggle.more..http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20090131-186666/Geography-teacher-new-Somalia-president
The Horn of Africa nation has been plagued by chaos and clan-based civil war since when hawiye Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATESM ,(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 Videos: Jihad Camp in Somalia; English-Speaking Recruits WWW.KATAAIB.NET IN VANCOUVER WA, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR BILL WARNER... Most of the Terrorist are from Hawiye tribe (al-shabaab) The leadership is mostly sub-clans of Hawiye (Habar Gidir clan) With The Exception Of OGADEN CLAN http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB2mnoXLoec&feature=related (ONLF )own hassan turki(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasan_Hersi) and Abu Mansur a foot soldier from al-Qaeda any talks with Al-Shabab which is opposed to both the TFG and the Union of Islamic Courts. most of Mostly Hawiye Insurgents are from Somali clan of ,Habar Gidir group (itself a Hawiye subclan). Hawiye subclan).Dark Day .history of Somalia .January 26, 1991.Collapse of the somali nation( Key Plays)

Once More Into The Breach

Like Linus van Pelt sitting alone in the pumpkin patch, George Mitchell, Obama's special envoy to the Middle East, is in that dysfunctional region thinking that if he and the Obama administration demonstrate enough sincerity the diplomatic equivalent of the Great Pumpkin will arrive, making all things right. Mitchell's mission is bound to fail, like every mission before it, including Henry Kissinger's "shuttle diplomacy," for the simple reason that peace and stability are not about us, but about them. Their road to hell is paved with our good intentions.In his first interview since becoming president, Mr. Obama said to Al-Arabiya, a Dubai-based satellite television network, "Americans are not your enemy." No, but we are the enemy of many of them and that is where the problem lies. The president suggested the Bush administration had contributed to frayed relations with the Arab and Muslim world. Few presidents have pushed harder for a Palestinian state than George W. Bush and he got nowhere because the objective of America's (and Israel's) enemies is not a Palestinian state, but no Israeli state and, eventually, no United States.more..http://www.caglepost.com/column/Cal+Thomas/86617/Once+More+Into+The+Breach.html

President gives first interview since taking office to Arab TV

TRANSCRIPT

In his first interview since taking office, President Barack Obama told Arab satellite station Al Arabiya that Americans are not the enemy of the Muslim world and said Israel and the Palestinians should resume peace negotiations.“My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy,” Obama told Al Arabiya’s Hisham Melhem in an interview broadcast Tuesday morning.During the presidential election campaign last year, Obama vowed to improve U.S. ties with the Muslim world and after he won promised to give a speech in a Muslim capital in his first 100 days in office. The President repeated this pledge in the interview but did not give a time or specify the venue.more..http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/01/27/65087.html

Even in exile, Somali journalists face death..Question is By Whom? .. hawiye criminal ..Hawiye Terrorist

Since 2007, at least 13 journalists have been killed while working on stories and more than 50 have been forced to leave the country, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists and the National Union of Somali Journalists.
Nairobi, Kenya - When Somali government forces found Osman during an operation in a village outside of Mogadishu on March 9, 2007, they arrested him and sent him off to jail to face interrogation, beatings, and torture. Osman was not a terrorist or an anti-government militant. He was a journalist working for HornAfrik, a Somali-language news organization that had been critical of the Transitional Federal Government's military operations, in which innocent civilians were often the chief victims. "This is the man we want," Osman recalls the commanding officer saying, as he was carted away. "Because of the hate they have for the media, and especially when I said I worked for HornAfrik, they had me beaten, tortured." (Osman's name – and those of the other Somali journalists interviewed in this story – have been changed because of threats to their lives, even in exile.) For the next 11 days, Osman faced a very uncertain future. "They wanted to kill me, but some of them understood that – with the kind of work that I do – that there could be repercussions if I was killed outright, so they put me in jail," says Osman, speaking in the office of a sympathetic Somali peace organization in the Eastleigh suburb of Kenya's capital, Nairobi. "But there was a lot of pressure on the state from the international community, so that is how I was released." more..http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0129/p04s01-woaf.html they Threatens to Kill Kidnapped all Journalist .. not only Somali journalists .. you have to be Parts of the Hawiye clan Propaganda .. it has been like that since hawiye Terrorist Take Over somalia. Dark Day .history of Somalia .January 26, 1991.Collapse of the somali nation
People & Power - The toxic truth - -Part 1 hawiye criminal Ali Mahdi

Ilaria Alpi

who was investigating arms trafficking and the illegal disposal of toxic waste off the coasts of Somalia

terrorists using western media.. BBC interviews the FBI most-wanted man in SOMALIA terrorist Hasan Turki

http://terrorfreesomalia.blogspot.com/2008/11/somalias-interim-president-abdullahi.html

A BBC producer who was killed in Somalia felt she had to go to prove her commitment, her sister told an inquest. Kate Peyton, 39, of Beyton, Suffolk, was shot in Mogadishu in February 2005

Amanda lindhout

journalist released, foreign journalists still hostage for habar-gidir ( These hawiye savage's)

Problems in the VOA-Somali Service

http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/problems_in_the_voasomali_serv.html

Problems in the VOA-Somali Service (Part Two)

Who do pirates call to get their cash?

The hijacking of ships off the coast of Somalia has become a mini-industry, with another seized on Thursday. The ransoms are always paid - but how? Simon Cox goes on the money trail and finds all roads lead to one destination: London. Piracy off the coast of Somalia is big business. Last year alone pirate gangs were paid an estimated £35m from holding scores of ships and hundreds of crew members to ransom.But securing their release is the responsibility of a hidden mini-industry of lawyers, negotiators and security teams based nearly 7,000km (4,200 miles) away, in London, UK, the business capital of the world's maritime industry.
The key players in this sector like to keep their activities as discreet as possible but in my investigation I gained access to people involved in every part of the ransom chain.
When a ship's owner discovers one of their fleet has been hijacked, the first port of call for them is normally to a lawyer like Stephen Askins, whose firm is one of the few that deals with kidnaps and ransoms at sea. Cannot play media. Sorry, this media is not available in your territory.
"We would expect to be called early," says Mr Askins. "And how you then deal with the negotiations will be a team decision. more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7847351.stm

Eating In A War Zone

Few lights flickered over the water from the Somalian port city of Mogadishu as Cmdr. Chris Dickinson kept watch in darkness from the safety of the Canadian warship Ville du Quebec. Aside from a string of beacons marking the seaport, all he could see was the occassional vehicle’s taillight in the city of about a million people. In the blackness of the Indian Ocean, he felt as if he were on another planet.
He had left Halifax on July 17, heading to the Mediterranean for a NATO counter-terrorism mission under the command of a Spanish admiral. But he was soon ordered to the east coast of Africa, where from Aug. 8 to Oct. 22, 2008, he took 20 trips across the equator from Kenya to Somalia. His mission was to keep modern-day pirates away from the precious cargoes of food carried by 10 freighters. His reward would not be a king’s ransom, but rather the satisfaction of seeing daily sustenance delivered to suffering people in need. more..http://www.seemagazine.com/article/news/news-main/food0129/

Nigerian set to deploy troops to Somalia, says senior military officer

APA - Lagos (Nigeria) The out-going Commander of the Nigeria Armoured Corps Centre and School in Bauchi in northern Nigeria, Major-General Sale Maina, disclosed here Wednesday that the Nigerian government has concluded arrangements to deploy troops to Somalia as part of a United Nations mission to restore peace in that war-torn country.
Speaking during the handing over ceremony of the Corps to the newly appointed Commander, Major-General Sunday Idoko on Wednesday in Bauchi, about 420km from Abuja, Maina said that a battalion of the Nigeria Army had been picked to take part in the peacekeeping mission in Somalia, adding that the soldiers would soon leave for Somalia.
"Soldiers from the armoured corps centre have participated in operations in Darfur and Congo," Maina said.
He said their participation in various missions had contributed positively in enhancing peace and security in many countries across the globe. more..http://www.apanews.net/apa.php?page=conflits_article_eng&id_article=87215

Presidential contenders to display their political agendas before the MPS

The Somali presidential candidates in Djibouti are going to display their political agendas before the newly inclusive parliamentarians of Somalia, . Reports from Djibouti say that the candidates are in their last preparation for the election and want to bring their profiles and political agendas before the legislatures in Djibouti to succeed the presidential election due to be held in Djibouti on Friday. The two front runners, Nur Hassan Husein known as (Nur Adde), the prime minister of the transitional government and Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, the chairman of the Alliance for the Re-libration of Somali (ICU)\USC are supposed to come before the parliament and explain their agendas about the election on Thursday.Both men have great support from the sides they are representing, the TFG and ARS in Djibouti and expected to face challenge for the post of the nation’s presidency.
There are other candidates including Prime Minister Mr. Nuur Hassan Hussein (Nuur Ade)TFG from Mugdishu , the former Prime Minister of the TFG Mr Ali Mohamed Gedi from Mugdishu , , former Prime Minister of the TFG Mr. Mohamed Mohamud Guuleed Ga’mo Dheere TFG from mugdishu, Dr Ali Khaliif Galayr from somaliland the former Prime Minister fail TNG government . Mr. Ade Gaabow TFG from Mugdishu, Yusuf Omar Azhari A senior advisor to President Yusuf TFG from puntland state, and independent candidate General Masalax Mohamed Siad Barre from jubbaland state of somalia . Mohamed Qanyare Afrah a hawiye clan former warlord from mogadishu TFG who was once the candidate of the TFG established in Kenya in 2004.The presidential election committee named by the Somali parliament speaker Sheik Aden Mohamed Nur said they are too busy for the election and told reporters that each candidate will be given 5 minutes to address before the legislature.

Pirates hijack tanker in Gulf of Aden

NAIROBI, Kenya - Somali pirates hijacked a German gas tanker and its 13-man crew Thursday in the Gulf of Aden, the third ship captured off the Horn of Africa this month.
The MV Longchamp, registered in the Bahamas, is managed by the German firm Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, which said in a statement that seven pirates boarded the tanker early Thursday.
Spokesman Andre Delau said the ship's master had been briefly allowed to communicate with the firm and had said the crew of 12 Filipinos and one Indonesian were safe. more..http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28910260/

3-German-owned tanker hijacked in Gulf of Aden

NAIROBI, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Somali pirates hijacked a German-owned tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas on Thursday, the first ship seized in the Gulf of Aden in nearly four weeks.
A decline in the rate of successful attacks since foreign navies rushed to the busy sea lane has raised optimism among shippers that the menace was being curbed, but pirates have been seeking ways to evade the warships.
The Longchamp was hijacked with a crew of 12 Filipinos and one Indonesian as it was headed from Europe to the Far East, Andrew Mwangura, of the East African Seafarers Assistance Programme, told Reuters.
Hamburg-based ship operator Bernard Schulte Shipmanagement confirmed the hijacking. It said no demands had been made. more..http://af.reuters.com/article/somaliaNews/idAFLT74018720090129

Ahlu Sunna takes control of provincial town (habar-gidir town)hawiye

DHUSAMAREB - Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca took control of Dhusamareb town from al-Shabaab after fierce fighting that killed at least 10 people and injured more than 15 others, witnesses said on Thursday.Residents say the warring sides used heavy weapons during the fighting and the sound of gunfire could be heard around Dhusamareb, the provincial town of Galgadud region.
The fighting started after Ahlu Sunna fighters with armoured vehicles attacked the town from two sides.The group Ahlu Sunna defeated al-Shabaab in Guriel town in fighting that killed 30 people on the 11th of this month including top al-shabaab officials as the Shabaab spokesman, Sheik Mukhtar Abu Mansoor confirmed.Reports from the city say that the fighting stopped and the situation of the town is reportedly calm now.Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca is a moderate religious organization with no political ambition, but Al-shabaab militant group is fighting for to rule the country and impose their version of Sharia law.Al-shabaab has been capturing towns for the last two months, but since the Ethiopian troops withdrew their popularity decreased.

Government In Exile; Islamists Take Over

Morning Edition, January 29, 2009 · Somalia hasn't had a functioning government since 1991, but this week, the transitional government collapsed completely. A group of radical Islamist fighters overran the seat of government in the town of Baidoa and declared Shariah law.
Somali government leaders are gathered in the neighboring country of Djibouti. If they want to return to Somalia, chances are they will have to fight their way in.
The exiled leaders plan to choose a new president in the coming days, but Musa Jama, a Somali textile trader, says he's not optimistic. more..http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99995400

Somalia Falls to Islamists … Again

Two years after U.S. and Ethiopian forces invaded Somalia and deposed the ruling Islamic Courts regime, Islamists now are back in control of the East African country. Islamists’ reconquest of Somalia represents the failure of the Bush Administration’s “proxy” strategy for waging the “war on terror” in Africa, using armies such as Ethiopia’s to do most of the fighting. Despite a lack of strong evidence, the Bush Administration had accused the Islamic Courts of colluding with Al Qaeda — and used that to justify supporting the Ethiopian invasion. By contrast, today’s dominant Islamic group, Al Shabab, truly has been radicalized by two years of insurgent warfare and publicly has proclaimed its alignment with Al Qaeda’s global jihad.
During their one-year rule over much of Somalia, the Islamic Courts had welcomed foreign investment in Somalia. Al Shabab has been much less open to foreigners. Two Western journalists were abducted by Al-Shabab fighters outside Mogadishu in August and are being held for ransom.more..http://www.offiziere.ch/?p=1003

Opposition MPs sworn in as Somali plan advances

DJIBOUTI, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Somalia's parliament voted on Wednesday to extend its mandate until August 2011 and began swearing in new members from the opposition Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS).
The moves showed politicians in the Horn of Africa nation are pressing ahead quickly with a U.N.-brokered reconciliation process being hosted in neighbouring Djibouti, and make it more likely a new president will be elected there this week.
The previous Western-backed government failed to establish stability in a country where more than 16,000 civilians have been killed in the past two years. The chaos onshore has allowed piracy to flourish in Somalia's waters more..http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LS231477.htm

Missing Somali Teens May Be Terrorist Recruits

Morning Edition, January 28, 2009 · Just hours before President Barack Obama took the oath of office, the FBI had word from overseas of a possible terrorist attack. The threat was linked to a Somali hard-line jihadist group called al-Shabab, or The Youth.
The threat came at a time when the FBI was focused on what looked like a massive recruitment effort of young men from Somali communities in the U.S. As many as two dozen of them have disappeared from Minneapolis alone in the past year.
Federal agents are worried these young men are training in Somalia and could end up returning to the U.S. to launch a terrorist attack.
The most recent disappearances happened last November, on Election Day. That's when 17-year-old Burhan Hassan and six of his friends seemed to vanish. As the rest of the Somali community in the Twin Cities' Cedar-Riverside neighborhood were watching the election returns, the boys slipped away, boarded a plane and headed to Africa. more..http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99919934&ft=1&f=1012

Presidential elections to be held on Friday 30 Jan

The new MPs of the Djibouti-based [ARS]\(icu)\\(usc)will be sworn in, in the coming new hours. The new members will participate in the election of the president of national unity government.The current Speaker Sheikh Adan Modobe who is also the acting president will convene a meeting for the house at around 1000am local time. The new 275 members of the ARS will attend the meeting and will be sworn in before the other parliamentarians.Meanwhile, Abdirahman Abdishakur, who represents the ARS in the Djibouti talks said presidential elections will be held on FridayHe urged the elites, business community, politicians and the Somali people to support whatever that comes out of Djibouti talks. He also urged them to support and work with whoever that will be elected as Somali president on the same Friday so as to resolve the current problem.Abdishakur urged the armed factions to lay down their weapons and join the national unity government that will be formed in Djibouti. He urged the Somali people to isolate any group that will not support the Djibouti peace.

Feds Order Al Qaeda in Somalia (Al-Shabaab) Website Closed

Good things come to those who are persistent and wait patiently.
The Mujahideen "al-Shabaab" Youth Movement is a Somali based group of al-Qaeda linked terrorists. They are closely associated with the African Courts Union, who we often like to call the African Taliban, but are even more radical. Their US based website has been closed by government order. The group was declared an officially designated terrorist entity back in March of 08. Complaints have been sent to their Host, Dotster, for quite some time. We started complaining to Dotster about this site in February after it was resurrected from an earlier take down by the Jawas. Dotster repeatedly refused to remove the site without a Government Order. Citing the free speech rights of these terrorists even after they were declared an officially designated terrorist entity by the U.S. State Department. Dotster also questioned the validity of the site, asking us to prove the site belonged to al-Shabbab despite all the evidence that is/was their official website. Well, the creaky old wheels of government have finally turned! After 8 months and no telling how many "suddenly missing" members of the US Somali community showing up for Jihad in Somalia the government, most likely the FBI or the Dept of Commerce's Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), has at last given the order to shut the site. A quick look at the whois for kataaib.net shows http://kataaib.net/ = [ ] Domain pending cancelation per government orderWell, better late than never.... Eventually. Hat Tip: Kyros at Report on Arrakis. The last big announcement on the website was that after the Ethiopian withdrawal al-Shabbab began rounding up and eliminating those who had worked with the provisional government, the African Union and the UN. So hopefully this will somewhat disrupt their outgoing communications and recruiting. But don't get get too excited, as the closing of the site did not stop al-Shabbab from murdering 15 people today. Cross posted from Howie's Moisture Farm. Always over three times as moist as your ordinary crappy blog! UPDATE by Rusty: An interesting sidenote to this is that the Abu Shabaab blog was taken down the same day last month, thanks to Howie. The owner of that site vehemently claims that he is not a member of the Shabaab, but that his website exists only to translate Shabaab statements. I've communicated with him through email in the past. The timing of his website going bye-bye suggests there is more than a passing friendly relationship between the blogger and the group's official U.S. hosted website. There has been some discussion & speculation among the Jawas as to what triggered the order for the website to be shut down. Here's where we need some help: have there been any reports of Somalis being arrested in the past week in the U.S. or Europe? Go ahead and e-mail tips to mypetjawa(at)gmail.com Updated again by Howie: Despite the closing of the two websites, Youtube is still hosting these related youtube accounts. http://www.youtube.com/user/Shabaab0AlmujahideenLast sign in, two days ago....http://www.youtube.com/user/hayraanLast sign in two months ago.
Another Update by Rusty: 15 Americans arrested in Somalia. Four in one roundup, and eleven more in another. So, was the sting related to the closure of the website?http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/cat_counterterrorism.php

Al Shabaab's Kataaib.net site pwned!