Aid groups mull leaving Somalia

Somalia has seen a surge in fighting, despite a ceasefire pact last month
Humanitarian agencies in Somalia are considering suspending operations after two aid workers were shot dead in less than 24 hours.. more..http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7505135.stm

IslamistsTerrorist kill guard in southern Somalia

Reports reaching us from Middle Jubba, southern Somalia, indicate that forces loyal to Terrorist al shabaab have shot dead the bodyguard of a local in Bu'ale. The bodyguard was working for a local organization, Al-Nasri, which distributes food on behalf of the World Food Programme in rural areas. Abdiwali Bashir Ahmad, who is the managing director of the organization, spoke on the killing of the bodyguard.“ The sheikhs [the UIC forces] are in town. The bodyguard wanted to escort food rations that were to be distributed in the outskirts of Bu'ale and the al shabaab Terrorist ordered him to leave his gun behind, He refused and they shot him dead” Ahmed Said.

Somalia's defence minister, Ethiopian army officers in security talks

A secret meeting has taken place in Badoia city, the capital of Bay Region [south-central Somalia], between interim Somali government defence minister Muhyidin Muhammad Hajji Ibrahim and senior Ethiopian army officers who have been in the city these past two days.
In the two-day meeting, which ended yesterday, the two sides discussed cooperation in maintenance of security in Somalia, which has been lately worsening. more..http://www.mareeg.com/fidsan.php?sid=6824&tirsan=3

The woman who dared

NAIROBI, Kenya - Somalia as a country has been known for 18 years albeit for the wrong reasons. It is a country that has been known for devastating civil strife that has rendered thousands homeless and has seen numerous people killed. Some have been even harsh enough to describe it as a failed state. This state of affairs has blinded many people to any good news that emanates from that country.http://www.garoweonline.com/artman2/publish/Features_34/Somalia_The_Woman_who_dared.shtml

Somalia: Islamist spokesman supports aid worker killings

MOGADISHU, A man who spoke on behalf of an armed Islamist group in Somalia has claimed responsibility for a spate of recent assassinations, mainly targeting local and foreign aid workers.The spokesman, who identified himself only as Sheikh Mohamed, said during an audio recording that aid agencies "assist" Ethiopian troops and Somalia's interim government forces.Sheikh Mohamed specifically signaled out the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which he said funds the Somali army.
Further, he accused UNDP of aiding Ethiopia's 2006 invasion, which ousted the Islamic Courts movement from Mogadishu, saying: "The UN agencies took part in the war that destroyed the Islamic Courts, and they [UN] gave weapons, money and fuel to troops fighting against the Mujahidiin (Islamic fighters)."A number of aid workers have been killed in Mogadishu and other parts of Somalia since last month, with the UN and local aid agencies now considering to halt their operations there.
Source: Garowe Online

AU deplores killing of aid workers in Somalia

MOGADISHU, July 14 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) condemned the recent spate of killing of humanitarian workers in Somalia and expressed a need for the perpetrators to be brought to book, a statement from AU peacekeeping mission in Somalia said Monday.
The statement was issued at the end of a two-day working visit to Mogadishu by Nicolas Bwakira, the special representative of the chairperson of the African Union for Somalia. more.. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-07/15/content_8545481.htm

Anti-terror task force discloses suspects of acts of terror in Addis Ababa seized, identified

Addis Ababa- Suspects of terror bombings perpetrated at a few places on different days in Addis Ababa in 2000 E.C. have been seized, disclosed the Joint Anti-terror Task Force of the National Intelligence and Security Service and the Federal Police. more..http://www.ena.gov.et/EnglishNews/2008/Jul/12Jul08/62648.htm

Al-Shabab Terrorist have arrived in Bardheer town

Fighters loyal to the Al-Shabab Terrorist have arrived in Bardheer town of Gedo Region, southwestern Somalia, without encountering any resistance residents said. Al-Shabab Terrorist, who came from Sakow District in Middle Jubba Region, arrived in Bardhere at around five o'clock later on sunday. the islamists faced no resistance at all during their arrival. The arrival of Alshabab Terrorist comes at a time when a new police force was being sworn-in; some of them were taking oath the same afternoon while Some of the policemen received their uniforms.Some fighters immediately positioned themselves at the town's intersection bridge and dismissed the police officers stationed at the bridge. There has been no reaction to the arrival of Al-Shabab fighters from the administration of the town. The commander of the fighters, Muhammad Isma'il "Dhagay", Terrorist led by senior official called Hasan Yaqub had earlier arrived in Bardhere town in the past weeks. The official (Hasan Yaqub) by then addressed the locals at central in the town, and promised that they would not interfere with the town's administration, adding that they were on mission to visit and brief their work. the residents have raised different opinions on the arrival of Alshabab fighters., Some of them are saying that it was not right for Al-Shabab Terrorist to enter Bardhere town currently, pointing out that Gedo Region is one of the peaceful regions in Somalia, hence no reason for Al-Shabab to enter it while others said that is was proper the arrival of Alshabab because of the tightening the security of the town.Fighting between Terrorist insurgents and Ethiopian and Somali troops is escalating in some parts of south and central Somalia in defiance of a cease-fire agreement signed by the Somali government and some members of the opposition last month

Spokesman for Somalia’s Police Forces Chides Hawiya Clan Elders

Mogadishu, Somalia - Spokesman Somalia’s Police Forces Mr. Abdullahi Hasan Barise blamed Hawiye clan elders of inconsistency and hypocrisy. Mr. Barise said that Hawiye clan elders always talk about violations against civilians but never talk about the killings against aid workers and attacks on senior government officials. “[Hawiye] Clan elders are not impartial and seem to support one side, therefore I advise them to be impartial about the problems in the country”, Mr. Barise said. As an example, the spokesman talked about recent killings which took place at Daynile district in Mogadishu which he said Hawiye clan elders characterized as killings against civilian who were taken out of their homes but in reality were people fighting against Ethiopian and Transitional Federal Government (TFG) troops. The spokesman concluded his words with a call to residents in the district of Daynile who have been fleeing their homes for fear of attacks by Ethiopian and TFG troops and said that no one will harm them and that they should stay at their homes.

Puntalnd Forces Take Control of Lasqorey

Troops loyal to Puntland government OF SOMALIA took control of Lasqoray city today after Somaliland forces withdrew from the city. Senior administrators of Sanag region under Puntland government said there was no fighting between the two sides in the city. Speaking to media in Bossaso, the Governor of Sanag region Mohamud Said Nur Dabayl said that this was the result of heavy deployment of Puntland forces in Lasqoray which was under the control of Somaliland government. Somaliland troops that withdrew from Lasqoray are reported to have reached the city of Erigavo which is currently under Somaliland administration. It is not clear if Somaliland forces will return to Lasqoray. Reports say Puntland forces are carrying out now military operations in the city. Lasqoray, a coastal city in north-eastern Somalia now appears to be calm and residents are less anxious than when troops from the two sides were facing each other for possible showdown. There is no statement from Somaliland government with regards to the take over of Lasqoray by Puntland troops. There is, however, high tension in the city of Almadow in Ayl region where German citizens are being held captive. Puntland and Somaliland administrations are at odds on control of several areas in their border. Each side claims rights to govern those areas under different reasons. Puntland is a semi-autonomous region in north-eastern of Somalia while Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 although no government has recognized it yet.

Senegal urges African countries to deploy troops without further delay

Addis Ababa, July 12 (WIC) – Senegal called on African countries which pledged to contribute troops to African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) to urgently deploy the peacekeepers.

Senegal's Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the AU and ECA, Ambassador Amadou Kebe,said additional peacekeepers are needed to pacify the country that has been marred by civil strife for years. more ..http://www.waltainfo.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1290&Itemid=45

Ethio-Somali soldiers search in Mogadishu district

Hundreds of Ethiopian-Somali troops took new positions around Deynile neighborhood where they started searching for Islamists fighters in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, witnesses said on Saturday. "We woke up with Somali soldiers in front of our houses, they are searching for weapons and armed men," said Mohamed Abdulle who lives in Deynile. The soldiers have sealed off at the strategic area in the district of the 5th school and former military college of called (Jalle Siad) deeply entering in Radar-ka and the animal stock market of Deynile.The soldiers have taken positions in the buildings and some civilian houses where the soldiers are vigilantly guarding.“They came in our house and asked us whether insurgents were in, but we all were women “they reproached us and left” said Fatima Nor Abdi a resident.Vehicles have been denied use of the main roads in the district.The Somali transitional government, with the help of Ethiopian soldiers and Ugandan peacekeepers, has been trying to secure the seaside city of two million since the defeat of the UIC late last month. The Government &Ethiopian troops have been conducting house-to-house searches for weapons and suspected members of the defeated Islamists for long time but the residents in Mogadishu accuse the government and Ethiopian troops off civilian killings.The transitional federal government was formed in 2004 national reconciliation conference in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi

Fiancee of would-be bomber jailed

LONDON (AFP) - A woman was jailed for three years Friday for helping her fiance flee in a burka after he tried to blow himself up during a wave of failed suicide bombings in London in 2005. Fardosa Abdullahi, 20, gave Yassin Omar -- jailed for at least 40 years last year after his conviction for conspiracy to murder -- her mother's burka to help him get out of London the day after the failed attacks on July 21, 2005. Omar is thought to have been one of the ringleaders of a plot to blow up three London underground trains and a bus, which came two weeks after suicide bombers killed 52 people on the city's public transport system.
The six foot two inches (1.88 metre) tall extremist also shaved his arms and carried a white handbag for his bus journey from London to Birmingham, central England, the day after the failed attack.
He was arrested in Birmingham five days later by armed police.
At the Central Criminal Court, or Old Bailey, in London, Judge Paul Worsley rejected an argument that Abdullahi, of north London, should be spared jail because she is pregnant and had a long history of mental illness.
"The message must go out that this court will not go soft on those who assist terrorists -- even those who are young, vulnerable and under pressure, as you undoubtedly are," the judge said.
He added that, as a Somali who had been given leave to remain by British immigration, Abdullahi had a "responsibility to this country (which) should have been greater than your responsibility to your husband or fiance".
She and Omar got engaged just four days before the failed attacks, the court heard.
Abullahi had pleaded guilty to a charge of assisting an offender last month.
As well as helping Omar to dress as a Muslim woman, the charge against her said she had provided him with a telephone and given police false information.
Her sentencing brings to an end a series of cases in which 16 people have been convicted of offences linked to the failed suicide bombings.

Kenya fears falling victim to Somalia conflict

As fighting rages on in Somalia after years of wars between Ethiopia and Eritrea, Kenya fears the bloodshed may soon be headed its way – lead by Al-Qa’ida.After pushing for African forces to be deployed in support of Somalia’s transitional government, Kenya is having second thoughts about a possible showdown in neighboring Somalia.A growing number of politicians and analysts fear a new war in Somalia could trigger hostilities against a badly-prepared Kenya, and turn it into a second battlefield of the Eritrea-Ethiopia conflict more.http://yementimes.com/article.shtml?i=1166&p=report&a=3

Somalia news.

Shabab spokesman Sheikh Muqtar Robow called on all Islamist groups to converge on Baidoa and attack Ethiopian and government forces. Shabab troops beheaded government soldiers in a nearby town. Two Somali soldiers were killed in Mogadishu. The DBG aid group suspended operations after one of its employees was murdered.

Puntland Troops Prepare to Regain Town

Las Qorey, (somalia) - A full-scale war could break out within days between Puntland and its neighboring breakaway republic of Somaliland following Somaliland troops have seized the coastal town of Lasqoray from Puntland forces.Residents told insidesomalia.org that Somaliland troops entered in the town without resistance.Heavily armed Puntland troops have started to move out to the seized town where additional Somaliland troops as well arrived in to stand firm against their rivals.Military officials in the semiautonomous puntland vowed that they would expel the Somaliland troops from the strategic Lasqoray town.The two administrations have clashed several times over the ownership of Sanaag region.Lasqoray town is in Sanag region it is disputed by Somalia and Somaliland.Lasqoray is a city that is booming and in a rapid growth as new small factories are being opened and formed in Laasqoray. Similar to any other city or district in Sanaag that is the motive the two administrations are rivaling the town.This city is also surrounded by beautiful mountains known locally as Cal Madow, which has internationally valuable un-exploited mineral deposits and unique natural habitats, which are part of Somalias heritage.The residents of the town have expressed additional concern on new fighting that might erupt in the town

Somaliland and the Union of Islamic Courts’ peculiar relationship
by Mohamed JibrellThe Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) were defeated and chased from their last stronghold in Mogadishu in December 2006. Except for few remnants engaged in hit and run, Alqaeda style skirmishes, the UIC fighting capacity has been very much degraded. But it seems that through the unholy convergence of interests between the Mogadishu insurgents and the Somaliland secessionist administration in Hargeisa, their luck seems to be turning for the better. Through the urgings of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), hell bent on the destabilization of Puntland, Somaliland invaded and occupied Puntland's most historic city, Laascaanod. They have also embarked on unsuccessful attempts at the occupation of the major cities of Sanaag.. more..http://www.garoweonline.com/artman2/publish/Opinion_20/Somalia_Somaliland_and_the_Union_of_Islamic_Courts_peculiar_relationship.shtml

Guelleh Sees Eritrean Leaders Paranoid, Frustrated

The recent summit of the African Union (AU) heads of state held at Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, condemned what it called Eritrean military action against Djibouti. This follows an Eritrean incursion to Ras Dumera in April 2008, a territory north of Djibouti. Although boycotted by Eritrea, the Summit demanded a complete withdrawal of soldiers by Eritrea from the disputed areas and for a peaceful resolution of the problem. It is another demand from a multilateral organization. The Security Council of the United Nations passed a similar resolution in June.more http://www.addisfortune.com/Guelleh%20Sees%20Eritrean%20Leaders%20Paranoid-Frustrated.htm

Mayor of Beled Weyne Accuses Islamic Courts of Worsening Violence

The Mayor of Beled Weyne (the provincial town of Hiiraan Region), Adan Abdi Ise (Garaso), has accused the Islamic Courts Union of causing troubles and displacing people in the town...more.http://allafrica.com/stories/200807090580.html

African Union demands sanctions against Somalia peace spoilers

ADDIS ABABA (AFP) - The African Union (AU) demanded UN sanctions against all Somali parties hampering last month's truce agreement and whose implementation was due to begin Wednesday. http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080709/wl_africa_afp/somaliaunrestafricanunion_080709110444

State Department Press Release Murder of United Nations Official Sun, 06 Jul 2008 23:00:00 -0500

Press Statement Sean McCormack Washington, DC
Somalia - Murder of United Nations Official
The United States condemns the murder of Osman Ali Ahmed, Officer in Charge of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Mogadishu, Somalia. We offer our sympathy and condolences to Ahmed's family and colleagues, and appreciate Somali and African Union medical efforts to save Ahmed's life.
Ahmed's murder, a brutal act that occurred as he, his son and brother left a mosque after prayers, highlights the determination of violent extremists to attack the right to worship and to silence moderate voices working for peace and lasting stability in Somalia. The United States calls on all Somalis to work together through peaceful dialogue and compromise in the spirit of the June 9 Djibouti Agreement and to ensure the safety of all humanitarian staff in Somalia.
2008/552

Security Council condemns killing of UN official in Somalia

The UN Security Council on Tuesday strongly condemned the killing of the head of the UN Development Program (UNDP) in Somalia, who was gunned down by unidentified assailants in the strife-torn nation's capital.. http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90856/6444739.html

UN agency driver killed NAIROBI, Kenya - The U.N. food agency says Somali gunmen have shot and killed one of its drivers in southern Somalia. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080709/ap_on_re_af/somalia_un_driver_1
Gunmen kill fourth U.N. driver in Somalia.http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/07/09/somalia.driver/index.html?section=cnn_latest

Al Qaida groups 'leaving Iraq for Sudan, Somalia'

Baghdad: Some groups of Al Qaida terror network in Iraq have started leaving the country towards other hot spots in Africa like Sudan and Somalia, security sources tell Gulf News.
A key reason behind the change in strategy by the so-called Al Qaida Organisation in Mesopotamia is the intensity of the latest military strikes launched by Iraqi and US forces against the network, which has been the major challenge to restoring the stability of Iraq, the sources said. "Our intelligence information indicates the withdrawal of certain groups of Al Qaida from Iraq because of the military strikes. Many of them have escaped through the borders with Syria and Iran to hotter zones such as Somalia and Sudan," Major General Hussain Ali Kamal, head of the Investigation and Information Agency at the Interior Ministry, told Gulf News."I believe this is the beginning of the complete withdrawal of Al Qaida from Iraqi territory."
A source at Iraqi Ministry of National Security said that documents and letters found in hideouts of "some elements of Al Qaida" during search operations in Sunni suburbs in Baghdad, which were previously under the control of Al Qaida, "prove these elements left Iraq for Somalia and Sudan". The information, which could not be confirmed by independent sources, could represent a victory for the Iraqi government, headed by Nouri Al Maliki.
The number of bloody attacks by Al Qaida has declined remarkably in Baghdad in the past 12 months, an indication the terror network faces a difficult situation on the ground, said Major General Abdul Jalil Khalaf, former police commander in Basra province.
"This also highlights the increasingly improving performance of the Iraqi armed forces and the speed by which they can operate in different places," Khalaf told Gulf News. Khalaf, who is said to be considered for a top post at the Ministry of Defence, said the recent campaign against the Shiite militias in Basra negatively affected Al Qaida. "Al Qaida began to lose a lot of sympathy on the Sunni streets after realising that Al Maliki government launched a war against the Shiites fighters, believed to be backed by Iran." The latest political rapprochement between Iraq and other Arab states has also led to the weakening Al Qaida and "its gradual withdrawal from Iraq", he explained. But Khalaf warned hat Al Qaida will not withdraw fully from Iraq. "This will take years," he saidhttp://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/08/07/08/10226998.html

Making War On Foreign Aid Workers

Islamic terrorists are believed to be killing and kidnapping foreign aid workers in retaliation for U.S. missile attacks on terrorist leaders (especially the May 1st attack that killed Aden Hashi Ayro, al Qaeda's top man in Somalia). Actually, the Islamic radical groups won't come right out and say that revenge is the reason for the increased violence, but reports about sermons in mosques and speeches by pro-Islamic warlords indicates a desire to "cleanse" Somalia of all the non-Moslems (especially the Ethiopians). The Islamic terrorists have good reason to want the Ethiopians gone, for these troops are there mainly to destroy the Islamic radicals. It is the Islamic radicals who preach the need to invade Ethiopia and destroy this Christian nation in a Moslem region. The Ethiopians have resisted this sort of thing for over a thousand years, and tend to get a little intense when their destruction is discussed so openly by the Somalis. more..http://www.strategypage.com/qnd/somalia/articles/20080707.aspx