Shabelle Media: Somali president, parliament speaker disagree naming new PM
After crucial lengthy meeting held in the Somalia capital Mogadishu, the president of Somalia, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and the parliament speaker, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adam have disagreed naming new prime minister.
The meeting is said to have lasted for several hours as some of Mogadishu journalists, who were invited by the president to named the new PM, had deserted after being told the ceremony was postponed.
Before that the resigned prime minister and the minister of international cooperation have joined the meeting between Somali president and parliament speaker in Villa Somalia.
After minutes, parliament speaker walked out with his face appearing to be very angry, according to the journalists who reached at Villa Somalia.
Last night, the two leaders had reportedly agreed the minister of international cooperation, Abdiwai Mohamed Ali to be named as Somalia’s next prime minister, but later parliament speaker refused.
From Tuesday,
Somalia Report (scroll down):
Yet Adan is not comfortable with the lurking presence of Farmajo, and literally wants him as far away as possible. The speaker, not content with forcing out Farmajo, is also unhappy about Acting Prime Minister Abdiwali Muhammad Ali, believing the former premier influenced this selection.
A lawmaker told Somalia Report that Shaykh Sharif and Adan met Monday over the acting prime minister, who will serve for the maximum of 30 days stipulated in the Kampala Accord for a successor to be named, and may be a candidate for the job full-time.
“The speaker is reluctant about the proposed PM,” Ali Mahmud (Seko), told Somalia Report. “What I don`t understand is why it is the business of the speaker to select a premier.”
A close associate of Farmajo told Somalia Report that Adan and his allies (mainly members of the old Sharmarke cabinet) are not happy that Abdiwali, like the former premier, is from the western-educated elite and friends with Farmajo.
“By appointing Abdiwali, the speaker and his allies fear he will rule like Farmajo and nothing might change,” the source said.
The speaker also proposed a cash offer of $1 million and a job offer as Somalia`s Ambassador to the UN, based in Nairobi, for the premier, and pressured AMISOM to threaten to remove Farmajo`s security if he did not quit, a source in the premier`s office said.
From a commentary published at WDN: Sharief Eats Farmajo,Thanks to Gunboat Diplomacy
The news leaking from Villa Somalia states that he was given in the presence of Sheikh Sharief, the President, a one-hour ultimatum by the general commanding AMISOM to which the PM had no option but to comply. Deputy Prime Minister Abdulweli, a friend, was appointed as PM ad interim. With an impeccable background Abdulweli will, I am sure, acquit himself of the tasks entrusted to him. But this should be a dark day for Somalia, for what happened represents the triumph of power over principle, of treachery over nationalism, and of personal rule over constitutional rule.
Despite the repeated reaffirmation of the UN Security Council of Somalia’s sovereignty, political unity and territorial integrity we are confronted today with the stark, ugly and shocking reality that the country’s sovereignty is only nominal and that old gunboat diplomacy is alive and well.
...
It seems that Mr. Museveni took Farmajo’s attempt to stay in office by making recourse to Parliament as a personal affront to him which required a retaliatory response. According to the news coming out of Mogadishu that response, delivered by the Commander of the Ugandan troops to Prime Minister Farmajo in the presence of Sheikh Sharief, came in the form of an ultimatum, which stated that Farmajo would lose Ugandan protection of his personal security unless he tendered his resignation in writing within the hour. Facing this threat to his life Prime Minister Farmajo had no option but to resign without further ado.
This desperate and dishonorable act was also taken to pre-empt any action on the part of Parliament to annul the Kampala Accord and confirm Farmajo in office.
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The presence of foreign troops in a country reduces the sovereignty of that country. It is easy to invite foreign troops, but it is difficult to get rid of them when they prove counterproductive, or to give them instructions when they deviate from their original mission. What the Somalis are experiencing under the Ugandans is exactly the same as what they were experiencing under the Ethiopians...
From another commentary, also published at WDN: Somalia falls into the abyss of IGAD, with no rescue mission in prospect
Somalis should start thinking deep and hard about the fate of their country as it slides towards total collapse and in the history dustbin is almost complete, if not already completed. The infamous and rather cruel Kampala Accord stipulates that IGAD and their international partners, not Somalis, have the ultimate say in the running of Somali affairs. It is incumbent on all Somalis wherever they are, particularly those in the Diaspora community who have the means and the liberty to liberate their country from the grip of IGAD, to start the process of salvaging their nation now. A Few more years down the line, there might be no country to come back and call home. As for the Somalis back home, it is time to do or die as there are no more options left for them. They are already dying in a slow and painful death in their own homes. With the help of their own kith and kin, their homeland is usurped by their old age enemies.
On Thursday,
Not much left hidden in who's picking the transitional govt these days... Two US American PM's in a row now (Sharmarke, though residing in VA before getting the nod, did not have US citizenship so he doesn't count).
AP: Somalia president names Harvard-educated Somali-American economist as new prime minister
omalia`s president on Thursday named a Somali-American economist as the country`s new prime minister, saying the Harvard graduate will help end bickering between the executive and the legislature that has paralyzed the fragile government for months.
Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, who previously taught economics at Niagara University in Lewiston, New York, was elevated from his position as minister of planning and international cooperation.
Ali`s appointment puts a highly educated technocrat high within the Mogadishu administration. Ali has graduate degrees in public administration from Harvard and another in economics from Vanderbilt University.
President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed lauded Ali for his “very clean” record during the announcement at the presidential palace in Mogadishu. Ahmed said he hoped that Ali`s government would help improve ties with the international community, which has been dismayed by the constant bickering among Somalia`s leaders.
From a January 2011 Kennedy School of Govt press release, when Ali initially left to join the technocrats in Farmajo's cabinet, also featured in the above link
Ali, who received the Joel Leff Fellowship while at HKS, believes that his work in Mogadishu will be enhanced by his Kennedy School education, saying that his time at Harvard was “instrumental on my political outlook, particularly in my perspective on the economical and political challenges facing developing countries including fragile states like Somalia.”
Gettleman in the NYT points out that
Mr. Ali’s résumé (PDF) reads like the itinerary on a tour of prominent American universities: it says he holds a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard, a master’s degree in economics from Vanderbilt and a Ph.D. in economics from George Mason University. In recent years, he has been teaching economics at Niagara University in upstate New York.
An article in the Global Post adds:
A new prime minister who looks much like the old one but the two main men - allies turned rivals - are still in charge.
Somalia’s new Prime Minister is a US-educated technocrat and American passport holder who’s lived outside his war-torn homeland for most of the last 20-years, he sports spectacles a ‘tache and is called Mohamed… much like his ousted predecessor.
Abdiweli Mohamed Ali replaces Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed...
From a press release by the US Embassy in Nairobi:
The United States Government welcomes the appointment of the new transitional Prime Minister of Somalia, Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali. We are encouraged at the speed with which the Transitional Federal Government President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed made this appointment. The United States looks forward to working with Dr. Abdiweli in the days ahead in support of both the Djibouti Peace Process and the completion of the transitional tasks. The United States calls for the quick endorsement of the Prime Minister and new cabinet by the Transitional Federal Parliament.
Will Ali too be sticking to the well-worn PM script equating Somalia and Afghanistan in terms of US national security and calling for US military air attacks on H.S.M.?
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Daily Nation: AU force closing in on Mogadishu’s prized market in tricky urban warfare
Right now there are signs that Bakara market will be taken by the Ugandan and Burundi peacekeepers by October. It is what [Col Paul Lokech, the commander of Ugandan forces in Mogadishu,] calls a “concentrated urban area" that can only be approached using less lethal weapons to avoid damage to property.
Taking the market in August is out of the question since it will be Ramadhan, and al-Shabaab is known to be very lethal during fasting periods as they “fight to die”.
The plan to take Bakara involves cutting out the area up to a road junction that leads to the market using two battle fronts run by Burundians and Ugandans.
The war is already being planned by two officers: Lt Col John Mugaruwa and Lt Col Antony Mbuusi whose forces are now at the Red Mosque, a few metres from the market, advancing from west to east.
Once the troops cut out all access roads to the market, they can then advance on it. As the battle rages for Mogadishu, the transitional federal government is also battling insurgents in Gedo, Hiran, Galgadud and Kismayu.
Speaking of which,
UN High Commissioner for Refugees: Kenya sees 20,000 Somali refugees arriving in just two weeks
UNHCR is alarmed by a dramatic rise in the number of new refugee arrivals from Somalia into Kenya. Over the past two weeks the Dadaab refugee complex in northern Kenya has received more than 20,000 Somali refugees. The new arrivals are mostly farmers and animal herders from Lower Juba and the city of Dhobley.-- -- --
During 2010, Dadaab received an average of 6,000 to 8,000 Somalis every month. This year the monthly average has increased to 10,000 refugees, with more than 55,000 new arrivals since the beginning of the year. The numbers are rising sharply, with some1,300 people arriving daily over the past two weeks.
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Overcrowding at the Dadaab complex is an additional challenge. This month the camp population passed the 360,000 mark. Dadaab is the largest refugee settlement in the world, similar in size to European cities such as Nice, Florence or Bilbao.
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The ongoing conflict in Somalia has led to thousands of deaths and massive displacement. There are now more than 750,000 Somali refugees living in the region, mostly in neighbouring Kenya (394,000), Yemen (187,000) and Ethiopia (110,000). Another 1.46 million are displaced within Somalia. The Dadaab refugee complex, initially designed to shelter some 90,000 refugees, was established in 1991 and 1992 following the collapse of the Siad Barre government in Somalia.
Some confusion in the reporting on air attacks on H.S.M. near Kismaayo
Reuters: Aircraft attack rebel base in south Somalia - rebels
Unidentified aircraft attacked an insurgent base near the southern Somali port of Kismayu late on Thursday, wounding a number of fighters, al Shabaab officials and residents said.
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Kismayu residents said the aircraft -- some said helicopters, others said planes -- attacked a place called Qandal about 10 km (6 miles) south of the port, where foreign jihadists within al Shabaab's ranks stay.
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Sheikh Hassan Yacqub, the spokesman for al Shabaab in Kismayu, told an insurgent-run radio station two unidentified helicopters had attacked the group's troops while on patrol and that some fighters were wounded in an exchange of fire.
"We heard heavy bombing and gunfire including the sound of anti-aircraft weapons but we don't know the specific area nor the casualties caused," a resident who gave his name as Ibrahim told Reuters from Kismayu.
"I was told that many al Shabaab injured were brought to the hospital but I didn't see it with my own eyes," he said.
Another resident who lives about 5 km from Qandal said there were huge blasts. An Islamist commander said that several insurgents had been wounded in the attack, which he blamed on the United States and France.
HOL:
Somalia’s Islamist opposition group on Friday said they have retaliated against US and French drone attacks against their strongholds in the South of the Horn of Africa Country.
The spokesman of Al-Shabaab fighters, Sheikh Hassan Yackub told the local media that fighter jets belonging to the two countries have hit the group’s military positions in Qadanlka, a remote hamlet in the eastern periphery of Somalia’s port city of Kismayu.
The official however said, they have responded to the drone attacks that have wounded two of their militants who were part of a strong contingent of Al-Shabaab fighters present at the military base.
AP:
An airstrike from military aircraft hit a convoy carrying al-Qaida-linked militants in southern Somalia, witnesses said Friday. A Somali defense official said a "partner country" carried out the attack, while a militant leader confirmed that insurgents were wounded.
According to a resident in the coast town of Kismayo, planes struck a military convey as it drove along the coastline late Thursday. The resident, Mohamed Aden, said he saw three wounded militants in the city.
...
A U.S. Embassy spokesman in neighboring Nairobi, Kenya, said all calls on the issue needed to be referred to the Pentagon.
Abdirashid Mohamed Hidig, Somalia's deputy defense minister, said a "partner country" carried out the attack. He called it a successful military operation.
"The target was one of their (al-Shabab's) most important fortresses where foreigners were staying," he said. "It's not only that attack but there will be further military attacks targeting them. There are casualties inflicted to them but we shall release that information later."
The overnight strike near Kismayo occurred near a militant camp, leading some residents to assume the camp was being attacked.
"We heard bangs of explosions first and again after minutes, more loud blasts," said Ali Abdinur, a resident, said by phone. "I don't know what happened but the place was an al-Shabab camp."
Yaqub, the al-Shabab leader, talked to a militant-run radio station after the attack.
"Two enemy aircraft attacked our mujahedeen fighters at a time they were conducting a security patrol near Kismayo" he told the radio station.
Aden, the Kismayo resident, said aircraft flew over Kismayo and that there were then two loud bangs. Militants immediately cordoned off the area and ferried the wounded — and possibly any deaths — to the city.
Aden said he visited the scene of the attack and saw two destroyed pickup trucks and a third heavily damaged car.
"The damages to the cars indicate that there may have been deaths, but it is hard to confirm because the attack took place immediately after sunset and no one was allowed to access it until Friday morning," he said.
Aden said that al-Shabab fighters fired at the aircraft, including a helicopter.
Shabelle Media:
Local residents told Shabelle Media Network that the helicopters targeted Al shabaab military base in Qandal area just outside of Kismayo.
Residents also noted that foreign fighters are believed to be there when the raid took place on Thursday. Heavy sounds of explosion with the sound of helicopters could be heard during the aerial attack.
RBC:
At least two senior Al-Shabab members were killed and two others wounded in an airstrike by unknown helicopter on Thursday night.
Residents in Kismayo told RBC Radio that at least two airstrike had been heard from Kandala village, 50-km west of Kismayo, the regional capital of Somalia’s Jubba region.
Two Al-Shabab injured officials were brought to Kismayo main hospital, eye witnesses confirmed RBC Radio with anonymity condition.
The aistrike is thought to be targeted foreign elements of Al-Shabab members who were meeting in the area.
But Sheikh Hassan Ya’qub Ali, the leader of Al-Shabab administration in Jubba told Al-Shabab’s run radio in Kismayo that the airstrike hit local fishers in Kandala village where he said many innocent fishers were murdered.
“The infidels targeted local fishers, they killed two and this is part of their criminal acts”. he added.
NYT:
At least 15 insurgents were killed in a foreign helicopter attack on a Shabab rebel military base near Kismayo, Somalia, witnesses and officials said Friday. The attack, which occurred on Thursday, killed at least 15 Shabab commanders, including eight foreigners, a local human rights organization said. It was not clear who carried out the attack.
Not everyone is going to be sticking around to sort out what really happened...
Shabelle Media: Residents start displacing after air-strike in Kisamayo
Residents in southern Somalia town of Kismayo started displacing from their homes a day after unknown helicopters launched aerial attacks there.-- -- --
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Most of the displacing people are herders and pastoralists as they faced fearful conditions. They are heading towards the towns of Dhobley, Afmadow and other areas in Lower Jubba region.
Reports from Kismayo suggested that a large number of Al shabaab fighters reached the targeted Qandal area and started seach operations there.
Sick joke of the week award goes to the opening sentence in the UN Security Council President's statement before the 6564th meeting
The Security Council reiterates its respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and unity of Somalia.-- -- --
A Daily Monitor interview w/ "the commander of the Ugandan Amisom contigent, Col. Paul Lokech" openly states that AMISOM's mandate was changed.
"Taking over Mogadishu is not the problem, but securing it is"
People say you are no longer peacekeepers because you are fighting to gain ground, and in fact, others have called you aggressors. What is your comment?
No, no. When the first battle group came, it was about peacekeeping. But we later realised that there was no peace to keep. There was absolutely no peace to keep. Later on, the mandate was changed to peace enforcement. We are now enforcing peace. You must also remember that the Mission is here to protect and support TFG institutions. We are building TFG forces and we are also supposed to conduct support operations for humanitarian assistance. These are some of the roles we are supposed to play, according to the new mandate.
AU and IGAD members had been pushing on numerous occassions for a change in AMISOM's mandate which the UN and international partners always publicly rejected. The requests were to allow AMISOM to take the fight to the enemy (under the nonsensical phrase "peace enforcement") whereas the existing mandate only provided for "the right of self defense". Pressure was put on enhancing the mandate especially after the Kampala bombings last summer, which were in retaliation for the slaughter of innocent Somalis due to indiscriminate attacks on insurgent strongholds in Mogadishu, and while an increase in the number of forces was agreed on, the last word on the mandate change itself was that the existing one would remain intact although the interpretation of it would be stretched to encompass the notion of pre-emptive self-defense (another nonsense phrase invoked to mask actuality) and AMISOM could being offensive operations. So what is Lokech referring to here? Did the mandate actually get quietly changed to "peace enforcement" at some point since last July or is he just misinformed/misinforming? There is no official public document, AFAIK, that shows the AMISOM "mandate was changed to peace enforcement" as he claims.
Continuing w/ that interview, in which Lokech talks alot but isn't really saying much...
Let’s first get the al Shabaab out of our way and you will see the rest coming because they are burden to development. Once we secure Mogadishu, everything will flow.-- -- --
If you flash them out of Mogadishu, won’t they go to Kisamayo and still come to attack your positions?
If they go to Kisimayo, the TFG forces will follow them. We shall not stop at chasing them out Mogadishu; we shall support TFG forces to pursue them whenever they will be. As long as they are in Somalia, we shall deal with them. At the moment, we are training, mentoring and restructuring them. It’s just a question of time for them to have a strong force and secure this country.
When we visited the frontlines yesterday, it was only UPDF and the Burundian forces fighting while the TFG forces are behind the African peacekeepers. Is this the kind of mentoring you are talking about?
They are there. Maybe you didn’t identify them because they put on the same uniform like the UPDF. [!!!] They are very good fighters. These are former warriors. What they lack is organisation. Secondly, this element of clanism is a very big problem here. It will take them sometime before they change this mentality of clannish society.
When shall we see you taking over Bakaara Market and eventually Mogadishu?
I don’t want to talk about timelines but we shall soon have it under our control. It’s the main economic hub of al Shabaab. That is where they get money to sustain their operations. We are already in the vicinity of Bakara. It is just a question of time. Taking over Mogadishu is not the problem, but securing it is the problem. You can take it over in a month, but you need man power to sustain the takeover.
AP: US taps $45M in gear for terror fight in Somalia
The Pentagon is sending nearly $45 million in military equipment, including four small drones, to Uganda and Burundi to help battle the escalating terrorist threat in Somalia.
The latest aid, laid out in documents obtained by The Associated Press, comes as attacks intensify in Somalia against the al-Qaida-linked terror group al-Shabab, including an airstrike late Thursday that hit a militant convoy, killing a number of foreign fighters, according to officials there.
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The Pentagon plan is aimed at helping to build the counterterrorism capabilities of Uganda and Burundi, two African Union nations that have sent about 9,000 peacekeeping forces to Somalia. The military aid includes four small, shoulder-launched Raven drones, body armor, night-vision gear, communications and heavy construction equipment, generators and surveillance systems. Training is also provided with the equipment.
In addition, the Pentagon will send $4.4 million in communications and engineering equipment to Uganda.
From an AMISOM-embedded press entourage report in the Daily Nation earlier in the week, AU force wins hearts and minds in the battle of Mogadishu
On the front line in Mogadishu, where we spent the better part of the day, the Amisom force is conducting “suppressive firing” to keep the insurgents on their toes.
Buildings close to the front line have been vacated by civilians. The area has lots of deep trenches dug by the militants who have also blocked streets with shipping containers. There are also tunnels that run right under the road.
Travel on the roads near insurgent areas is strictly by South African-made Casper armoured cars, two soldiers atop with guns at the ready. Inside, each passenger wears a bullet-proof vest and helmet, all weighing 14 kilogrammes. Many are soaked in sweat.
The speed of the armoured vehicle keeps changing. As the driver passes hostile areas, the speed is increased.
Anyone standing on the road is met by massive hooting, indicating he or she jump off to safety or risk being swept off by the furious convoy.
Suppressive fire is, essentially, another name for indirect fire, which AMISOM continues to publicly deny employing.
Continuing w/ selections from the report,
At this moment, both the Burundians and their Ugandan counterparts are approaching Bakara from two different fronts, the aim being to meet at the heart of the market.
Amisom’s secret weapon has been the residents of the areas it occupies whom it wins over with free medical care, and water and food supplies.
...
Once any locality is captured by Amisom, civilians return to rebuild their houses and benefit from services offered by the soldiers.
These civilians are checked by local elders who work closely with Amisom and the transitional government’s army.
The civilians serve as a buffer zone between Amisom and the insurgents. [COIN tactic of creating a friendly population buffer.]
“The situation changes every day. Last year, Amisom estimated that it needed 20,000 troops and sent a report to the UN. The UN mandate allowed only 12,000 soldiers,” says Captain Hakizima.
Lacking the fighting force that it believes can do the job, Amisom now trains Somali government soldiers at bases in Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya.
Some of the native soldiers are able to hold their own as a group of visiting journalists witnessed during the tour conducted by Amisom on Monday.
The press junket narrative focuses on the importance of getting the civilians in the buffer zone to like the foreign forces b/c they provide needed services. The COIN objective is likely something else - not that of being liked but, rather, building dependency and networks of loyalists and valuable sources of HUMINT. And of the last sentence quoted, one wonders how that squares w/ the account cited earlier from the Daily Monitor correspondant/interviewer who noted only AMISOM fighters on the front lines.
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Shabelle Media: Somali military officer: We are at war on Al shabaab controlled areas
The Somali military forces in Gedo region in southern Somalia on Saturday threatened they will launch a huge offensive against Al shabaab controlled areas in south of the country.
Somali military commander at Gedo region, Jamal Hassan said in an interview with Shabelle Media Network that recently trained soldiers are right now prepared to assault Al shabaa fighters in the regions of Bay, Bakool Lower and Middle Jubba.
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