President Uhuru Kenyatta with the Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Samson Mwathethe when he arrived at the Kenya Military Academy in Lanet, Nakuru County for the Cadets Commissioning Parade. Image: PSCU
President Uhuru Kenyatta has said Kenyan troops will remain in Somalia until al Shabaab militia are neutralised.
The President spoke at the Kenya Military Academy in Lanet, Nakuru, on Thursday when he commissioned new cadet officers who have completed a rigorous three-year training programme.
“In pursuance of this objective and that of the international community, our troops will continue being part of Amisom until such a time that this objective has been achieved,” the President said.
Uhuru said that the country’s prosperity depends on how well it balances the crucial factors of peace, security, governance, sound economic policies and development programmes.
President Uhuru Kenyatta at the Kenya Military Academy in Lanet, Nakuru where he commissioned new cadet officers who have completed a rigorous three-year training program on Thursday 28, 2019. Image: PSCU
He said that is why military officers are encouraged to observe personal courage as they protect the country despite adversities they might face.
“Courage calls for self-confidence, moral ascendancy, self-sacrifice, honesty, fairness, initiative, decisiveness, and dignity,” Uhuru added.
He said the regional dimension of the training by the academy is informed by the fact that the threats to security posed by terrorist groups and related international crimes know no borders.
“Whenever these groups are pursued, they quickly shift their operations either within the boundaries of nations or beyond,” Uhuru said.
He said Kenya has always made it a priority to boost regional security and that is one of the reasons it has been involved in stabilising countries affected by conflict.
KDF crossed the border into Somalia in 2011 after al Shabaab militia threats in the country.
The mission was declared to be complete in 2012 but the Kenyan troops were kept in Somalia under Amisom, which is the regional regional peacekeeping mission.
The newly commissioned officers have graduated under the revamped Bachelor of Science in Military and Security Studies programme, a unique undergraduate degree offered by the Ministry of Defence in collaboration with Kenyatta University.
The programme is designed to produce junior military leaders not just for the Kenya Defence Forces, but also allied countries.
The programme is anchored on three pillars, namely; professional military training, academic training and character development.
During the colorful commissioning ceremony, the Head of State awarded cadets who excelled in various fields during the course of their three-year training.
The cause of the blaze, thought to be accidental, has not yet been identified.
By Reid Forgrave
LEILA NAVIDI – STAR TRIBUNE Said Harsi, the son of Amatalah Adam, 78, one of five victims of Wednesday’s fire in Minneapolis Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, mourned over her body during her burial Thursday.
The woman stood in the back of the mosque on Thanksgiving morning, here to bury her mother.
The parking lot at the Islamic Institute of Minnesota was overflowing, and so was the inside of the Burnsville mosque. Some 600 people gathered to mourn two of the five people who died early Wednesday in a high-rise apartment fire in Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside neighborhood.
The two bodies, both those of Somali-American Muslims, had been bathed on Thursday morning and covered by three white sheets. On top of the sheets rested ornately stitched burial shrouds.
As men washed their feet in a nearby bathroom, Firdaus Aden stood a few steps away from the body of her mother, Nadifa Mohamud, 67. The fire had been a shock. Aden and her mother — “my best friend” — had been talking until the early hours Wednesday morning about a fundraising drive her mother had undertaken for her mosque in Cedar-Riverside, Masjid DarulQuba Cultural Center. But Aden took solace in her faith’s belief that our lives are foreordained, and that only God determines when our ends will come: “It is written,” she whispered. “It is written.”
“On the night of her death, I called her at midnight — I don’t know why,” Aden remembered. “She said, ‘Tell everyone to contribute. We have to help that mosque.’ I promised $100 a month on her behalf, and she was so happy. She always taught me that giving doesn’t depend on having. We were poor, with nothing, and she would give away everything we had in the house.”
A day after the tragic — and, according to preliminary reports, accidental — fire in the 25-story Cedar High Apartments, the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, as well as the broader Twin Cities Somali-American community, gathered to mourn the dead. Three of the five deceased were Somali-Americans: Mohamud; Amatalah Adam, 79, and Maryan Mohamud, 69. The fourth victim was Jerome Stuart, 59, and the fifth had yet to be identified Thursday evening. All died from smoke inhalation.
In the first-floor community room of the apartment building, rumors spread on the cause of the fire. Some thought it was from a gas stove. One resident, Abdul Gas, who had to sprint down 23 stories to escape the fire, was convinced it had been started by a lit cigarette. He pointed out a piece of butcher paper hanging in the community room. In purple marker, someone had written the words, “I will try not to smoke on November 21st because…”
Regardless of the theories, Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel has said it will take some time to determine the cause.
Early Thursday, before the funeral service, Imam Sharif Abdirahman Mohamed strode up the stairs to his second-floor office in Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Cedar-Riverside. He wore a sport coat over his blue khamiis, an ankle-length Arab garment, and hundreds of religious texts lined his bookshelves. He’d been up until 1 a.m. meeting with the three families of the deceased.
His mosque is a block away from the high-rise where the fire occurred. Outside, you could see a burnt-out unit on the 14th floor, its windows covered in plywood. He was preparing to preside over Thursday’s services for two of the three Somali-American women killed in the blaze: Nadifa Mohamud and Amatalah Adam.
Adam attended his mosque. The imam described her as gentle and generous with her time; her nickname was “Deeqo,” which he said means generous. She would set up chairs for older congregants at the mosque at Friday prayers. She’d give up her own chair and sit on the floor if an older person needed it.
Mohamed said his role as imam was to counsel that these tragedies are beyond our control. But we can still learn from them, he said, about resiliency, compassion, togetherness. He was struck by those who reached out in the aftermath of Wednesday’s tragedy — not just the Somali community, but the Korean community, churches, the Red Cross. Congregants at the mosque were meeting downstairs to brainstorm ways to raise money for the families to pay for the costs of burial. The nearby Palmer’s Bar hosted a free Thanksgiving potluck for the community. And People’s Center Clinics & Services, which serves the West Bank community, set up an online fundraiser that quickly surpassed its first goal and was headed toward a new one of $100,000 Thursday evening.
“When you compare our civil war, when you compare the life in refugee camps, when you also compare just coming to a country you don’t know and trying to survive — you just compare this to all of those challenges we’re used to,” the imam said. “This one, it’s not an easy one. But all of those experiences taught us to be strong, to help one another, to rely on one another. All of those experiences we had before taught us that in this world, you cannot survive by yourself.”
Later, at the funeral, Firdaus Aden stood near her mother’s body. A funeral director handed her a Ziploc bag with beaded jewelry that her mother had been wearing. The body was about to be brought to the front of the mosque, then taken to the nearby Islamic cemetery for burial. Now, though, Aden thought of her mom — a quiet, humble, religious person — and of the lessons she’d learned from her. What kept sticking in her head was that final conversation, hours before a fire would end her mom’s life. All her mom was focused on was rallying people to give to her mosque.
“That’s what her last wish was,” Aden said. “And that’s what I must do for her.”
CEO of Hybrid Designs, Samrawit Fikru. Pic Credit: Twitter
“I am always obsessed with identifying the gap in our day-to-day lives,” says 29-year-old computer programmer Samrawit Fikru who has created Hybrid Design, a company in Ethiopia behind the most popular taxi app in the country, RIDE.
Hybrid Design Plc. is a software and applications developing company which Fikru started with a capital of less than US$ 2,000 and over 90 percent of her staff are women.
Fikru was once a developer with a software developing company where she experienced transport difficulties which ultimately informed her idea of RIDE.
“I used to constantly find myself at the office late at night and challenged by transport hurdle while heading to my home,” she recounts.
“I used to feel unsafe while taking a taxi…the driver also asks you to pay more than two times the price they charge in a day.”
The young female tech entrepreneur through her company created RIDE, a transport and booking platform in Ethiopia that is phone-based just like Uber.
The service is reported to have brought a significant change to the traditional taxi business in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
RIDE started as an SMS-focused request in 2014. It relaunched in 2017 and developed into offering varied options, from web apps to a call center.
Its aim is to lead the country’s ride-hailing market, especially since Ethiopia is phasing out the traditional city cabs in the country to introduce more technologically advanced ones.
Pic Credit: Twitter
At the moment, there are over 50,000 downloads of the RIDE application on Google Play Store. “There are twelve taxi associations and over a thousand cars working with us,” Fikru recently said.
The tech guru recently met with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey over lunch with entrepreneurs during the latter’s visit to Ethiopia this month.
Dorsey hailed her for employing more women and even tagged Elon Musk, saying “she’d love to introduce Tesla to Ethiopia!”
Doctors are worried that diseases, especially waterborne ones, might spread.
Flash flooding has hit the small but strategic East African nation of Djibouti, where the government and United Nations say the equivalent of two years’ rain has fallen in a single day.
Several regional countries including Kenya are struggling after heavy rains, with more to come.
A joint Djibouti-UN statement on Thursday said up to a quarter-million people have been affected in recent days in the country on the Red Sea that’s home to military bases for the United States, China and others. With heavy rains forecast through the end of the month that number could grow.
Djibouti has been called one of the world’s most vulnerable non-island nations in the face of climate change as sea levels rise. Neighbouring Somalia has been hit hard by recent flooding as well.
In Kenya, East Africa’s economic hub, the government said 120 people have been killed in flooding and mudslides during an unusually severe rainy season. More than 60 died over the weekend in West Pokot county.
More than 18,000 people across Kenya are displaced, according to the Kenya Red Cross Society. Infrastructure has been damaged, making aid delivery more difficult.
Doctors are worried that diseases, especially waterborne ones, might spread.
“We have health issues, and is it wounds, is it children who are coming up with pneumonia, is it diarrheal illnesses,” said Dr. Taabu Simiu at the West Pokot County Referral Hospital.
Some survivors are struggling.
“Life here is terrible because we don’t have money, because if someone had their money in the house it was all swept away by the floods,” one survivor, Cherish Limansin, said.
“It’s only poverty staring at us here. We wake up with nothing. If it wasn’t for the little help we get we would have nothing and so far today we have eaten nothing.”
Muqdisho (WDN)- Wararka naga soo gaadhaya magaalo madaxda Maamul Goboleedka Galmudug ee Dhuusa-Mareeb, ayaa sheegaya in ciidamo lagu qiyaasay 1,000 askari oo ka tirsan ciidamada Itoobiya, ay soo galeen magaalada Dhuusa-Mareeb.
Ciidamadan ayaa la sheegayaa in ay ujeedadoodu tahay sidii ay taageero u siin lahaayeen Dowladda Federaalka Soomaaliya, oo ka wada maamul goboleedka Galmudug qorshe doorasho, ay dhawaan soo saareen jadwelka doorashada Baarlamaanka iyo Madaxweynaha Galmadug oo ay gadhwadeen ka tahay isla Dowlada Federaalka Soomaaliya.
Hadaba ciidamada Itoobiyaanka ee soo galay maanta magaalada Dhuusa-Mareeb, ayaa la sheegayaa in maamulka Farmaajo uu rabo in uu u adeegsado sidii ay u sugi lahaayeen in goobta ay ka soo baxdo natiijada ay rabto DFS.
Ciidamada Itoobiya ayaa horey DFS u adeegsatay cabudhinta rabitaanka shacbiga Soomaaliyees ee Maamul Goboleedka Koonfur Galbeed, iyada oo rabshado ka dhacay magaalada Baydhabo kagadaal doorashadii madaxweynaha Koonfur Galbeed, ay sababeen dhimasho,
Sidoo kale ciidamada Itoobiya, ayaa la sheegay in ay soo galeen gobolka Gedo, deegaanada Luuq, Doolow iyo Buulo-Xaawo, ee Jubbaland, halkaasi oo la sheegay in ay xoog ugu muquuniyeen maamulkii ka jiray deegaanadaasi in ay ka soo horjeestaan maamulka Jubbaland.
Waxaa iyana maanta oo ku beegan bishan Noofember 29, Warqad Furan u diray Raysal- Wasaaraha Itoobiya, Madasha Xisbiyada Qaran iyaga oo sheegay in Itoobiya ay joojiso xadgudubka, farahana kala baxdo, islamarkaana ay dhexdhexaad ka haato arimaha Soomaaliya sida uu dhigayo qodoka 8-aad ee heshiiska joogitaanka ciidamada AMISOM.
The 13th Ordinary Summit of the IGAD Heads of State and Government was held on 29 November 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the chairmanship of H.E. Dr. Abiy Ahmed Ali, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. The meeting was attended by H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda; H.E. Ismail Omar Guelleh, President of the Republic of Djibouti; H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan; H.E. Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia; H.E. Dr. Abdalla Hamdok, Prime Minister of the Republic of the Sudan; and H.E. Dr. Monica Juma, Cabinet Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kenya.
Also in attendance were H.E. Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu Negewo, incoming Executive Secretary of IGAD; H.E. Mahboub Maalim, the outgoing Executive Secretary of IGAD; H.E. Amb. Mohamed Ali Guyo, IGAD Special Envoy for the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Somalia; and H.E. Amb. Dr. Ismail Wais, IGAD Special Envoy for South Sudan.
Representatives of the African Union Commission, China, European Union, IGAD Partners Forum, the Troika (Norway, UK and USA) and the United Nations also attended the opening session and made statements.
The Ordinary Summit was preceded by the 47th Ordinary Session of the IGAD Council of Ministers held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 28th November 2019.
After extensive deliberations on: the Report of the 47th IGAD Council of Ministers to the Summit; the draft IGAD Establishment Treaty and proposed Structure; and election of IGAD Chairpersonship, the Summit:
Expressed gratitude to the Government and people of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to members of delegations;
Recognized and greatly appreciated the exceptional service and contribution that the outgoing Executive Secretary of IGAD, H.E. Amb. Mahboub Maalim, made to the growth and development of IGAD, and wished him well in his future endeavors;
Congratulated H.E. Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu Negewo on his appointment as the Executive Secretary of IGAD, and expressed its full support in discharging his responsibilities;
Elected Sudan as the Chair of IGAD, and expressed its confidence that under the leadership of Sudan, IGAD will reach new heights in realizing regional integration and political cooperation;
Greatly appreciated and thanked the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia for the pivotal role it has played in steering and spearheading the work of IGAD as the Chair for over a decade;
Adopted the proposed IGAD Structure as amended by the Council, and directed the Executive Secretary to review and update the Structure based on the feedback received from Member States and the needs and realities on the ground subject to the approval of the IGAD Council;
Decided to reform IGAD to ensure it becomes a rule-based, effective and predictable organization;
Deferred the adoption of the draft IGAD Establishment Treaty until after an in-depth discussion on the future of IGAD takes place at the next Ordinary Summit;
Adopted the IGAD Declaration of Principles of Cooperation in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, which will enhance cohesion and guide the region’s strategic cooperation;
Welcomed Somalia’s request to host a Blue Economy Conference in Mogadishu, Federal Republic of Somalia, in collaboration with IGAD early next year;
Called upon the international community to lift the crippling economic sanctions imposed on Sudan and South Sudan to enable them rebuild their economies;
Appreciates the efforts by the South Sudanese Parties to the R-ARCSS in silencing the guns for over one year and urged the Parties to accomplish the pre-transitional tasks within the extended hundred days and form the R-TGoNU by the end of the extended period;
Commended the Government and people of the Sudan for transitioning into civilian rule and for their resilience and determination, and in this regard endorsed the role of the Republic of South Sudan in mediating the peace talks in Juba;
Recommitted to continue working together and redouble efforts in the fight against terrorism in the region, and in this regard appreciated the role and contribution of AMISOM in contributing to the peace and stability of Somalia;
Recognized and welcomed the support that has been provided by the African Union, United Nations, partners and friends of IGAD to the work of IGAD;
Expressed condolences to the families and friends of the recent flood and land slide victims in some parts of the region;
Deferred other Agendas to the next Ordinary Summit to be held in Khartoum, Sudan; and
FILE PHOTO: French President Emmanuel Macron talks to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan as they attend a news conference after a Syria summit, in Istanbul, Turkey October 27, 2018. Arif Hudaverdi Yaman/Pool via REUTERS
ISTANBUL/PARIS (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Emmanuel Macron’s warning that NATO was dying reflects a “sick and shallow” understanding, telling the French president “you should check whether you are brain dead”.
The comments drew a swift rebuke from the French foreign ministry, which summoned Turkey’s ambassador to Paris to protest over what a French presidential adviser called “insults”.
Erdogan was speaking days ahead of a summit of the military alliance, which Macron has said is experiencing “brain death” because of U.S. unpredictability under President Donald Trump and strained ties with Turkey.
The Turkish and French presidents, who have traded criticism over Ankara’s cross-border offensive in northeast Syria, will be among NATO leaders meeting at a summit of the transatlantic alliance in Britain on Dec. 4.
“I’m addressing Mr Macron from Turkey and I will say it at NATO: You should check whether you are brain dead first,” Erdogan said.
Macron said in an interview three weeks ago there was a lack of strategic coordination between European allies on the one hand and the United States and Turkey, on the other. He has also decried NATO’s inability to react to what he called Turkey’s “crazy” offensive into northern Syria.
On Friday, French officials said they expected substantial clarifications from Erdogan rather than a war of words.
“Let’s be clear, these are not statements, they are insults,” a presidential adviser said. “The president says things clearly. It’s up to Turkey to provide the answers that we and many allies expect.”
Macron’s adviser said that beyond the issue of Turkey’s offensive in Syria, its refusal to back a NATO defense plan for the Baltic republics and Poland was unacceptable.
“Turkey can’t take the defense plans of Poland and the Baltic countries hostage,” the adviser said.
Turkey is refusing to back a NATO defense plan for the three Baltic states and Poland unless it secures more political support from its allies for its fight against Kurdish YPG militia in northern Syria.
Ankara views the YPG as terrorists with links to militant Kurdish separatists in southeast Turkey.
Macron’s remarks on NATO drew strong reaction from France’s neighbors who say Europe still has to rely heavily on the U.S.-led alliance for its defense. Macron said on Thursday his remarks had been a useful wake-up call and that he would not apologize for saying them.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is facing opposition from one of his closest allies in his proposal to merge the ruling coalition into a new party.
Defense Minister Lemma Megersa said he disagrees with the rushed merger of political parties, according to an interview with the Voice of America. Lemma is the deputy chairman of Abiy’s Oromo Democratic Party.
Lemma said he also opposes Abiy’s new philosophy to unite the country, called “Medemer,” directly translated as “to add.”
Lemma’s comments come ahead of general elections expected in 2020, raising more challenges to the success of a new unity party. The merger has the support of all coalition members, even though it faced opposition from Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which was a former leading member.
The ruling coalition has been in power for 30 years in Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country. The Nobel Peace Prize-winning prime minister has vowed the general election would be democratic.
Under the leadership of President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo, the local media platforms in Mogadishu are said to have witnessed the worst era for press freedom due to the outcome of formidable oppression and subjugation imposed by the current government. This has resulted in the government being criticized for alienating the press and disregarding the globally accepted principals of freedom of expression.
Media restriction
For the last three years that the incumbent government has been in power, its oppositions have continuously alleged it of following an unprecedented disingenuous approach in dealing with the independent Somali media outlets based in Mogadisho and further afield. The government’s attitude towards the press was regarded to be detrimental to the fabric objectives of the free press that is meant to be ensuring for the general public an undeniable right of accessing and obtaining accurate and balanced information about all issues happening around them.
In pursuit of a self-conducted survey on the current situation in which
local media are operating, we’ve been able to get ahold of some high profile
media personalities who argued that despite the endless concerns local
residents are raising about the deteriorating situation in Mogadishu, the daily
news coverage of many newsrooms in the city are blatantly bypassing the public
voices, a clear sign that indicates how the media’s key role in addressing
social problems has been thrown under the bus by the government’s outpouring
desire for drawing the curtains on its shortcomings.
Requesting their identities stay anonymous for personal reasons, our
respondents have highlighted that the government has managed to get the
independent media cowed into its desire by utilizing manifold techniques; such
as bribing the bosses of independent newsrooms, intimidating them; or as a last
resort, infiltrating their own editorial and production teams when the first
two attempts proved to be futile.
Most of those who spoke to us in this survey have concurred that the current
government is considered as the first, in Somalia’s contemporary political
history, to have allocated special budget to the local media in order to get
them paid for relinquishing their freedom and succumbing to the government’s
repressive policies against the independent media. Delving into this matter,
we’ve learnt from reliable sources that the office of the president’s media
department has been in charge of managing an estimated monthly budget of 40,000
USD to be used for bribing the local media. However, we couldn’t confirm the
authenticity of these allegations from government sources, although several
attempts we’ve made towards this cause ended up fruitless.
During the course of this survey, we’ve also been told that the government’s
ill-intentioned efforts to triumph over the freedom of press were not just
confined to local media, but went further to make its way towards some
Somali-speaking foreign newsrooms. The bitter truth about this was that some
individuals from those platforms including their correspondents in Mogadishu
fell into the government’s trap by agreeing to give up their rights of
fulfilling their journalistic duties independently and impartially in
short-lived backdoor dealings that were later discovered and prevented by the
top managements of those organizations.
President Farmaajo
According to our sources, the government’s intention in engaging with local media was initially depicted to be a positive way of cultivating a constructive and collaborative relationship among the two sides, but eventually it turned out to be a greedy strive by the government to hijack the space of the media and weaponise it to punish whoever harbors political sentiments different to theirs.
At one of the first meetings to discuss the agreement with the local media,
government officials who were responsible for handling the matter have enjoined
media representatives in attendance from broadcasting anything that would seem
to be harmful to the government’s policies. Instead media platforms were
instructed to give a huge space to whatever the Somali authorities want to
communicate to the public.
Being assured that the
majority of the media platforms were bound by its bribe-fueled agreement; the
Somali government felt the urge to apply draconian approaches in confronting
few media stations that resisted the government’s temptation and carried on
with their impartial way of broadcasting. Most of those media faced enormous
challenges from the government and were subjected to profound intimidation and
threats. In what believed to be deliberate and planned attempts to cause harm
or fear, some media stations have either had their offices attacked or their
staff or properties assaulted by government soldiers in 2019.
Aside from the offensive
actions taken by the government, plenty of hurdles were laid on the path along
which the journalists and their newsrooms have to travel when seeking balanced
and reliable news. Unlike to previous governments, public offices and other
government installations have now become less accessible to journalists, and
this kept independent media out of the loop with all activities happening
there. Consequently, the only source that journalists can turn to for
government-related news became the government itself.
With the independent media
that accepted to give up the ownership of their news coverage, the line between
them and the government-owned ones have blurred to an extent that no
differences can be noticed in the elements of what both broadcast as news,
since they are all in receipt of the same press releases prepared for them to
pass on to the public without including any input from their side.
At individual levels,
journalists and media bosses who are not in tune with the government’s
perspective towards the press are going through unimaginable ordeal. Expressing
the horrible life some journalists are experiencing in Mogadishu at the moment,
a TV director said “Journalists in Mogadishu now fear from the government more
than Alshabab. We realized that anyone who tries to be adamant to the
government’s dictations would face dire consequences. We don’t want to die or
get hurt at the hands of those who meant to protect us”.
Although the government’s
pressure on local media is still mounting, some unsubstantiated claims suggest
that interest-driven disputes within those responsible for managing the
government’s corruptive deals with local media has hastened the project to come
to a halt with a possibility that new techniques have been employed as a
replacement.
In spite of the fearful
atmosphere journalists in Mogadishu currently live in, many believe that with
the considerable number of media outlets and journalists who are showing their
willing to remain unshakable in the face of the government oppression, freedom
of press will continue to exist against all the odds.
The Turkish Diyanet Foundation (TDV), affiliated with Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate, has finished construction of a mosque in Djibouti, Turkish daily Sabah reported on Friday.
Parliamentary Speaker Mustafa Şentop attended the opening ceremony in the east African country, alongside Djibouti’s Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed.
President of Religious Affairs Ali Erbaş led the Friday prayer at the new mosque, Sabah said.
Turkey and Djibouti are reviving bilateral relations as members of the international Muslim community, Şentop said at the ceremony.
Turkey, under Justice and Development Party (AKP) governments, has spent some half a billion dollars to build over 100 mosques in recent years in various countries around the world, including those formerly governed by the Ottoman Empire, as part of efforts to extend its influence and play a leading role in the Muslim world in what has been called a soft power project.
Halima Derow Mohamud fled her home on 23 November when flash floods caused by torrential rains hit her home in Dhobley town in southern Somalia’s Jubbaland state.
Her five-room house was awash with water. Halima carried some mattresses and salvaged some food as she and her family moved out of her home.
They stayed for two days with a relative in town but then had to move further to outside town after fresh floods inundated the relative’s house as well.
The mother of 11 – seven girls and three boys – told Radio Ergo that the floods destroyed $1,500 worth of goods in her small shop at her home in Bosnia suburb. They had to move to El-Dhig village, seven km away from the town.
Another mother, Sareda Salad Abdi, fled her shanty house in Dan-wadag camp after floods left most of the camp under water. She told Radio Ergo that all her belongings including foodstuff was swept away.
Sareda and her three daughters and two sons also moved to El-Dhig village.
“When we were deep asleep, we were woken up by moving water. Our little hut collapsed and all that we had was washed away,” she said. “We spent three nights in water with nowhere to go before we decided to move away.”
Ahmednur Abdi Mohamed, an official from Jubbaland state’s Refugee and IDP Affairs Committee, told Radio Ergo that the floods displaced 6,000 families in Dhobley. He confirmed that 47 houses and 1,800 toilets were destroyed.
Ahmednur and other officials visited Dhobley on 26 November to assess the damage. He said about 1,700 families had moved to El-Dhig, where they needed assistance.
“We did what could do to help these people, we also contacted the agencies and asked them to help,” he said.
The floods mostly affected Kowad, Danwadag, and Bosnia suburbs.
Dhoblay divisional officer, Siyad Mohamed Hassan, said most of those affected were IDPs living in camps.
“We did our best but that is minimal, so we contacted the federal and state authorities, and we also sought help from the aid agencies,” he said.
Ali Awow fled civil war at home and spent a year in a refugee camp in Kenya before making his way to Southern California. Now he is running a custom clothing shop.
Ali Awow and his daughter Anisa in the custom clothing shop he runs out of a stall in a San Diego market.Credit…Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times
By Brent Crane
SAN DIEGO — For about as long as he can remember, Ali Awow has known how to sew.
His father taught him as a boy in Mogadishu, the capital of his native Somalia, on a foot-powered machine. His father, grandfather and great-grandfather had learned the same way. “Back then, we didn’t have electric machines,” he recalled recently.
Mr. Awow, 50, was sitting behind his desk in the modest shop he opened three months ago — in a stall inside a Somali market in the City Heights neighborhood of San Diego.
“This is a busy place,” he noted, as shoppers streamed by.
All around him — hanging on the walls and arranged in piles in the hallway — were bright, flowing garments: dresses, skirts and, for men, colorful African shirts. On a small counter in the corner, by an upturned iron, lay a Quran. His oldest daughter, Anisa, 18, sat nearby. “Sometimes he makes clothes for me,” she said. “But only when he has time.”
Three years ago, Mr. Awow, his wife and three children relocated to California from Nairobi, Kenya, where Anisa and her siblings were raised. Mr. Awow had fled there from Somalia with his own siblings during the country’s civil war.
Mr. Awow and his wife, Fahmiya Habib Karima, were granted asylum in the United States in 2016. They settled in San Diego, which has an established community of Somali expatriates.Credit…Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times
Though Mr. Awow had experience running a tailor shop, starting one in the United States was not going to be as easy as it had been in Africa. “In Kenya, if you’re a small business, you don’t need to worry about paying taxes or anything like that,” he said.
To get help, Mr. Awow contacted the International Rescue Committee, one of the seven organizations supported by The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund. He enrolled in six weeks of vocational English training before joining the committee’s Microenterprise Development program, which provides coaching for small-business owners.
In December 1990, when he was 21, Mr. Awow fled Somalia for Kenya in a boat crowded with about 200 other refugees. By then, about 50,000 people had died in Somalia’s civil conflict and hundreds of thousands had fled.
“Before the civil war, Mogadishu was a paradise,” said Mr. Awow, whose parents died in the war. “But after it started, everything changed. Everyone was killing each other.”
It took Mr. Awow eight days to reach Mombasa, Kenya, where he spent a year in a refugee camp before moving into a home owned by an uncle. It was in Mombasa that he set up his first business. He worked there for about two years, selling clothes and performing basic tailoring repairs from a small table on the street, before he, his brother and two sisters moved to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
There, Mr. Awow opened his first proper shop. He bought two sewing machines and, relying on word-of-mouth recommendations, built a steady customer base. Life there, while not perfect, was good. “I was very happy,” he recalled. But in 1998, after four years in Dar es Salaam, Mr. Awow moved to Nairobi, where prospects were said to be better for Somali refugees.
Again, he set up shop. Business in Nairobi was even better than it had been in Dar es Salaam. Mr. Awow began including a tag on his garments with his name and number. The marketing strategy paid off. Phone orders poured in from as far as South Africa, New Zealand and the United States. Soon Mr. Awow met his wife, Fahmiya Habib Karima. With his business prospering, the two started a family.
In 2016, when the couple already had three children, they were granted asylum in the United States with support from Jewish Family Services, a resettlement agency. They moved to San Diego, which is home to a modest but well-established Somali community, and were able to find an apartment and enroll the children in school. (It helped that the children knew English from growing up in Kenya. Today, two are in college and one is in high school.) Besides a few sample garments, Mr. Awow brought no business supplies; he was once again starting from scratch.
With the help of a business counselor at the International Rescue Committee, Mr. Awow was able to navigate the nitty-gritty of American commercial life: getting a seller’s permit and a business license, finding a location and a suitable lease agreement, and paying taxes. Financed by three-year federal grants, the Microenterprise Development program eases refugees into the economy by helping small-business ventures. In the San Diego area, it has assisted more than 850 immigrant- and refugee-run businesses like Mr. Awow’s since 2003. (Ms. Habib Karima, who runs a day care center, has also received assistance from the organization.)
“We basically have to walk them through every step of the way,” said Irene Bwayo, Mr. Awow’s counselor at the agency. “But Ali is a very skilled businessperson. He definitely knows what he wants.”
Mr. Awow continues to make the same styles he was making back in Africa. Most of his sales so far have been in women’s clothing.Credit…Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times
Though it has been only three months, business so far in the Somali market has been steady, Mr. Awow said. It helped that he had already established a modest reputation in the community; before opening the shop, he taught sewing classes for several months at a local Somali association, and he handled some custom orders from his home. He continues to make the same styles he was making in Africa, though the bulk of his sales so far have been in women’s clothing. Clients sometimes show him pictures on their phones to give him a sense of what they want. One garment represents anywhere from one to three hours of work, he said.
Mr. Awow still receives business guidance from the International Rescue Committee, and he continues to take English classes. Eventually, he hopes to expand his shop to a larger storefront. For now, he said, he is grateful for the agency’s support and is happy to be running a business again.
“I’ve always preferred to work on my own to support my family,” he said. “I don’t want to work for anybody but myself.”
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. PHOTO | MONIRUL BHUIYAN | AFP
By AGGREY MUTAMBO
Just months after winning the Nobel Peace Prize, Ethiopia’s reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is fighting accusations of is interfering with the affairs of neighbouring countries.
In November, two United Nations reports accused him of being lukewarm in South Sudan peace process and fuelling fires of instability in Somalia; two of the countries he has been closely involved in as the chairman of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
In South Sudan, where Igad midwifed a revitalised peace agreement in September last year, Abiy’s government, Uganda and Kenya were accused of being inconsistent in ensuring the deal is implemented.
PEACE PROCESS
“Over the past year, the Igad and member states neighbouring South Sudan – specifically Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda – have not demonstrated full and consistent engagement in the peace process,” a UN report said.
“The government of Salva Kiir, in particular, has benefited from the inconsistent approach of the region.”
Ethiopia, which chaired Igad until last Friday, and Kenya have only given piecemeal support, with occasional visits or bilateral meetings, the report by the UN Panel of Experts says.
Both countries refute the charge, separately saying that they have in fact borne the brunt of violence in South Sudan by hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees and losing business.
On Friday, Ethiopia’s ambassador to Kenya Meles Alem told the Nation that the allegations do not hold water.
“One of the pillars of Ethiopian foreign policy is non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries. That is our track record,” Meles said.
“As a good neighbour, we have only played constructive roles.”
REFUGEES
Kenya on the other hand accused the UN team of passing the buck, arguing that Kenya suffers whenever South Sudan is at war as its businesses close and it hosts refugees.
This past week, a number of Somali politicians have been vocal, accusing Ethiopia of helping the federal government interfere with the states.
The Forum for National Parties (FNP), the coalition which brings together six parties, wrote to Abiy telling him to stop “the unfortunate renewal of Ethiopia’s involvement in Somalia’s domestic politics”.
The politicians said Ethiopia is deploying non-Amisom forces in the country, referring to the African Union Mission in Somalia.
“The Ethiopian National Defence Forces have been repeatedly involved in illegal activities whose outcome could at best undermine the fragile state-building and nascent democratic processes in Somalia,” they wrote on Friday.
The FNP letter came on the backdrop of complaints by the Jubbaland administration following two incidents in Gedo.
Jubbaland, whose president is Ahmed Madobe, said Ethiopian soldiers forced administrators in Buala Hawa, Dolow and Luuq towns in Gedo region to renounce their allegiance to Jubbaland.
In another incident, Jubbaland Vice President Mohamud Sayyid reportedly sought refuge in Mandera, Kenya after escaping a kidnapping attempt by Ethiopian forces.
MALTREATMENT
Pressed, Jubbaland and FNP did not provide proof of the maltreatment. Meles told the Sunday Nation that his country’s role in South Sudan and Somalia have been limited to the peace process.
He said Ethiopia deploys peacekeepers who follow available regulations.
“We have played a constructive role under the auspices of Igad to bring peace and stability in the two countries. In fact, Ethiopia hosts a million refugees and we treat them as our citizens,” the diplomat said.
Accusations against Ethiopia began in Somalia last year.
A UN Panel of Experts on Somalia in its 2019 report said Ethiopia had interfered with the vote in South West where Mukhtar Rubow – a former al-Shabaab deputy head – was barred from running.
When South West residents protested, forces loyal to Rubow fought Ethiopian soldiers, resulting in several deaths, the UN experts said.
“The role of the Ethiopian forces in the arrest of Rubow has the potential to inflame anti-Ethiopian sentiment among communities in the region, who were previously known to share information on al-Shabaab movements with them,” the panel said.
Ethiopia, at the time dismissed the report as a fabrication. As Somalia’s Galmudug state gears for its elections, politicians accuse Addis Ababa of playing a role again.
After more than two years, the Federal
Government of Somalia (FGS) has failed to execute the Implementation Plan of
the National Security Architecture approved by the National Security Council
(NSC). The FGS failure to implement the architecture has negatively impacted
security and stability of Somalia, and the region, delaying International
Partners funded programs to reconstitute credible, viable, integrated and
affordable Somali National Armed Forces (SNAF). The failure has also impacted
the capability of Somali Security Forces and delayed critical programs to
support the brave Somali National Army (SNA) forces in the front lines at
Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) fighting Al-Shabaab and other violent extremist
groups.
President Farmaajo with members of SNA
The FGS delay to implement the architecture
is a part of a cynical political ploy by President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo,
Prime Minister Hassan Ali Kheyre and Fahad Yasin, the Director of the National
Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) to marginalize Federal Member States
(FMSs), and starve federal, state and local security forces the support they
urgently require to combat Al-Shabaab and the Islamic State. The delay to
implement the security architecture and failure to support SNA forces fighting with
Al-Shabaab and dependence on Mogadishu-centric training programs poses
significant threat to the security and stability of Somalia, as these new
forces do not represent integrated national armed forces, but are seen by Somali
regions, and many clans and sub-clans leaders as a top down approach designed
to forcefully institute a national forces loyal to President Farmaajo and PM
Kheyre.
The FGS force generation programs of the SNA
are neither integrated nor sustainable, because of erosion of public confidence
in the federal government’s legitimacy and support from across Somalia. The FGS
actions will likely move Somalia back, if the international community partners
are not careful to make sure appropriate safeguards are in place to prevent
Somalia sliding back to civil war and perpetual state of conflict. In addition,
Fahad Yasin and proxy allies have delayed and undermined the the US-Pentagon’s
efforts to support the Somali Security Forces efforts to disrupt, dismantle and
defeat Al-Shabaab and other violent extremist groups, increasing threat to US
national security interests, including Al-Shabaab threat to US homelands.
Fahad and his proxy allies prefer to use
rogue Ethiopian forces disguised as African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM),
paying corrupt Ethiopian political leaders and military officers millions of
dollars from a Gulf State to forcefully capture, hold and marginalize Somali
states for a feeble and corrupt federal government that lacks local support to
fairly win state elections. Fahad Yasin and proxy allies’ efforts in Southwest,
Jubaland and Galmudug are an example of FGS corrupting of democratic elections
and use of non AMISOM Ethiopian forces, potentially leading to clan unrest and
conflict in the states.
The FGS use of non AMISOM Ethiopian forces for domestic politics is a treasonous act, and will further erode Somali people’s confidence in the federal government and will endanger the African Union Mission to Somalia leading to increase support for Al-Shabaab and the Islamic State insurgency and terrorism attacks on AU forces, unless the international community curbs Ethiopia’s meddling in internal political affairs in Somalia.
Background
In 2019, Somalia continues to face
significant political, and security challenges that unless resolved, the security
and stability of the nation and the region will be at risk. Despite FGS claims,
by all measures of success, Al-Shabaab is in control of or contesting more
territory today than that of any point since 2017. The international partners
risks turning a chance for success in Somalia into a failure and are repeating
the mistakes in Iraq and Afghanistan, supporting a centralized government that
lacks credibility and legitimacy, ignoring political will and wishes of the
people. The government in its present
form, is an artificially created and supported by the International Partners and
lacks legitimacy with the majority of people, a critical foundation for success
in governance in Somalia.
In almost three years, the FGS has failed to meet
its political and security commitments despite many agreements with FMSs. The government
has not made tangible progress towards peace, security, stability and
prosperity, a cornerstone of the 2017 London Security Pact. In addition, the
government leaders have failed to lead the nation through inclusive process of
peacebuilding, state-building and forging new agreement to resolve many
outstanding issues. The post 2017 election euphoria, hope and optimism have
been replaced by political infighting, grandstanding, despair and blame games. Today,
Somalia is politically more unstable than in the past decade, with majority of
people and political class in opposition to President Farmaajo and PM Kheyre’s
policies.
The federal government has therefore not set
out inclusive political, security and economic reforms required to move the
nation forward. Despite claims and choreographed social media campaigns, the
government has not improved on weak governance, political, justice, rule of
law, human rights, security, stability and delivery of basic service to its citizens.
The government has also failed to combat corruption and resolve pay and
benefits issues with security forces.
As a result of these failures, and the
federal government preoccupation with weakening and destroying Federal Member
States, and opposition political groups, Al-Shabaab, an affiliate of Al-Qa’ida has
in the last two years expanded its abilities to strike across the country, and
have stoked insurgency that is running a parallel government, collecting taxes
in and around Mogadishu, expanding threat and fostering terrorism in Somalia.
The worsening security has generated and allowed a large pool of fighters to
conduct attacks and bolster insurgents and cells attacks in Mogadishu, Puntland,
Galmudug, Southwest, Jubaland and Hirshabelle.
Despite
claims of progress by the International Partners, the outlook is more negative
than it has been in a decade and the situation in Mogadishu and across Somalia
remains fragile. Therefore, we call on the FGS, and the International Community
to change coursein orderto reverse failing security
conditions of the nation. We propose the establishment of a new Joint FGS,
FMS, and IC effort to reverse the morphing Al-Shabaab threat and ensure
national reconciliation, durable peace, security, stability and state building
in Somalia.
Without change
in course, the federal government and member states will continue to face daunting
challenges and will fail to create the conditions for sustaining
reconciliation, peace and stability, and rebuilding the state institutions,
through inclusive process. The cause of many problems is the desire by President
Farmaajo, PM Kheyre, and Fahad Yasin to centralize power, ignoring Somalia
fragile history that led to the 1991 collapse of the state and governing
structures, resulting in over two decades of civil war, chronic conflict,
lawlessness and poverty. We know that piracy, terrorism, constant streams of refugees
and periodic famine are very well-known problems resulting largely from centralized
power failure and the followed instability in Somalia.
President
Farmaajo and PM Kheyre do not have stake in Somalia, and can leave for their
comfortable lives in the west if Somalia fails again. They both left Somalia before
and during the early part of the civil war for the United States and Europe, and
were not in Somalia to witness the horrors of the 1990s civil war, famines,
perpetual state of clan and sub-clan violence, terrorism, humiliation, and
indignation many Somalis endured over the past three decades. They must
understand Somalia is not a game, or an academic exercise for the IC or a get
rich project, and the aspiration and future of the Somali people is at stake.
Rebuilding
Somali citizens trust in the central government will entail the FGS accepting urgent
reform efforts aimed at restoring confidence in the government and facilitating
building capacity of state institutions, communities and putting in place
effective and accountable governing structures. Strengthening federalism and
security will be critical, after more than two decades of conflict. In this
context, a bottom up approach to address political, security, economic, and
development gaps in a coordinated matter that moves the agenda nations forward
remains the only option that can succeed. Furthermore, without policies for
sustainable management of natural resources, FGS and FMS will continue be on
opposite end of many issues, leading to the status quo that will undermine
confidence and legitimacy of the central government and delay implementation of
political, security, economic and development reforms and goals. This will lead
to failure to building long-term resilient Somalia with a sustainable peace and
stability, and significantly improves the livelihoods of the Somali people.
As result of the failure to implement all the
3rd, and 4th National Security Council (NSC) meetings in 2017,
and failure to implement political agreement with FMSs, including the implementation
plan of the National Security Architecture and the Comprehensive Approach to
Security (CAS) will probably not be achieved before the current FGS term ends. The
international partners must call of FGS to commit to a new political, security
and economic pact and develop a new implementation mechanism to parallel support
for national and state security forces as well as better leadership and
coordination to advance security sector development and the reconstitution of integrated,
credible, capable, and affordable national and state security forces.
After more than two years, and because of FGS failure to lead, it’s clear that the National Security Architecture has not achieve the security objectives of Somalia, and must therefore be replaces with a new strategy, policy and implementation plan that will advance the interests of Somalia and the people and not the interest of some international community seeking to maintain the status quo.
A New Sector-based
National Security Strategy
In 2019, Somalia continues to face morphing terrorism
and insurgency that unless countered will significantly impact the security and
stability of the nation. As a result of failures, the nation is facing morphing
security challenges. The FGS has wasted valuable time, space goodwill and
resources to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat Al-Shabaab. To reverse failures and
achieve security objectives, we propose establishing a sector-based security,
governance, reconstruction and development lines of operation, replacing the
Mogadishu-centric approach with effort that simultaneously establishes and
builds security sectors in Mogadishu and across all Federal Member States.
Somali National Army
The focus of the new strategy focuses on
disrupting, dismantling and defeating Al-Shabaab, preventing terrorist attacks
and violent extremist use of safe havens, by properly establishing and
resourcing integrated SNA and FMSs Darawish Forces as National Guard Forces
(NGF) that will augment Somali National Armed Forces (SNAF). The new strategy
will refocus international partners to reinforce, create clear state measures
of security, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency increasing effectiveness
and evaluating security progress.
The focus of the New Sector-based Security Strategy will be:
Simultaneously provide security support to Mogadishu and across all Federal Member States
Support SNA and Darawish to take on increasing role in security counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations.
Fully support and resource SNA and Darawish counterinsurgency (COIN) campaign to diminish Al-Shabaab capabilities.
a.The joint COIN strategy and campaign consists of sequenced operations across four lines of operation: i.Security, Governance, Reconstruction and Development
b. Develop integrated approach that synchronizes the COIN efforts to achieve effects across the lines of operation in the COIN framework: i.Clear, Hold and Build
c.Training SNA and Darawish Forces
Security
Over the past two years, security situation continues to deteriorate across Somalia. Al-Shabaab insurgents continue to attack innocent civilians, security forces and infrastructure and continue to attempt to influence and intimidate the population. Al-Shabaab successfully carried out more attacks in the last two years than previous five years, including one of the deadliest terrorist attacks since 9/11 attacks. The increasing level of violence is due in part to failure to support building federal and state security institutions. We assess that unless urgent and significant changes are made, there will continue to failure at achieving political, and security objectives. “What good is debt forgiveness going to do for Somalia, if fast territory of the country including the capital is controlled by Al-Shabaab”.
Objectives
Achieving the core goals of the new
Sector-based National Security Strategy is vital to security in Somalia. It
requires, first of all, realistic and achievable objectives. These include:
Disrupting Al-Shabaab and the Islamic State terrorist and
insurgent networks in Somalia.
Promoting a more capable, accountable and effective
government in Somalia that serves the people and can eventually function,
regarding security, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency efforts with limited
international support.
Develop self-reliant federal and state
security forces that can lead security, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency
fight and reduce international community and the African Union Mission in
Somalia (AMISOM) assistance.
Assist the efforts to complete the
constitution, and support the 2020/2021 elections as well as enhance the
development of economy that provides opportunity for Somali citizens.
Goal
The core goal of the new strategy is to
develop security sector at each state supporting SNA and Darawish Forces to
disrupt, dismantle and eventually defeat Al-Shabaab, command and control,
support structures, safe havens. The federal government and all member states
must share common goal of denying violent extremist groups sanctuary in their
states. Unless changes are made, the current political instability will
continue to negatively affect Somalia, increasing instability with profound
implication for Somalia and regional security, and stability.
Looking Ahead
As Stated above, we assess that scrapping of
the National Security Architecture and developing a new agreement on a New Sector-based
Security Strategy will quickly move the nation forward, increasing size and
capabilities of federal and state security forces. The sector-based security
development model will provide resources directly to integrated national and
state security forces all sectors, as well as accelerate training of security forces.,
and help transition of security, counterterrorism and counterinsurgency efforts
in the country. In addition, the new strategy will accelerate security
preparation for the upcoming 2020/2021 elections and will ensure that the
necessary military, security, law enforcement, civilian and financial resources
are available and coordinated to support free and fair democratic election for
the Somali people.
___________________________________ Mr. Mohamed Fatah is a Somali-American executive with over 15+ years’ experience in foreign policy, national security, banking, and regulatory compliance. Mr. Fatah previously served as a Senior Advisor to President Farmaajo and he is the First and last Director – General of the National Security Office (NSO) at the Office of the President of Somalia in 2017. Mr. Fatah chaired the Technical Committee of the National Security Council (NSC) in the 3rd and 4th National Security Council (NSC) meetings in 2017. He is the leading US authority and subject matter expert on Somalia and the region. Mr. Fatah in the past advised current and past Somalia governments on public diplomacy, security and engagement with the international community.
Prior to that, Mr. Fatah had a distinguished career in the U.S. Government where he served as Senior Advisor and Policy Coordinator to the National Security Council (NSC) at the White House. He routinely analyzed global issues of concern, resulting in clear, concise, analysis and briefings for the President of the United States, Vice President, Senior Policymakers, the National Security Council (NSC), the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Cabinet Secretaries and Combatant Commands. Mr. Fatah brings to any discussion an unparalleled depth of expertise, advising the Pentagon and the United States Congress foreign affairs, defense, and appropriation committees on political and security matters in Somalia and the region.
A blaze that killed five in a 25-storey building with few sprinklers has prompted comparisons to London’s Grenfell fire
The Minneapolis city councilman Abdi Warsame addresses the media outside the building. Photograph: Aaron Lavinsky/AP
Jared Goyette
Warsame Omar lives on the 15th floor of Minneapolis’s Cedar High apartments, exactly one floor above where a fire started early on Wednesday morning. He woke to find his room full of thick black smoke. The elderly Somali man ran outside to the stairwell, where he vomited. He remembers a black substance coming out of his mouth and nose.
Omar managed to escape alive, but others in the 25-floor public housing complex located in the heart of Minneapolis’s Somali community did not. The fire killed five people, injured at least four more and has sparked an argument in the city about its dilapidated public housing.
In a debate with echoes of Britain’s Grenfell Tower fire, which killed 72 in 2017, the conversation has centered on whether the city has failed to make safe the housing it provides to its poor and vulnerable, essentially putting their lives at risk as it seeks to save money and maintain a system long underfunded by the federal government.
Omar was taken to an emergency room where, he said, doctors removed black smoke from his lungs. Now, many of his belongings and clothing in his home are covered in soot, and he’s worried about how what happened could affect his health.
“I’m not trying to complain but I need help. I need help,” he told the Guardian with the help of a volunteer translator, clutching a report from this ER visit in his hand as he spoke.
Investigators have not determined what caused the fire, which happened during the year’s first major snow storm, though the Minneapolis fire chief, John Fruetel, said he believed it was an accident.
Public attention has begun to center around what Fruetel has acknowledged could have contributed to the rapid spread of the flames: the high rise did not have sprinkler systems above the two lowest floors.
City officials have said that because of the age of the building, which was constructed in 1969, it was not required by city code to have a sprinkler system – but that, some say, is exactly the problem.
“Nobody should have died. A small fire should not have resulted in the death of five people. Because if you’re having such dense housing, there should be a sprinkler system in an apartment building. Even though that may not be required by code, that should be required because Minneapolis public housing authority has a responsibility to provide safe and secure housing to all of its residents,” said Kaaha Kaahiye, a resident of public housing and organizer with Defend Glendale, an advocacy group long critical of the public housing authority (MPHA).
Warsame Omar survived the Cedar High fire. Photograph: Courtesy Jared Goyette
As first reported by Minneapolis Public Radio, the MPHA had identified the need to retrofit its older high rises with sprinkler system in its annual plan, approved in September, which also noted limiting funding and a need for “major reinvestment”.
MPHA did not ask for additional funds from the city for sprinkler systems in its last budget request, according to the office of the Minneapolis mayor, Jacob Frey.
“The federal government is the primary funder of public housing, but funds have been short for decades. With respect to local funding authority, the city of Minneapolis can only approve requests submitted by MPHA,” said the mayor’s spokesperson, Mychal Vlatkovich.
Like many cities across the country, Minneapolis is experiencing an affordable housing crisis, with high demand for urban housing driving a surge in the development of new luxury condos.
The Hennepin county commissioner, Angela Conley, whose district includes the Cedar Riverside neighborhood, where the apartments are located, pointed to what she sees as a problematic discrepancy: new buildings with high rents are required to have sprinkler systems, while older high rises, historically home to immigrants and lower-income populations, have no such requirement.
“So does that tell us that the lives of seniors and vulnerable people and disabled people and people who are lower income in high-rises, are their lives more expendable than people who can afford to live in more expensive, newer condos? Absolutely not. But that’s the message that we get when we know that certain buildings take priority over others,” Conley said.
On Friday, organizers with Defend Glendale met with residents and collected stories. They plan to push MPHA and the mayor to do more to help residents whose apartments were damaged, and to improve fire safety standards at other buildings.
“Black and black Muslims and low-income and disabled people are invisible in a city that says that [it is] anti-Trump and therefore progressive,” says the group’s founder, Ladan Yusuf. “It’s important to know that this could happen anywhere else. And it’s already happened. It happened in Grenfell in England. It’s happening here because politicians and political officials have to be held accountable. It’s important to know that we are one community and that we have to come together to make sure that this doesn’t happen again.”
Odhaahda Tifatirka: Gabayga Hayb-sooc oo uu tiriyay Abwaan Maxamed Hiirad, kuna soo baxay degelka WDN bishii Juun, 2007, waa gabay si qotodheer u iftiiminaya cunsuriyadda aan wax macnao ah ku dhisnayn ee ay Soomaalidu ku hayso qayb dhan oo ka mid ah bulshada Soomaaliyeed.
Iyadoo hadda laga joogo in ka badan 12 sano xilligii uu abwaanku gabaygan u soo bandhigay shacabka Soomaaliyeed ayaa waxaa nasiib darro ah in xaalka hayb-sooca aanay jirin habayaraatee wax iska bedelay. Sidaadarteed waxaan jeclaysanay mar kale in aan bulshada Soomaaliyeed u soo bandhigno murtida weyn ee uu xanbaarsanyahay gabaygani.
Hayb sooc ama takoorku waa dhaqan liita oo lid ku ah bani’aadanimada isla markaana si cad uga soo horjeeda waxyaabaha ay inna farayso diinta Islaamka ee muqaddaska ah ee Soomaalidu aaminsantahay.
Waa dhaqan soo jireen ah oo aan garawshiiyo lahayn, kana simantahay guud ahaanba Soomaalidu meel kasta oo ay ku nooshahay. Waa xad-gudub iyo goddob weyn oo laga galay qayb ka mid ah Soomaalida oo habayaraatee aanay jirin wax ay kaga geddisanyihiin bulshada inteeda kale.
Haddaba isagoo hayb-sooca ay Soomaalidu ku soo dhaqmaysay muddo dheer ayaa haddana inta ka dhiidhiday dhaqankan xun culumo iyo caamo mid kay doontaba ha ahaatee ay aad u yaryihiin. Taasi ayaana sababtay in dhaqankani muddo dheer soo jiro oo uu ilaa casrigan soo gaadho.
Haddaba muddooyinkan dambe waxaa jirtay in Soomaali badani ay dareemeen dhibta iyo xaqiraadda lagu hayo qabiilooyinka la hayb-sooco ee aan macno iyo xaqiiqo midna ku dhisnayn.
Inkastoo ay adagtahay in dhaqan muddo dheer soo jiray si dhib yar lagu tirtiro haddana waxaa waayadan dambe soo baxayay ifafaale muujinaya bislaanshaha bulshada Soomaaliyeed ee ku aaddan cidhibtirka dhaqamada liita ee hayb-soocu kawga ka yahay..
Haddaba gabaygan oo si qotodheer uga hadlaya hayb-sooca iyo macnaraddiisa ayaa abwaanku dhinacyo badan ka eegayaa dhaqankan, isagoo isla markaana bulshada u soo bandhigaya su’aalo ay habbboontahay in qof kasta oo Soomaaliyeed jawaab waafi ah u raadiyo.
Waxaan filayaa inta laga maansooday hayb-sooca in aanu jirin qof sida abwaan Hiirad si qurux badan oo murti weyn ka dambeyso u soo bandhigay macna darrada hayb sooca.
Waxaan faalladan kooban ku soo qaadan doonaa qaybo ka mid ah gabaygan oo aan si gaar ah u eegi doono , ka dibna waxaan idiin soo bandhigi doonaa gabaygii oo idil.
Abwaan hiirad waxa uu ka amabaqaaday ugu horreynba sinnaanshaha bani’aadamka, taasi oo aanay jirin cid cid ka sareysa iyadoo waxa keliya ee lagu kala horreeyaa ay tahay uun cabsida Eebe. Tuduccyada soo socda ayaa arintaas si cad u qeexaya.
Siday tahay Calow inan rag waa inuu sinnaadaaye
Ilaahii sameeyee khalqaa siiyey sharaf weyne
Sinjigoodu waa Aadan iyo sawjadduu qabaye
Sagaal bay kusoo wada dhashaan bila sid hooyaade
Sargooyada diyada qoonta iyo siman qisaastiiye
Sadbursiiyo weyn iyo ammaan saayid lagu yeesho
Waa saamax Eebbiyo cabsidii, ruux u saahidaye
Wixii kalee na kala saarayaa waa sir iyo beene
Iyadoo haddaba uu abwaanku sidaa u aaminsanyahay sinnaanta bani’aamka ayaa waxa uu garawsan la’yahay in Soomaalidu ay qaybo bulshada ka mid ah xaqirto, islamarkaana aan laga dhiidhiyin sidii loo cidhibtiri lahaa dhaqankaas silloon ee haybsooca iyo xaqirraada ku dhisan. Waa kan abwaanka oo arrimahaas inoo iftiiminaya:
War Soomaali badankeed xaqii, seege oo naca e
Waa saancad dhaqankii xun aad, sii waddaa abide
Surma seegto qaar lagu hayaa, soo taxnaan jiraye
Waxaa in badan la is weydiiyaa waxa ay dadka la hayb-sooco kaga geddisanyihiin Soomaalida inteeda kale?
Ma midab gaara ayay leeyihiin? Ma af gaara ayay ku hadlaan? Ma diin gaar ayay aaminsanyiin? Ma muuqaal ka duwan soomaalida inteeda kale ayay leeyihiin?
Marka aad u dhabba gasho su’aalahan waxaa kuu soo baxay sabab la’aanta iyo macno darrada ay aragtida hayb-soocu ku dhisanyahay.
Haddaba abwaanka ayaa sidoo kale waxa uu ka yaabban yahay waxa keenay faquuqa lagu hayo dadkaas. Isagoo arimahaas ka hadlayana waxa uu yidhi
Sumcad xumo maxaa loogu yidhi, waa sab iyo naaqus?
Maxaa loo sagsaagaa markuu sawjad naga doono?
Maxaa looga saahiday gabdho ah wada suleekhooyin?
Waa su’aal dadweynaha jawaab laga sugaayaaye
Abwaanku uma arko oo keliya in dadka la hayb soocaa ay la simanyihiin Soomaalida inteeda kale, balse waxa uu aaminsanyahay inay yihiin kuwa bulshada ugu waxtarka badan loona baahnaa in si gaara loo ciseeyo.
Waxa uu abwaanku si qurux badan u soo ban dhigay waxqabadka beelaha la hayb sooco iyo kaalinta muhiimka ah ee ay ku leeyihiin adeegga bulshada.
Mindi sikhil la marshiyo mudaa sabarad fiiq dheer leh
Mudac lagu sifsifo doobiyada saabley iyo dhiilo
Saaniciinta dhaqankeenna wacan soo wadaye haysey
Intii lagu sarraysiin lahaa saayaqnimadooda
Sinnaan iyo haddii laga dafiray saami saransooran
Waxa lagu saluugay dhimeen yaa na solan siiya?
Ma waa kuwii wax soo saaray baa sababta loo maagay?
Waa su’aal dad weynaha jawaab laga sugaayaaye
Soomaalida siiba kuwa gobnimada ku faanaa kumaanay ekaan Soomaalinimada ay iskula qabka weyn yihiin ee ay walaalhooda kale ku faquuqayaan ee waxaa jirta in beel waliba ay meel kale iyo qawmiyado kale isha ku hayaan sheegtaana in ay halkaas ka soo jeedaan.
Waxaan shaki lahayn in abwaanku uu hab murti weyn ku dhisan uu ku muujiyay arinta hayb sooca qofkasta oo si aadda u dhuuxaana ay waano uu wax ku qaato u noqonayso.
Abwaan Maxamed Hiirad oo gabaygii oo dhan bulshada u soo bandhigaya, kana hadlaya sababta ku kaliftay tirinta gabaygan, iyo madashii ugu horeysay ee uu ka tiriyay ayaa waxa uu yidhi:-
Gabaygan waxaan ka mariyey xaalad soo jireen ah oo Soomaalida dhaqamadeeda xun ka mid ah. Taas oo ah takoorka dadkeenna dhexdiisa ka jira. Waxaa jirtay in aan la yaabi jiray takoorka, in badana isweydiiyay maxaa dhacay oo dadka qaarkiis loo xaqiraa? Hase yeeshee jawaab i qancisa ma helin. Sidaa darteed waxaan rabaa in aan dadka Soomaalida ah gabay ku weydiiyo sababta uu takoorku dexdheenna uga jiro.
Waxa gabaygani soo baxay bishii Abril, 18, 2002. Laba magac baa gabaygan ku jira. Mid waa ninka aan ku halqabsaday oo ah Cali Cabdi Nuur (Cali Dhoof) oo jooga dalka Kanada, kan kalana waa Maxamed Xasan “Dillaal” oo aanu isku magaalo deggenahay. Labada ninba waa rag aanu saxiib nahay. Gabaygiina waa kan:
The relative stability Somaliland has seen for years is now at risk of coming undone. What ought to have been the first parliamentary elections in this autonomous region of Somalia since 2005 have been put off once more.
By Maria Gerth-Niculescu (bve)
The postponement of a vote set for mid-December to 2022 and increasing crackdowns on free speech pose a risk to Somaliland, an internationally endorsed autonomous region of Somalia that straddles the borders of Ethiopia and Djibouti.
Some analysts see Somaliland as East Africa’s strongest democracy, located at a strategic intersection and key to the development of the Horn of Africa .
The most recent postponement of the parliamentary vote to 2022 has triggered political infighting and discontent on the part of the opposition and among young people who say they feel excluded. The majority of Somaliland’s population are under 35.
A disenfranchised generation
“We are having a whole generation unable to elect their own representatives, because everyone who is under the age of 30 was not eligible to vote in 2005 when our parliament was elected,” says Guleid Ahmed Jama, a lawyer and political analyst. “There is a detachment between the elected officials and the majority of the people in the city, who are suffering because of unemployment and other social issues.”
Somaliland, home to over 4.5 million people, declared independence from Somalia in 1991. The move came after years of dictatorship and bloody conflict under Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre. The region’s fight to be recognized as an independent state has been hindered by diplomatic issues between the international community and Somalia. Somaliland, meanwhile, functions as a sovereign entity, with its own constitution, institutions and permanent population.
While presidential elections have been held on a regular basis, the upper and lower houses of parliament have been in place for 14 and 22 years respectively. The elections for the lower house scheduled for this year were put off until 2022, officially because parties disagreed on who should run the new National Election Commission.
However, many people argue that the unwillingness of Somaliland parliamentarians to relinquish power is behind the repeated deferral of the vote. Local councils have also been operating without a mandate since April.
“The problem is, even if this [issue oo the election commission] is solved, the issue related to disputes on election and postponement of elections will not be resolved,” says Guleid Ahmed Jama. “This requires addressing the root cause of the problem, which relates to the rule of law and the place of the judiciary. The electoral law and the electoral commission need to be reformed in order to conform with democratic principles.”
Somaliland’s 2017 presidential race was between one candidate for the ruling party and two for the opposition
Political squabbles
The main opposition Waddani party has accused Kulmiye, the ruling party of President Musa Bihi Abdi, of appointing biased members to the National Election Commission. To protest this and the delay of elections, Waddani called for a rally at the party’s headquarters in the capital, Hargeisa. On November 18, Waddani’s secretary general and spokesman were arrested, then released one week later.
“Taking them to prison was illegal because we are in the opposition and we have the right to criticize the government normally, like in any democracy in the world,” said Waddani chairman Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi, also known as Irro.
The ruling party denies clamping down on the opposition, which it blames for the postponed elections.
“Kulmiye party was ready and prepared to hold the elections on time, but the Somaliland system requires all three political parties to agree to hold the elections,” said Ahmed Abdi Hussien, its deputy chairperson. “It was very unfortunate that the Waddani party refused … to agree with the nominations made by our party, although we have not interfered with their nominations. This caused the extension of the time for the current sitting parliament.”
Hargeisa is both the largest city and the capital of Somaliland
Clan-based politics
Somaliland is ruled by three national parties, a number limited by the constitution in order to discourage clan-based and sub-clan parties and competition, which have led to tensions in the past. Such alliances, however, still play an important part in the region’s politics. Disagreements between sub-clans have led to tensions within the ruling party itself.
While Kulmiye deputy chairman, Ahmed Abdi Hussien, insists that the clan system is “almost disappearing” from politics and especially among young people, those dynamics still come into play during elections.
“Certainly the percentage of youth is huge, but that doesn’t mean that they have much political weight. Sadly, they don’t organize around their own political demands,” says Rakiya Omaar, a human rights activist and director of Horizon Institute. The NGO works in the justice sector to promote human rights and institution building. “Unless they divorce themselves from political parties, which are very much along clan lines, I don’t think a lot will change,” she said.
Francincense production is a source of livelihood in Somaliland
Threatened democracy
Despite the political squabbles, Somaliland is still considered as a model of internal stability and peace in the Horn of Africa, and one with strong institutions. But human rights organizations say democracy might be threatened by an increase in arrests and arbitrary detention of journalists and opposition figures. Only a few weeks ago, the chief editor of privately owned Horn Cable TV was arrested by the police, and the station was forcibly closed.
“We have seen that media outlets and other individuals who are critical of the government, particularly those who talk about corruption cases, have been targeted, arrested and had their media outlets closed down. It is a violation of freedom of expression,” says Abdullahi Hassan, Amnesty International’s Somalia researcher. “I’m really afraid that the country might descend into worrying kinds of chaos if this current pattern continues.”
This trend, combined with a poor economic situation worsened by its non-recognition as an independent state, makes Somaliland vulnerable to outside threats, says Guleid Ahmed Jama.” If democracy is not strengthened, the instability in Somalia, where al-Shabab and other militants operate, can threaten Somaliland. “I believe the president should take more responsibility … and should ensure elections happen earlier than 2022,” he insists.
But Rakiya Omaar is confident that the willingness of the Somaliland population to safeguard peace will play a significant role in maintaining the country’s stability. That stability is Somaliland’s most treasured asset and it’s what makes people have red lines beyond which they won’t go, she says: “Without stability, we wouldn’t be talking about political integration or economic success or anything else.”
America’s military presence in Somalia could be causing more harm than good. Mazen Mahdi/EPA
The US is an active participant in the war against Al-Shabaab in Somalia, efforts that have increased in the last few years under the Trump Administration.
The strategy involves using airstrikes to assist Somali ground forces in recapturing territory controlled by Al-Shabaab. In addition, there have been attempts to take out Al-Shabaab leadership, destroy training facilities, and eliminate rank-and-file members.
The US argues that military action is necessary for two main reasons: to counter the influence of Al-Shabaab locally; and to prevent the group from reaching out to members of the Somali diaspora community to inspire tragic terror attacks. Examples include the Westgate Mall attack in Kenya that killed 67 people, and the attack on a university in Garissa that killed 147. Earlier this year there was an attack on a hotel in Nairobi that killed 14 people.
From the perspective of the US, this terror threat is compounded by the inability of the US-backed Somali Federal Government to consolidate power in the shadow of Al-Shabaab’s influence. This has created a roadblock to much-needed regional stability.
The resilience of Al-Shabaab raises questions about the effectiveness of the current strategy. In addition, civilians being killed as a consequence of US strikes should not be taken lightly. Understanding when and why these targeted civilian killings occur as a consequence of US action is vital for US policymakers as well as those on the ground seeking to address the prolonged humanitarian crisis.
We examined the hidden costs of US strikes in Somalia in a recently published paper. Our research shows that US strikes do have hidden costs in Somalia, with civilians becoming victims in the aftermath of strikes targeting military assets. This implies that efforts by the US to undermine Al-Shabaab’s war-making capabilities put innocent life at risk. And do little to combat the group’s influence in the region.
What we found
In a bid to understand the impact of attacks, we hand coded data collected by the Armed Location and Event Data Project. The project uses news sources to capture information on events associated with the onset, evolution, and escalation of political violence in much of the world. We examined the content of the media-generated events to identify incidents of Al-Shabaab murdering innocent civilians.
For targeted civilian killings, we only kept those instances in which Al-Shabaab purposefully executed or assassinated civilians. Examples included civilians executed by firing squad after being accused of being spies. In another case a group of civilians were called before a court only to be put to death in public.
We also did the same for data related to US strikes. We coded them based on the intended target, such as leadership, rank-and-file members, or military assets. We consulted the Bureau of Investigative Journalism to ensure the strikes we captured were valid and complete.
Because the data were geo-referenced, we investigated whether the locations where US strikes occurred were associated with subsequent targeted civilian killings.
We found that US strikes made it 5.5 times more likely that civilians were murdered by Al-Shabaab. But when looking at the three different types of targets, we found important differences.
Strikes that targeted military assets made it five times more likely that civilians were murdered, whereas the killing of rank-and-file members reduced the likelihood of targeted civilian killings by 99%. We didn’t find any statistically significant relationship between attempts to assassinate leadership by the US and patterns of targeted civilian killings at the hands of Al-Shabaab.
Importantly, killing rank-and-file members reduced the probability of targeted civilian killings. This shows that, while significant blowback does result from some strikes, others may actually reduce civilian victimisation by Al-Shabaab.
The effectiveness of killing Al-Shabaab leaders remains open to debate. Previous research on the effectiveness of this strategy came to different conclusions. It certainly appears that the outcomes are usually based on the characteristics of the group being targeted and nature of the conflict.
And, while some evidence exists that killing leaders reduces violence, there is also evidence that such strikes can lead to the onset of revenge killings. This can put targets like civilians in harm’s way.
Implications for US strategy
Our study speaks only to US strategy in Somalia.
The influence of US strikes on armed non-state groups varies depending on the characteristics of that group and the conflict itself. Though a great deal of progress has been made in developing expectations that can be generalised, there’s still a great deal of work to be done. This is particularly true when it comes to examining the long-term implications of airstrikes.
Our findings challenge the simplistic argument that airstrikes, such as those used in Somalia, are “good” and “just” because they have the potential to prevent widespread war that would put innocent lives at risk.
Our findings point out that the issue for US policymakers is that strikes that destroy the war-making capabilities of Al-Shabaab lead to the brutal murder of civilians in retaliation. This unjust killing of innocent people, which would not occur in the absence of US strikes, should caution US policymakers. This is particularly true given given the apparent failure of the current strategy.
And, while the US may prevent murders by targeting rank-and-file members instead of military assets, these members can be replaced via new recruits, allowing Al-Shabaab to continue its reign of terror.
If civilians continue to suffer as part of this status-quo, both the utility and morality of airstrikes in the region need to be the subject of greater debate in the policy community.
Jamal Osman, a Somali journalist, has watched his country be torn apart by civil war for three decades.
He thought that in Kismayo, a city in Jubbaland, southern Somalia, he had found a society which offered up hope of an end to the cycle of violence.
But a horrific al-Shabab attack on the city’s Madina Hotel in July 2019, which left 26 dead and 56 injured, shattered the fragile hope of lasting security in the region.
As part of Jamal’s journey into Jubbaland, he meets alleged al-Shabab fighters in prison as well as a Jubbaland army unit made up of former al-Shabab members, now supporting the government.
One of the 12 vessels donated by the EU and delivered by FAO to the fishing cooperatives in Somalia’s Puntland State on November 28, 2019.PHOTO | FAO
By ABDULKADIR KHALIF
Somali fisherman have received a boost after the United Nations handed over 12 fishing vessels to fishing cooperatives in Puntland State.
John Purvis, FAO’s Coastal Communities Against Piracy (CCAP) Project Manager in Somalia on Thursday said that the diesel-powered boats will help local communities tap its fishing potential in the coastal waters.
“The vessels are another contribution from the CCAP Project, generously funded by the European Union, which works to develop a vibrant fisheries sector that harnesses the great potential offered by Somalia’s coastline by providing decent employment opportunities young people along the fisheries value chain,” said Purvis.
The CCAP project is part of FAO’s interventions in the fisheries sector in Somalia.
“Puntland state is committed to ensuring that these vessels contribute to generating income and opportunities to youth in the coastal communities of Puntland. We thank you FAO and the European Union for their longstanding and continued support to develop our fisheries sector,” said Puntland minister for fisheries and marine resources Abdiqani Gelle Mohamed.
Despite having the longest coastline of mainland Africa, Somalia’s fishing sector still holds a huge potential to be developed. Fishing accounts for roughly one percent of Somalia’s Gross Domestic Product.
