Al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab release a joint propaganda video - YouTube: ""
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Scrambled Somalia - Jubaland, Puntland, Somaliland,Somalia,Glamoud ..
Friday, May 30, 2014
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
40 Killed in Deadly Battle Near Ethiopia Border
40 people had been killed in deadly battle that ensued near Somalia's southwestern border with Ethiopia according to officials, Garowe Online reports. On Tuesday morning, heavily armed Al Shabaab fighters raided bases in a village on Somalia-Ethiopia border, killing 28 vigilantes, the Governor of Bakool region of southwestern Somalia said on VOA Somalia Service during Tuesday interview.
He added that militants estimated to be 12 were also killed in stiff resistance from the local forces manning the bases. Meanwhile, Ato village head told BBC Somali Service that Al Shabaab fighters launched the deadly assault on local soldiers. Ethiopia maintains military presence near the attacked village of Ato, sources revealed.Ethiopian-AMISOM troops have been fighting alongside Somali National Army (SNA) in support of Somali Federal Government's stabilization efforts. Al Shabaab which has been driven underground in military campaign honed guerilla insurgency, targeting military and soft structures with military-style ambushes and suicide bombings
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Al-Shabaab's New Face in Kenya? - Horseed
With the notable exception of Westgate, terrorism incidents in Kenya have largely consisted of lobbed grenades and makeshift IEDs. The perpetrators have tended to be sympathetic to al-Shabaab’s ideology but unlikely to have direct ties to the group.
But there are signs that al-Shabaab top brass are beginning to take a more active role in Kenya, where the security climate has rapidly deteriorated over the past year despite the East African country receiving vast intelligence support from American, British and Israeli spy agencies.
In a 23 April suicide attack, two militants detonated a Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) at a police station in the Nairobi neighbourhood of Pangani, killing two police officers as well as the attackers. Many believe that the station was not the intended target, but that the bombers had been on their way to another site – perhaps a nightclub – when they were pulled over for driving on the wrong side of the road. The blast was atypically powerful, and it is possible that the secondary bomber was wearing a suicide vest to augment the main explosives contained in the vehicle’s boot.
It was the second time in under two months that a sophisticated VBIED – bearing the signs of more direct al-Shabaab involvement – had found its way into a Kenyan police station. On 11 March, an impounded car brought to an Anti-Terror Police Unit station in Mombasa was later found to contain six pipe bombs attached to a mobile phone detonator, containing enough plastic explosives to collapse a multi-storey building.
Ikrima, the Somali-Kenyan militant suspected of organizing the Westgate attack, and Mahad Karate – the head of Amniyaat, al-Shabaab’s intelligence and assassination unit – are believed to be working closely together to plan further attacks in Kenya.
“Given the sophistication of what’s going on in terms of VBIEDs… clearly indicates to me that Amniyaat is now fully in change,” said Rashid Abdi, Somalia analyst for the International Crisis Group.
Abdi argues that their increasing involvement is a product of al-Shabaab dissatisfaction over the commitment level of homegrown non-Somali Kenyan radicals, especially with respect to their willingness to carry out suicide attacks. Abdi has identified a “new, shadowy” Kenyan radical group made up almost exclusively of ethnic Somalis, a group to which the Pangani suicide bombers had belonged. Al-Shabaab, he believes, has been pressuring this network to take the lead on the domestic terror front from other groups – such as the Muslim Youth Centre (MYC)/ al-Hijra – which it judges insufficiently radicalized. Indeed, the fact that the principal Pangani bomber was a Nairobi-born university graduate, whose father had served as a surgeon in the Kenyan Defence Forces, suggests a level of ideological radicalization far exceeding that of the average MYC/al-Hijra cadre.
There may be other such attacks in the works. According to an analyst source, a suicide VBIED attack in early April targeting the National Intelligence Agency (NIS) operations centre at Nairobi’s Nyati House was disrupted only when one of the attackers failed to gain entry and was shot dead outside the gate.
The prospect of a more centrally-planned, “hands on” approach by al-Shabaab in Kenya is worrying, especially in light of the diverse tactics the group has employed to create havoc in Somalia. A proliferation of “complex attacks”– using a combination of gunmen and suicide bombers – strikes on government buildings, and perhaps even targeted assassinations against Kenyan politicians and security forces officials may be in Kenya’s future.
So far, the Kenyan government has had few answers to the mounting threat, other than an indiscriminate crackdown on the Somali community and a bizarre neighbourhood watch-type initiative.
Without a radical rethinking of counter-terrorism policy in the near future, Kenya risks further erosion of state control and lasting damage to its economic prospects.
Somalia: Cabinet unanimously passes the Public Procurement & Concessions Act - Horseed
Somalia: Cabinet unanimously passes the Public Procurement & Concessions Act - Horseed: "Today the Minister of Finance, Hussien Abdi Halane, has passed the Public Procurement, Concessions and Disposal Act in front of a unanimous Cabinet vote. This signals a milestone in Somalia’s achievements and is a step towards a brighter future. The objective of the Bill is to lay down principles and practices of public procurement and create a foundation for transparent financial governance. This will further contribute to the Somali Federal Government and promote economic development.
The Public Procurement, Concession and Disposal Act will regulate the Somali public finance, increase accountability and ascertain that public funds are used for the purpose which they are intended. It offers full transparency and procurement will help obtain the best values for public expenditures by reducing the price of commodities and services to strengthen financial governance and institutions. It will bring consistency and order in the procedures, processes and decisions relating to procurement and agreements entered into it.
Minister Halane has made this achievement an utmost priority since his arrival to the post.
“It is a milestone triumph for Cabinet to unanimously pass this Bill. It addresses all issues of transparency, accountability and utilizing public funds wisely when the public institutions procure goods and services as well as concessions. This new bill was taken very well by Cabinet and it is a milestone in the Somali Federal Government”, he said.
The new Bill will promote the growth of local business people of the Federal Government of Somalia and eradicate mismanagement of public funds, reduce monopolies and promote competitiveness in the concession of procurement process. This Bill will go through Parliament and once it is passed it will allow the Somali government to strengthen its financial governance and institutions"
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The Public Procurement, Concession and Disposal Act will regulate the Somali public finance, increase accountability and ascertain that public funds are used for the purpose which they are intended. It offers full transparency and procurement will help obtain the best values for public expenditures by reducing the price of commodities and services to strengthen financial governance and institutions. It will bring consistency and order in the procedures, processes and decisions relating to procurement and agreements entered into it.
Minister Halane has made this achievement an utmost priority since his arrival to the post.
“It is a milestone triumph for Cabinet to unanimously pass this Bill. It addresses all issues of transparency, accountability and utilizing public funds wisely when the public institutions procure goods and services as well as concessions. This new bill was taken very well by Cabinet and it is a milestone in the Somali Federal Government”, he said.
The new Bill will promote the growth of local business people of the Federal Government of Somalia and eradicate mismanagement of public funds, reduce monopolies and promote competitiveness in the concession of procurement process. This Bill will go through Parliament and once it is passed it will allow the Somali government to strengthen its financial governance and institutions"
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Somalia: Somali extremist threatens US, Kenya with attacks | Nation/World | NewsObserver.com
MOGADISHU, SOMALIA — Making a rare threat against the United States, a senior member of Somalia's Islamic insurgent group that has carried out terrorist attacks abroad said Thursday that holy war will come to America and that Islam's flag will one day fly over Washington.
The al-Shabab fighter, who has a $5 million U.S. bounty on his head, said in a speech broadcast on the rebels' radio station that al-Shabab fighters would carry out jihad, or holy war, in Kenya and Uganda "and afterward, with God's will, to America."
"America is waging a war in the Horn of Africa because they are responsive to the Quran verses saying that the Islamic flag will fly in every corner of the world," Fuad Mohamed Khalaf, also known as Fuad Shongole, said, referring to Islam's holy book.
U.S. officials have long feared that any of the several dozen Somali-Americans who have left the U.S. to join the extremist fighters could travel back to the United States to carry out terror attacks. Senior al-Shabab leaders have rarely, if ever, publicly threatened to carry out attacks in the U.S.
The threat comes amid a heightening of security by the U.S. Embassy in neighboring Kenya.
The U.S. ambassador in Nairobi, in a letter sent to embassy employees last week, said he has requested additional Kenyan and American security personnel and is reducing the size of the embassy staff because of an increase in terrorist threats in Kenya. The letter said additional police are already patrolling around the embassy and that more assets would arrive from Washington.
U.S. Ambassador Robert Godec called the number of recent terror attacks, threats and warnings in Kenya "deeply concerning."
Al-Shabab carried out multiple suicide bombings in Kampala, Uganda during the 2010 World Cup final, killing 70 people. Al-Shabab gunmen in September attacked Westgate Mall in Nairobi, killing at least 67 people.
The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, which was relocated after al-Qaida's 1998 bombing attack on both the facility and the embassy in Tanzania, killing 224 people in total, sits far off the road and is surrounded by thick walls. Armed Marines have recently begun patrolling the grounds wearing bullet-proof vests and helmets.
The U.S. Treasury Department in 2010 imposed sanctions on Shongole, which froze any assets he had in U.S. jurisdictions. Shongole sought asylum in Sweden in the 1990s and has Swedish citizenship. He returned to Somalia in the mid-2000s to fight with the Islamic Courts Union, a militant group that preceded al-Shabab.
In his radio message, Shongole also threatened to launch more attacks in Kenya and Uganda. Both countries contribute troops to the African Union force waging war against al-Shabab inside Somalia.
"We swear by the almighty Allah that we'll move the war into Kenya, so let's see who suffers most," said Shongole, who spoke before a noisy crowd of supporters. "If one Somali girl is killed by their soldiers in Somalia, we shall murder their girls at home."
Straziuso reported from Nairobi, Kenya.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Somalia – Kenya Diplomatic row heats up as Kenya appoints a new Representative to Kismanyo | Somalicurrent.com
Somalicurrent – Kenyan Government newly appointed Representative to Kismanyo based regional administration has handed over his credential letters to the president of the provisional administration of Jubba Ahmed Moboobe, according to reports from Kismanyo.
Reports added that the President Ahmed Madobe received credential letters from the new representative as the he highlighted that he was appointed to enhance the bilateral relations and cooperation’s between Kenyan government and Regional administration in Jubba.
“Kenyan consulate will be soon opened in Kismanyo as Kenyan government is committed to improve the cooperation and relationship with Ahmed Madobe led administration based in Kismanyo.” Said Kenyan appointed Representative to Kismanyo administration,
An official from Somali Government National security forces in the region accused Kenya of violating Somalia’s territorial sovereignty and said, “The appointed representative to Jubba is not a consular to Kismanyo, but he is a Kenyan governor to the region, so as Kenya to take the control and the ownership of land of this region.”
This step taken by Kenyan government where it has appointed a new representative to one of Somalia’s regional administrations without giving any consideration and respect to Somalia’s territorial sovereignty and its central government is predicted to heat up the political and diplomatic tensions between Somalia and Kenya, as there are thousands of Kenyan armed troops serving under the African Peacekeeping mission forces who have close cooperation with Ahmed Madobe’s led provisional administration in Kismanyo are currently present in Somalia.
This incident is coming in a time when Somalia and Kenya are in a diplomatic row as Somalia federal government calls back its ambassador to Kenya for immediate consultation after Kenyan police forces have snatched high profile Somali diplomat in Kenya from his house where he has been held in custody for more than 5 hours.
Somali Federal government officials including President, Prime Minister and Parliament Speaker denounced the barbaric attack on the high profile diplomat from Somali Embassy in Kenya Siyad Mohamud Shire by Kenyan police and called government in Kenya to give more clarification and clear answer about the incident.
Federal government officials have similarly expressed their deep concern on the mass arrests and cruel crackdown where more than thousands of Somali ethnic community including Somali refugees, Kenyan Somali nationals, and others seeking asylum have been rounded up and were in an impossible condition after Kenyan police forces indiscriminately arrested, tortured and forcefully deported in a brutal crackdown.
Mohamoud Godah
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