Sunday, September 16, 2012

Push Against Somali Militants Stalls Over Radios, Politics


By NICHOLAS BARIYO in Kampala, Uganda and DREW HINSHAW in Nairobi, Kenya
Saturday, September 15, 2012


An African Union campaign to storm a bastion of Islamist fighters in Somalia has stalled amid logistical and political disputes, delaying a final push against an insurgency that has for years unnerved neighbors and commandeered tracts of this failed state.

AU troops have for months formed a half-circle cordon some 40 miles inland from the port city of Kismayo, waiting to attack the city, where they believe members of the al Qaeda-allied insurgency al Shabaab are holing up. The plan was to launch the offensive early last week, according to Col. Ali Houmed, spokesman for the AU's Somalia mission.
Instead, he said, strategists are still determining how to allow a civilian exodus from the town of 180,000 without giving al Shabaab an opening to escape. Also, he said, the medley of African nations that sent troops to staff the effort brought in radios that don't tune into one another, and spare parts that don't match the military vehicles that need them. "Normally these things are worked out ahead of mission," Col. Houmed said.
Other holdups have come as Ugandan and Kenyan officials have wrangled over command posts and profitable peacekeeping assignments in the new Somalia, according to Ugandan military leaders, an assertion that Kenyan officials deny.
Somalia's parliament, meanwhile, was busy this week electing the country's first president in decades. Little-known university administrator Hassan Mohamud was picked for the job on Monday, subject to deep scrutiny by reporters on Tuesday and nearly killed in an al Shabaab suicide blast come Wednesday.

The peace activist-turned-president-of-Somalia presents his own wild card: He boasts a history of convincing al Shabaab gunmen to let him teach business-administration classes in the neighborhoods they ruled, so many analysts and friends of his expect he may attempt to negotiate with the sect, though few predict he'd call off the Kismayo attack itself.
Some worry the offensive's delay is allowing space for the rebels to regroup. "Al Shabaab, they know very much this is going to happen," said Chatham House Horn of Africa Researcher Ahmed Soliman. "It isn't going to be a surprise maneuver."
Al Shabaab this week branded the new president a traitorous representative of Western interests and vowed to continue fighting to ensure that Somalia becomes a pure Islamic state.
"An election is not possible except in the manner dictated by the occupier," al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mahmud Rage said in a statement Tuesday. "The condition of the parliament ascertains this, more than two thirds of the MPs hold foreign passports. They do not represent the aspirations of the Somali people."
The Kismayo operation, even before it begins, raises questions over how effective African peacekeepers will prove fighting together and later—assuming they prevail in Kismayo—serving as an interim government in one of the region's most chaotic yet strategic cities.
Peacekeepers mainly from Uganda, Kenya, Burundi and Sierra Leone have swept across much of Somalia in the past year, introducing a fragile peace to the long-chaotic capital, Mogadishu.
The U.S. and other governments have funded that push on fears that Somalia remains a sanctuary for al Shabaab to plan international attacks, similar to the group's 2010 multiple-bomb assault on Kampala, Uganda, that killed 89 people, including one American.
A U.S. official rejected the characterization that the effort against al Shabaab was stalling and said it was still making a difference in weakening the group.
"Al-Shabaab has definitely seen better days. It's losing a lot of territory in southern Somalia it once controlled, is increasingly unpopular, and is clearly struggling," the U.S. official said. "However, it would be irresponsible to write off the group as a terrorist threat."
For East African militaries, foreign backing brings troop stipends and regional clout.
The African Union Mission in Somalia, or Amisom, pays the Ugandan government $2,000 a month per soldier it sends, the Ugandan military says. Each of Uganda's soldiers receive a monthly salary of $800. The Ugandan military says the difference pays for travel, medical and uniform costs.
Last month, 600 Ugandan troops were ordered to leave Mogadishu to pave way for Kenyans, after the Ugandans exceeded an AU troop-strength quota, said Gen. Katumba Wamala, Uganda's commander of land forces in Somalia.
Ugandan military officials complain that Kenya has used the influence of its diplomats in the AU to take over key commanding positions in Somalia.
Kenya's defense spokesman denied any rifts with its East African neighbor: "If there are any issues, that's under the docket" of the African Union, he said.
Still, some Ugandan brass feel sidelined.
"We shall not help Kenyans in Kismayo because they did not help us in Mogadishu," said a recently ousted Ugandan commander, referring to Kenya's influence over the AU's Somalia headquarters in Mogadishu. Under the A.U. plan, Kenya leads the land and naval assault on Kismayo while Uganda is assigned to reinforce the offensive with its air force.
That air support has hit a complication. On Aug. 12, three Ugandan combat helicopters crashed into the mountains of Kenya, deepening strains between the two countries.
Kenyan aviation officials say the pilots of Uganda's ill-fated helicopters were communicating in their local languages, making it difficult for Kenyans to assist them when they hit turbulence.
Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni says the helicopters fell victim to sabotage, not rough weather. The Ugandan president hasn't said who he suspects of the sabotage, or what the motive would have been, but has appointed his brother, Gen. Salim Saleh, to probe the crash.
"I cannot listen to stories of bad weather of the Kenya mountains," President Museveni said. "Mountains are clearly shown on maps. If the weather is bad, you do not fly."
Mr. Ongeri, the Kenyan defense spokesman, said that the flight routes for the helicopters were agreed upon between Uganda and Kenya. He also denied any suggestions of possible sabotage. "From our part, we did our best and even the Ugandan military can attest to that," Mr. Ongeri said.
—Siobhan Gorman contributed to this article.
Write to Nicholas Bariyo at nicholas.bariyo@dowjones.com and Drew Hinshaw atdrew.hinshaw@dowjones.com

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Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

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