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Sudan army general rules out Ramadan truce unless RSF leaves civilian sites

Sudan army general rules out Ramadan truce unless RSF leaves civilian sites

Source: Aljazeera, Sudan general rejects truce after UNSC calls for cessation of hostilities during the Islamic holy month.

Sudanese girls who have fled from the war in Sudan gather under a shade at a Transit Centre for refugees in Renk
Girls who fled the war in Sudan seek shade at a transit centre for refugees in Renk, South Sudan on February 15, 2024 [File: Luis Tato/AFP]

Published On 10 Mar 202410 Mar 2024

Senior Sudanese Armed Forces General Yasser al-Atta has said there will be no truce in Sudan during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan unless the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group leaves the homes and sites of civilians.

The statement follows an appeal by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for a truce during Ramadan, which begins this week. The RSF said it welcomed the truce call.

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Al-Atta’s statement, issued on the army’s official Telegram channel on Sunday, cited recent military advances by the army in Omdurman, part of Sudan’s wider capital.

It said there could be no Ramadan truce unless the RSF complied with a commitment made in May last year at Saudi and US-mediated talks in Jeddah to withdraw from civilian homes and public facilities.

It also said Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the RSF leader commonly known as Hemedti, should not play a role in Sudan’s future politics or military.

The statement follows the UNSC’s appeal for a respite from the 11-month-old conflict during Ramadan, which is expected to begin on Monday or Tuesday, depending on the sighting of the crescent moon.

Fourteen countries on the 15-member council on Friday backed the resolution proposed by the United Kingdom, with only Russia abstaining from the vote.

The resolution called on “all parties to the conflict to seek a sustainable resolution to the conflict through dialogue”.

Fighting between the army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF erupted in mid-April 2023.

Tens of thousands of people have since been killed, 8.3 million have been forcibly displaced, and the UN says nearly 25 million people – half of Sudan’s population – are in need of aid

MV Abdullah, carrying 23 crew, seized by pirates heading towards Somali coast

MV Abdullah, carrying 23 crew, seized by pirates heading towards Somali coast


Source_ Hiiraan, Thursday March 14, 2024



Mogadishu (HOL) –  Somali pirates, who hijacked the Bangladesh-flagged ship MV Abdullah from the Indian Ocean on Tuesday, are taking the vessel towards the Somali coast, with 23 sailors onboard currently held hostage. Rescue operations have been initiated following the crew’s broadcasted plea for assistance.

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A map from the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) details the hijacked ship’s course, indicating it is 72 miles from Garakad, Somalia. At its current speed, the MV Abdullah is expected to reach Somali waters within a day or two. The hijacking occurred approximately at 1:30 p.m. Bangladesh time, as the vessel was transporting 50,000 tonnes of coal from Maputo, Mozambique, to Al Hamriyah in the UAE.

The pirates who hijacked the vessel demanded a $5 million ransom for the ship and its 23 crew members, or threatened to kill everyone.

KSRM Group’s media consultant, Mizanul Islam, confirmed the safety of all crew members aboard the hijacked ship in a statement to United News of Bangladesh, noting, “The ship should arrive at the Somali anchorage by Friday morning.” He emphasized that efforts are underway to ensure the safety and eventual release of the crew.

The ship, operated by SR Shipping, was en route from Mozambique to Dubai at the time of the attack. The owners have publicly acknowledged the hijacking and are actively pursuing the sailors’ release.

This incident recalls a similar event from December 5, 2010, when the MV Jahan Moni, another ship belonging to the same company, was seized by Somali pirates in the Arabian Sea. That ordeal involved the capture of 25 Bangladeshi sailors and 26 others, including the captain’s wife, who was held hostage for 100 days before their release on March 14, 2011, following negotiations. They were returned to Bangladesh the subsequent day.

New Normal in the Khartoum Capital Region

New Normal in the Khartoum Capital Region

 Source: Aljazeera posted on 8 March 2024 a 20-minute podcast titled “The Take: Sudan’s New Normal” with Hiba Morgan, Aljazeera’s correspondent resident in Omdurman.

Hiba Morgan is one of the very few journalists to remain in the Khartoum capital region and to continue reporting on the situation in Sudan.  In this podcast, she describes her personal challenges and for many residents almost impossible conditions of living in an urban area frequently subject to artillery fire between the Sudan Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. 

Green Climate Fund announces $100 million investment partnership for Somalia’s climate action

Green Climate Fund announces $100 million investment partnership for Somalia’s climate action


Hassan Istiila
Source: Hiiraan Online, Wednesday March 13, 2024


Green Climate Fund (GCF) Executive Director Mafalda Duarte visits Prime Minister’s Office

Mogadishu (HOL) – The Green Climate Fund (GCF) announced on Tuesday a $100 million investment partnership to accelerate climate action programs and provide readiness support to Somalia over the next year.

Green Climate Fund (GCF) Executive Director Mafalda Duarte, who led the first-ever GCF delegation to Somalia, announced the investment partnership in Mogadishu after a series of meetings with President Hassan Sheikh, Prime Minister Hamza Barre, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Khadija Mohamed Al-Makhzoumi, cabinet ministers, representatives from the private sector, and civil society.

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“Somalia is the second most vulnerable country to climate change in the world, despite contributing only 0.03 percent of total global greenhouse gas emissions. The interlinked impact of climate change and lack of security has had a devastating effect on people, causing some 43,000 excess deaths in 2022 due to drought, displacing more than six million people, and pushing Somalis away from their homes into overcrowded towns and cities,” said Duarte.

“Recurrent drought and regular flooding lead to failed crops, livestock losses, and the country’s chronic food insecurity problems. GCF is committed to working with the Government of Somalia and its partners to address better the extreme vulnerability the country and its population face,” she added.

GCF also pledged to explore direct readiness support of up to USD 7 million to further capacitate the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in its technical and coordination role. Additionally, the GCF reiterated its commitment to a strategy of investments and readiness support for Somalia by mid-2025 and a long-term commitment to empowering Somalia to develop priority projects and subsequent investments.

Duarte released her 50by30 vision at the UN Climate Action Summit in September 2023, announcing intentions to build a fund capable of impactfully and efficiently managing USD 50 billion by 2030 – clearly focusing on helping the most vulnerable countries and communities.

Somalia has achieved significant progress in recent years, especially in establishing political institutions, robust public financial management systems and improving security.

Acknowledging the maturation of Somalia’s institutional environment, Duarte emphasized the need for climate finance modalities to adapt: “GCF is committed to supporting the government with what it needs so that together with the flourishing private sector and civil society organizations it can develop priority projects and investments to deliver sustainable, integrated and impactful climate action for durable peace and prosperity.”

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is the world’s largest dedicated climate fund, with a mandate to foster a paradigm shift towards low-emission, climate-resilient development pathways in developing countries. GCF has over 250 projects and a portfolio of USD 13.9 billion (USD 53 billion, including co-financing), delivering transformative climate action in more than 129 developing countries.

How Somalia-Turkey defence deal torpedoed a rival UAE agreement

How Somalia-Turkey defence deal torpedoed a rival UAE agreement


Source: Middle East Eye, Wednesday March 13, 2024
By Ragip Soylu in Ankara

When it seemed like Erdogan was heading out the door, Mogadishu hedged its bets with Abu Dhabi. Now, it is looking towards Ankara once again



Students wave a Somali flag during a protest following the port deal signed between Ethiopia and Somaliland, in Mogadishu (AFP/Abdishukri Haybe)

When the Somali cabinet approved a military cooperation deal with the United Arab Emirates in February 2023, there was an uproar in Mogadishu. Parliamentarians believed the agreement was contrary to Somali sovereignty.

Since the early 90s, Somalia has grappled with war lords and armed groups like al-Shabab and earned a reputation as a failed state.

Yet, state-building efforts have borne fruit in recent years. In December, the UN removed its arms embargo on the country, recognising the progress the Somali government has made in terms of institutionalising its democracy and the constitution.

However, the Somali government is still in need of foreign aid. It received $2.4bn development aid from donors like the EU, US, Turkey, Qatar and the UAE in 2021.

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But on top of this, the government also needs security aid and robust training for its security services.

Despite this, some MPs thought the deal with the UAE went too far.

The agreement, seen by Middle East Eye, mandates the UAE to “carry out military and security operations, including land, sea and air operations, which it deems appropriate, to eliminate terrorist elements”. It also authorises Abu Dhabi to “use the territory of” Somalia.

The UAE “shall have the right to use the land ports, sea ports and airports of the territory of the Federal Republic of Somalia” and establish military and training bases to further its operations.

The most controversial part of the agreement, however, was the fact that it gave the UAE military total immunity, which angered Somalis.

“All persons working under this agreement shall be granted safeguards and immunity against any international, legal, or administrative liability” in Somalia, the deal states. 

“Persons working under this agreement can’t be subject to any national or international procedure or claim or the application of a judgement rendered against them” in Somalia during the implementation of the agreement.

Heavy investment

Immediately after Somalia’s cabinet gave approval, the UAE redeployed some of the Somali forces it trained in Uganda back to the country, paying their salaries and expenditure. A month later, the Emirati military also began to construct a new base owned and operated by the UAE in the southern Jubaland region.

A year on, the Somali parliament is still yet to ratify the agreement to formally complete the constitutional procedure.

In contrast, MPs swiftly approved a similar defence and commerce deal with Turkey over a few weeks last month.

Two sources familiar with Mogadishu’s thinking said when President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s government signed the deal with the UAE, it had in mind the May 2023 Turkish presidential elections, which every poll suggested Recep Tayyip Erdogan was likely to lose.

Under Erdogan’s watch, Ankara has heavily invested in Somalia since 2011, extending more than $1bn humanitarian aid, establishing the country’s largest overseas embassy, and setting up a military base in Mogadishu to train one-third of the Somali military.

Turkey-supplied drones are currently operating against al-Shabab, while Turkish firms run Mogadishu airport and port.


Somali supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan hold Turkey’s flag during celebrations after the presidential election, in Mogadishu 29 May 2023 (Reuters/Feisal Omar)

Erdogan’s possible departure could have denied Somalia a crucial backer. The Turkish opposition was quite clear that it didn’t feel the need to maintain such an assertive foreign policy in places like the Horn of Africa, nor did it have any willingness to spend any money or time on the East African nation.

So, according to the sources, Somalia approached Abu Dhabi to secure its long-term fight against militant groups and fill the possible vacuum that Erdogan’s departure would bring.

Erdogan, however, defied expectations and won the election, coming out on top in a second round.

Though this was no doubt a factor in Somalia’s shifting response to the UAE deal, what really changed Mogadishu’s thinking on Turkey was Ethiopia’s developing ties with the breakaway Somaliland state earlier this year, which deeply concerned Mogadishu.

In January, Ethiopia signed an agreement that grants it naval and commercial access to ports along Somaliland’s coast, in exchange for recognition of the region’s independence. Mogadishu declared the pact illegal.

Somalia lacks an air force as well as a navy. So, any Ethiopian attempt to impose its will in Somalia’s waters wouldn’t receive any response from Somali forces.

But Turkey could offer a counterbalance. It already has a military base and warships that operate off the coast of Somalia as part of a UN anti-piracy force.

Qatar concerns

Then came the defence deal with Turkey, whose contents are still kept confidential by the respective governments. Reportedly it mandates Ankara to protect Somali sea waters against infringements for the next 10 years. Some Ankara insiders say the deal is also backed by Qatar, the UAE’s Gulf rival.

“The United Arab Emirates is likely the country most disturbed by the Turkey-Somalia security and defence agreement,” wrote Mehmet Ozkan, a professor at the National Defence University in Turkey. 

“The UAE has been conducting serious diplomacy for the last year to sign a very similar or even more advanced security agreement with Somalia. However, the response from Somalia has been reluctant – which is why there is both reaction and disappointment on the part of the UAE about this development.”

Turkish officials say the deal hasn’t caused any fallout with Abu Dhabi. Erdogan has frequently visited the Emirates since 2021, when both countries officially reconciled and signed an investment plan for Ankara.

On Monday Erdogan called UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed, congratulating him on his birthday and inviting him to Turkey for a high-level meeting.

Yet Abu Dhabi’s passive-aggressive and indirect response to the Turkey-Somalia deal suggests it has some quarrels regarding the possible Qatari role in the deal.

Emirati officials told Mogadishu earlier this month that they would end $5m financial support to some Somali military forces.

“The Emiratis have ceased payments for five brigades positioned outside Mogadishu, maintaining financial support only for two brigades safeguarding the city and one special brigade assigned to protect vital installations,” the Somali Digest reported.

Even though the decision was also related to the fact that an al-Shabab attack in early February against a UAE base in Somalia killed a high-ranking Emirati official, Colonel Mohamed Mubarak, it is widely considered a response to the Somali-Turkish deal.

One source suggested that the UAE’s main concern is possible Qatari cooperation with Somalia rather than Turkey, whom Emiratis enjoy a closer relationship with.

How Somalia-Turkey defence deal torpedoed a rival UAE agreement

How Somalia-Turkey defence deal torpedoed a rival UAE agreement


Source: Middle Eye, Wednesday March 13, 2024
By Ragip Soylu in Ankara

When it seemed like Erdogan was heading out the door, Mogadishu hedged its bets with Abu Dhabi. Now, it is looking towards Ankara once again



Students wave a Somali flag during a protest following the port deal signed between Ethiopia and Somaliland, in Mogadishu (AFP/Abdishukri Haybe)

When the Somali cabinet approved a military cooperation deal with the United Arab Emirates in February 2023, there was an uproar in Mogadishu. Parliamentarians believed the agreement was contrary to Somali sovereignty.

Since the early 90s, Somalia has grappled with war lords and armed groups like al-Shabab and earned a reputation as a failed state.

Yet, state-building efforts have borne fruit in recent years. In December, the UN removed its arms embargo on the country, recognising the progress the Somali government has made in terms of institutionalising its democracy and the constitution.

However, the Somali government is still in need of foreign aid. It received $2.4bn development aid from donors like the EU, US, Turkey, Qatar and the UAE in 2021.

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But on top of this, the government also needs security aid and robust training for its security services.

Despite this, some MPs thought the deal with the UAE went too far.

The agreement, seen by Middle East Eye, mandates the UAE to “carry out military and security operations, including land, sea and air operations, which it deems appropriate, to eliminate terrorist elements”. It also authorises Abu Dhabi to “use the territory of” Somalia.

The UAE “shall have the right to use the land ports, sea ports and airports of the territory of the Federal Republic of Somalia” and establish military and training bases to further its operations.

The most controversial part of the agreement, however, was the fact that it gave the UAE military total immunity, which angered Somalis.

“All persons working under this agreement shall be granted safeguards and immunity against any international, legal, or administrative liability” in Somalia, the deal states. 

“Persons working under this agreement can’t be subject to any national or international procedure or claim or the application of a judgement rendered against them” in Somalia during the implementation of the agreement.

Heavy investment

Immediately after Somalia’s cabinet gave approval, the UAE redeployed some of the Somali forces it trained in Uganda back to the country, paying their salaries and expenditure. A month later, the Emirati military also began to construct a new base owned and operated by the UAE in the southern Jubaland region.

A year on, the Somali parliament is still yet to ratify the agreement to formally complete the constitutional procedure.

In contrast, MPs swiftly approved a similar defence and commerce deal with Turkey over a few weeks last month.

Two sources familiar with Mogadishu’s thinking said when President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s government signed the deal with the UAE, it had in mind the May 2023 Turkish presidential elections, which every poll suggested Recep Tayyip Erdogan was likely to lose.

Under Erdogan’s watch, Ankara has heavily invested in Somalia since 2011, extending more than $1bn humanitarian aid, establishing the country’s largest overseas embassy, and setting up a military base in Mogadishu to train one-third of the Somali military.

Turkey-supplied drones are currently operating against al-Shabab, while Turkish firms run Mogadishu airport and port.


Somali supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan hold Turkey’s flag during celebrations after the presidential election, in Mogadishu 29 May 2023 (Reuters/Feisal Omar)

Erdogan’s possible departure could have denied Somalia a crucial backer. The Turkish opposition was quite clear that it didn’t feel the need to maintain such an assertive foreign policy in places like the Horn of Africa, nor did it have any willingness to spend any money or time on the East African nation.

So, according to the sources, Somalia approached Abu Dhabi to secure its long-term fight against militant groups and fill the possible vacuum that Erdogan’s departure would bring.

Erdogan, however, defied expectations and won the election, coming out on top in a second round.

Though this was no doubt a factor in Somalia’s shifting response to the UAE deal, what really changed Mogadishu’s thinking on Turkey was Ethiopia’s developing ties with the breakaway Somaliland state earlier this year, which deeply concerned Mogadishu.

In January, Ethiopia signed an agreement that grants it naval and commercial access to ports along Somaliland’s coast, in exchange for recognition of the region’s independence. Mogadishu declared the pact illegal.

Somalia lacks an air force as well as a navy. So, any Ethiopian attempt to impose its will in Somalia’s waters wouldn’t receive any response from Somali forces.

But Turkey could offer a counterbalance. It already has a military base and warships that operate off the coast of Somalia as part of a UN anti-piracy force.

Qatar concerns

Then came the defence deal with Turkey, whose contents are still kept confidential by the respective governments. Reportedly it mandates Ankara to protect Somali sea waters against infringements for the next 10 years. Some Ankara insiders say the deal is also backed by Qatar, the UAE’s Gulf rival.

“The United Arab Emirates is likely the country most disturbed by the Turkey-Somalia security and defence agreement,” wrote Mehmet Ozkan, a professor at the National Defence University in Turkey. 

“The UAE has been conducting serious diplomacy for the last year to sign a very similar or even more advanced security agreement with Somalia. However, the response from Somalia has been reluctant – which is why there is both reaction and disappointment on the part of the UAE about this development.”

Turkish officials say the deal hasn’t caused any fallout with Abu Dhabi. Erdogan has frequently visited the Emirates since 2021, when both countries officially reconciled and signed an investment plan for Ankara.

On Monday Erdogan called UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed, congratulating him on his birthday and inviting him to Turkey for a high-level meeting.

Yet Abu Dhabi’s passive-aggressive and indirect response to the Turkey-Somalia deal suggests it has some quarrels regarding the possible Qatari role in the deal.

Emirati officials told Mogadishu earlier this month that they would end $5m financial support to some Somali military forces.

“The Emiratis have ceased payments for five brigades positioned outside Mogadishu, maintaining financial support only for two brigades safeguarding the city and one special brigade assigned to protect vital installations,” the Somali Digest reported.

Even though the decision was also related to the fact that an al-Shabab attack in early February against a UAE base in Somalia killed a high-ranking Emirati official, Colonel Mohamed Mubarak, it is widely considered a response to the Somali-Turkish deal.

One source suggested that the UAE’s main concern is possible Qatari cooperation with Somalia rather than Turkey, whom Emiratis enjoy a closer relationship with.

Ethiopia’s Tigray region is now peaceful, but extreme hunger afflicts its children


Source: AP, By Amir Aman Kiyaro
Sunday March 10, 2024


(Amir Aman Kiyaro/AP)

NEBAR HADNET, Ethiopia — The cruel realities of war and drought seem to have merged for Tinseu Hiluf, a widow living in the arid depths of Ethiopia’s Tigray region who is raising four children left behind by her sister’s recent death in childbirth.

A two-year war between federal troops and regional forces killed one of her own sons, the rest of whom are already adults. And now, a lack of food stemming from the region’s drought has left the youngest of the children she is raising malnourished.

She tries to forage seeds among the scarce greenery of the desert’s yellow, rocky landscape. But she recently resorted to traveling to the nearby Finarwa health center in southeastern Tigray to try to keep the 1-year-old baby alive.

“When hungry, we eat anything from the desert,” she said. “Otherwise, nothing.”

She joined several other mothers seeking help at the center in the remote administrative area of Nebar Hadnet. A mother of five complained that she had no breastmilk for her eight-month-old baby. Another with 1-year-old twins said she needed sachets of baby food to keep “my babies alive.”

Tigray is now peaceful but war’s effects linger, compounded by drought and a level of aid mismanagement that caused the U.N. and the U.S. to temporarily suspend deliveries last year.

Once-lush fields lie barren. Mothers, faces etched with worry, watch helplessly as their children weaken from malnutrition. Nearly 400 people died of starvation in Tigray and the neighboring Amhara region in the six months leading to January, the national ombudsman revealed in January, a rare admission of hunger-related deaths by a federal government.

Most of those deaths were recorded in Tigray, home to 5.5 million people.

Until the signing of a peace agreement in November 2022, the region was the scene of a deadly war between federal troops and forces loyal to the region’s now-ousted ruling party. But months after the end of the conflict, the U.N. and the U.S. halted food aid for Tigray because of a massive scheme by Ethiopian officials to steal humanitarian grain.

An inadequate growing season followed.

Persistent insecurity meant only 49% of Tigray’s farmland was planted during the main planting season last year, according to an assessment by U.N. agencies, NGOs and the regional authorities, and seen by the AP. Crop production in these areas was only 37% of the expected total because of drought. In some areas the proportion was as low as 2%, that assessment said.

The poor harvest prompted Tigray’s authorities to warn of an “unfolding famine” that could match the famine of 1984-5, which killed hundreds of thousands of people across northern Ethiopia, unless the aid response was scaled up. Food deliveries to Tigray in the second half of last year, but only a small fraction of needy people in Tigray are receiving food aid, humanitarian workers say.

Finarwa, a farming community of about 13,000 people, is among the worst-hit places.

The town’s health center still has war-damaged equipment and some of its rooms appear abandoned. Tadesse Mehari, the officer in charge of the clinic, said the lack of food at homes in the community has forced children to flee and beg in nearby towns.

“Nothing here to eat. So, for the sake of getting food and to save their lives, they are displaced anywhere, far from here,” he said. “So, in this area, a lot of people are suffering. They are starved. They are dying due to the absence of food.”

Some local leaders, feeling helpless, have been turning their own people away

Hayale Gebrekedian, a Nebar Hadnet district leader for five years, listened to the pleas of villagers who streamed into his office one recent afternoon. A widow named Serawit Wolde with 10 children was in tears as she recounted that five of them were falling ill from hunger.

“Please, any help,” she told Hayale.

Hayale told the woman he had nothing to give. “There simply isn’t any (food),” he said.

Hayale later told the AP, “This place used to be a source of hope, even for those displaced by the war. We had enough for everyone, but now we can’t even feed ourselves.”

“The war took everything,” he said. There’s nothing left.”

Havale said access to water was an additional challenge. Of the 25 wells that once sustained the community and its animals, only five remained functional. People now trek for over an hour and a half to access water, he said.

The region’s drought has meant that some areas that usually get about 60 days of rain during the rainy season have seen only a few.

Some farmers aren’t giving up.

Haile Gebre Kirstos, 70, continued to plough his parched land and plant sorghum in a village in Messebo, although rain fell “only two days during the last rainy season,” he said.

Once lush and teeming with livestock, the land is now a barren expanse, yet he remained hopeful even after the failure of the previous harvest.

Although the ploughing usually doesn’t begin until the rainy season in May or June, this year he started the work early, driven by extreme need. He spoke of farmers who have sold their oxen and farming tools to feed their families.

For him, the memory of the 1980s famine is haunting. “It affected the entire region then,” he said. “Now, in some districts, it’s either as bad as the 1980s, or even worse.”

Türkiye Signs Defense Deal with Somalia and Reiterates Support for Sovereignty

Türkiye Signs Defense Deal with Somalia and Reiterates Support for Sovereignty

 Source: Al-Monitor published on 7 February 2024 an article titled “Turkey, Somalia Sign Defense Deal in Wake of Ethiopia-Somaliland Agreement” by Ezgi Akin.  

Somalia and Türkiye signed this week an agreement on the fight against terrorism and military-financial cooperation.  Türkiye reiterated its support for Somalia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty in the wake of Ethiopia’s willingness to consider the recognition of an independent Somaliland.

Al-Shabab claims attack in Somali capital that kills 3 Emirati troops and 1 Bahraini officer

Al-Shabab claims attack in Somali capital that kills 3 Emirati troops and 1 Bahraini officer


Source: AP, BY JON GAMBRELL
Sunday February 11, 2024


FILE – Armed al-Shabab fighters ride on pickup trucks as they prepare to travel into the city, just outside the capital Mogadishu, in Somalia on Dec. 8, 2008. The al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab claimed an attack that killed three Emirati troops and a Bahraini military officer on a training mission at a military base in the Somali capital, authorities said Sunday, Feb. 11, 2024.(AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh, File)

The al-Qaida-linked militant group al-Shabab claimed an attack that killed three Emirati troops and a Bahraini military officer on a training mission at a military base in the Somali capital, authorities said Sunday.

The attack Saturday targeted the troops at the General Gordon Military Base in Mogadishu. Details about the attack and whether it killed others remained scarce Sunday, though Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud offered his condolences to the UAE for the loss of its troops in the assault.

Early Sunday, the UAE’s state-run WAM news agency reported the killing of three of its troops and the Bahraini soldier in a “terrorist act,” without elaborating. It added that the attack wounded two others. Bahrain, an island nation in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Saudi Arabia, did not immediately acknowledge the attack.

Al-Shabab claimed the attack in a statement online, alleging it killed multiple people involved in the Emirati military effort. It described the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula, as an “enemy” of Islamic Shariah law for backing the Somali government in its efforts to battle al-Shabab.

Al-Shabab, or “the youth” in Arabic, is a Sunni Islamic extremist group in Somalia born out of that country’s years of anarchy following its 1991 civil war. The affiliate of al-Qaida once held Mogadishu. Over time, an African Union-led force, with the backing of the U.S. and other countries, pushed the militants out of Mogadishu. In the years since, al-Shabab has remained a militant threat in Somalia as it seeks to overthrow the Western-backed government there.

Al-Shabab has carried out attacks in neighboring Kenya as well, since Nairobi provides troops and materiel to the African Union force in the country.

Somalia has also been an intense interest for Gulf states, particularly the Qatar diplomatic crisis that gripped the region for several years and saw four nations including the UAE boycott Doha in a political dispute. Somali troops once seized millions of dollars of Emirati cash from a jet at gunpoint, sparking a diplomatic incident between Mogadishu and the UAE that halted its troop training program there.

The UAE in recent years has increasingly invested in ports in East Africa, including in Somalia’s breakaway Somaliland region. Securing Somalia fits into the Emirates’ wider concerns about security in the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea, particularly as Somali piracy has resumed after years amid attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on shipping in the region over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

In 2019, al-Shabab claimed an attack that killed a man working for Dubai’s P&O Ports.

UPDATE: Al-Shabab attack on Mogadishu’s General Gordon camp kills UAE colonel, Bahraini officer

UPDATE: Al-Shabab attack on Mogadishu’s General Gordon camp kills UAE colonel, Bahraini officer


Source: Hiiraan Online, Sunday February 11, 2024


FILE – Somali military officers attend a training program by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at their military base in Mogadishu, Somalia November 1, 2017. (Reuters Photo)

Mogadishu (HOL) – An attack at the General Gordon Military Base in Mogadishu claimed the lives of three Emirati soldiers and a Bahraini officer. Authorities revealed that the attack, described as a terrorist act, targeted the military personnel involved in a mission to train local forces. 

The United Arab Emirates Defense Ministry confirmed that their personnel were among the casualties, along with two injured. A senior officer from the United Arab Emirates Air Force, Colonel Muhammad Mubarak Al-Mansoori, head of the training mission, is reportedly among the deceased. While not officially affirmed by the Emirati authorities, Mubarak’s death was confirmed by Somali military and government sources. 

According to medical personnel, both Somali and foreign officers and soldiers suffered injuries in the attack and were transported to various hospitals.

The Al-Shabaab gunman, a newly trained Somali soldier, was also shot dead at the Gordon military base managed by the UAE, according to Somali military officials. The attacker, previously on security detail at the camp, was reportedly known to be a recent defector from Al-Shabaab but was still recruited into the military, according to military sources.

The assault has drawn widespread condemnation and a swift promise of an investigation by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. In an expression of solidarity and mourning, President Mohamud visited Digfeer Hospital, meeting with wounded UAE officers and grieving for the lives lost to what he described as a “sinful terrorist act.”


Left: An undated photo captures Colonel Muhammad Mubarak Al-Mansoori being awarded a medal by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, in recognition of his military service. Right: Another undated photo commemorates Colonel Al-Mansoori, who was killed in a recent Al-Shabab attack on the General Gordon Military Camp in Mogadishu.

Al-Shabab, an al-Qaida-linked militant group, claimed responsibility for the deadly attack. The group said it targeted the UAE for backing Somalia’s government in its counterinsurgency against the militant extremist group. They also claimed 17 officers from the UAE, Somalia, and other partner nations were killed; however, the group is known to exaggerate its casualty figures for propaganda purposes. 

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud offered condolences and visited the wounded officers at Erdogan (formerly Digfeer) Hospital, expressing grief over the loss and condemning the attack. 

“I condemn to the worst terms the incident that took the lives of the UAE officers who sacrificed their time and lives to liberate and rebuild our country,” Mohamud said.

The attack highlights the nature of military collaboration in Somalia, where Gulf states, particularly the UAE, play a role in counterterrorism and training efforts. In recent years, the UAE has also significantly invested in ports in Somalia’s breakaway Somaliland region by constructing the Berbera corridor through DP World.


Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud offers condolences and support during his visit to Erdogan Hospital in Mogadishu, where he met with Gulf officers wounded in an attack at General Gordon Camp on Monday, February 10, 2024. / SONNA

Uganda’s Judge Sebutinde takes over as ICJ vice-president

Uganda’s Judge Sebutinde takes over as ICJ vice-president


Source: BBC, Wednesday February 7, 2024


She was in the spotlight last month over the Gaza war case ruling

Ugandan-born Judge Julia Sebutinde has been elected vice-president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in Hague, Netherlands.

The judge recently caused controversy in the international community when she ruled against emergency measures requested by South Africa against Israel over the war in Gaza.

She was the only judge on the 17-member ICJ panel to vote against all six measures adopted by the ICJ court in a ruling ordering Israel to take action to prevent acts of genocide as it fights Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Ms Sebutinde was one of only two judges who issued dissenting judgements while 15 voted for the emergency measures which covered most of what South Africa had asked for in the case.

The Ugandan government distanced itself from the judge’s dissenting opinion, saying it did not represent the East African country’s position in the conflict.

There were many critical comments on social media, with some wondering why she chose not to be more sympathetic to South Africa’s case.

The court announced on Tuesday that Ms Sebutinde was elected vice-president for three years, in what appears to be a major vote of confidence in her.

Lebanon-born judge Nawaf Salam takes over as ICJ judge-president from Joan Donoghue.

Ms Sebutinde has been an ICJ judge for more than a decade. She previously handled several high-profile war crime trials, including the prosecution of former Liberian President Charles Taylor.

Protests erupt in Somalia over ‘husbands killing wives’

Protests erupt in Somalia over ‘husbands killing wives’


Source: VOA, Wednesday February 7, 2024

Three women were killed in Somalia last week in what police say were marriage disputes. The country’s parliament called for urgent investigations and the arrest of the perpetrators as citizens expressed outrage.

The killings occurred in Mogadishu, the Lower Shabelle region and the Qoryooley District. One woman was stabbed, a second shot and a third set on fire — all allegedly at the hands of their husbands.

The police chief of the Banadir region that includes Mogadishu, Moalim Mahdi, pledged to bring the offenders to justice.

Gender-based violence remains prevalent in Somalia. The situation is worsened by the absence of strong legal frameworks to deter attacks.

In 2020, parliament debated a controversial bill to address gender-based violence but was forced to hold it back following local and international pressure over clauses that allowed for child and forced marriage and other violations of women’s rights.

Amina Haji Elmi, director of the Mogadishu-based advocacy group Save Somali Women and Children, said, “Somali women, alongside others, have been living in the war-ravaged country. They were victimised by both natural disasters and man-caused problems.

Currently, women are facing many challenges; among them are lack of support and poverty. They do not get protection and support after incidents.”

Elmi called on security agencies to deliver justice to the families of those killed.

“We strongly condemn the heinous acts against these innocent women,” Elmi said. “It is sad to hear that a mother is being killed in front of her children. We call upon the security agencies to bring the perpetrators to justice. We extend condolences to the families of these victims.”

Members of parliament decried the killings during a debate Saturday and called for the offenders to be prosecuted.

Despite the condemnations, Somali lawmakers have yet to pass the UN-backed Sexual Offenses Bill that the Council of Ministers approved in 2018. Female MP Gobsan Muhumed was among those who spoke during the session.

“It is heartbreaking for paternal orphans to witness their mother being burned by their stepfather, who was laughing at the time of the incident,” she said.

On Sunday in the southwestern town of Afgooye, another man was arrested in possession of gasoline and a matchbox amid allegations he intended to set his wife and children on fire.

Prosecutors in Somalia rely on provisions of the 1970s penal code to charge perpetrators of sexual and other gender-related offenses. Critics say this law is not tough enough and have called for the government to adopt harsher penalties.

UK warns of risk of famine in Ethiopia

UK warns of risk of famine in Ethiopia


Source: BBC, By James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent, in Mekelle, Ethiopia
Monday February 5, 2024


Tsega Tsigabu’s baby is one of the many suffering from malnutrition in Ethiopia’s Tigray region

In Ayder hospital in Mekelle, the capital of Ethiopia’s Tigray region, the corridors are filled with the hubbub of any busy medical facility. But in the paediatric wing, there is a stillness to the wards.

For here lie children numbly bearing witness to the latest food crisis to ravage northern Ethiopia. Mostly babies, they are suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

Their mothers sit silently at their beds, staring into the middle distance, clutching their infants to their breast, hoping what milk they have can deliver the salvation for which they yearn.

For they and Ethiopia are suffering once again from a devastating legacy of conflict and drought, twin evils that in recent years have destroyed farms and crops and forced millions from their homes.

The government says 16 million people across the country are facing food shortages, with almost half of those suffering emergency or severe levels of food insecurity. That means many are not just hungry, they are starving.

This is why Tsega Tsigabu, 23, and her four-month-old son, Kidisty, are languishing in Ayder hospital.

Her family were farmers. But their crops failed and they moved to Mekelle to try to survive. Like so many others, they ended up in a camp for people forced from their homes.

Tsega’s husband was in the army but he injured his hand and cannot work. She took her baby for a vaccination and the nurses saw instantly it was malnourished.

“Even when I was pregnant, I was not eating a balanced diet,” Tsega tells us. “I was not producing enough breast milk, that’s why the baby has developed malnutrition. I just didn’t have enough to eat at home.”

Doctors at the hospital tell us the numbers of severely malnourished children being admitted have doubled since 2020 when the war between Tigrayan forces and Ethiopian and Eritrean armies began.

A ceasefire was agreed in 2022 but the impact of the conflict still lingers with at least one million people still unable to return home remaining in the region.

We travelled with the British Africa minister, Andrew Mitchell, to Agulae, an hours’ drive north into the hills, where a clinic was assessing children from outlying villages.

He watched as anxious mothers lined up to have the circumference of their children’s arms measured; the less flesh on the bone, the more likely the malnutrition. The nurses showed him their charts and they all told a similar story of the numbers getting worse.

“There is clearly a risk of famine if we don’t now take action,” Mr Mitchell told the BBC.

“There are serious indicators of the danger of famine. If you ask me, ‘Is there a famine taking place now in Ethiopia?’ I say no, and we have the power to stop it. But if we don’t take the necessary action now, then there is every danger that a famine will engulf this war-torn country which has suffered so much already.”

He promised Britain would commit a further £100m to help up to three million mothers and babies in Ethiopia get access to health care; a new fund to provide medicines and vaccines designed to end preventable deaths.

But is famine in Ethiopia really likely?

International aid agencies are cautious about using what some call “the F- word”.

It has a precise technical definition – 20% of households facing extreme food shortages, 30% of children under five with acute malnutrition, and two people out of every 10,000 dying every day. Few suggest those criteria have been formally met in Ethiopia.

But for Getachew Reda, president of the Tigray interim regional administration, those definitions are otiose.

He told the BBC there was an “unfolding famine” in Tigray. The numbers of those “staring death in the eye” were rising all the time, he told us, criticising the international community for its “lacklustre” response.

“One thing I know is that thousands of people who would otherwise have been able to feed themselves are not in a position to feed themselves and are succumbing to death because of starvation,” Mr Getachew said.

“Whether you call it famine or a risk of famine or a potential famine, for me it’s purely academic… What transpired in 1985, for example, would pale into comparison, if we fail to address the kind of unfolding famine that’s staring us in the eye.”

What he was referring to were the devastating crises of the mid-1980s when many hundreds of thousands died in a famine in Tigray and elsewhere.

The BBC’s powerful reporting of the humanitarian disaster prompted a wave of publicity and campaigning, including the Live Aid concert led by the musician Bob Geldof.

These comparisons infuriate the federal government in Addis Ababa which denies there is famine.

Shiferaw Teklemariam, commissioner of the Ethiopian disaster risk management commission, said Ethiopia was a victim of climate change. He warned regional governments against politicising the issue and urged them and the international community to do more.

“There is a drought, no famine,” Mr Shiferaw told the BBC.

“The government is responding very seriously, but at the same time we call on all stakeholders to do their share.”

There are politics here.

Past famines in Ethiopia have sometimes been linked to the downfall of governments. Analysts say the word makes the current administration – led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed – nervous.

The government is working with the UN to tackle the food crisis but the economy here is weak and budgets are being cut.

The truth is that no-one really knows how bad this crisis is because hard data is difficult to obtain.

Media access is limited. Many areas in the north are impossible for humanitarian agencies to visit because of continuing fighting, especially in Amhara.

There, and in neighbouring Afar region, there are fears the food crisis could be even worse than in Tigray. Successive anecdotal evidence – reports from villages and towns across northern Ethiopia – suggest the situation is deteriorating.

What most sides agree is the international community should be doing more.

Last year USAID, America’s development agency, and the United Nation’s World Food Programme suspended humanitarian support for five months after it emerged that huge amounts were being stolen, much of it to feed various armed forces.

This has aggravated the situation. The world is also distracted by conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine and less attention and funding is being targeted at Ethiopia.

The head of the UN here, Ramiz Alakbarov, said this was a forgotten crisis. “The world is not paying attention,” he said.

“We grieve for all the troubles and difficulties elsewhere, yet people in this part of the world cannot be forgotten. We need to get organised and donors need to step up contributions.”

At a food distribution centre in Mekelle, we saw the World Food Programme doing what it could, handing out scoops of wheat and lentils along with cups of oil.

The hungry queue up bearing QR codes which identify them, their households and their needs. But the food they get is a bare minimum and budgets are running thin.

Claire Nevill, who speaks for the WFP in Ethiopia, said what was needed was not just food assistance but help to get people back to their farms so they can feed themselves.

The problem is that parts of the country are still occupied by militias and Eritrean forces.

“In Ethiopia you have several overlapping crises at a time,” she said.

“We have drought, people recovering from a two-year conflict, rising inflation, an upsurge in cases of disease and all of this together just pushes people further into hunger and malnutrition. So if we don’t get food assistance to people right now, the situation will worsen.”

Back in Ayder hospital we met Tsige Degef, 28, whose 15-month old daughter, Bereket, was malnourished.

And her story was typical. Tsige’s extended family were forced to sell their oxen during the war to pay for expensive cereals. When peace came, the crops failed and there was nothing to fall back on.

Tsige was already struggling when Bereket fell ill. “Her feet and legs were swollen,” she said. “I was so worried. She was vomiting every day. The fear of a mother with a sick child is the fear of death.”

But Bereket is getting better and Tsige is hopeful of leaving hospital. “I wish she will heal soon,” she said.

“I want to open a tea shop and sell things so I can better protect my child. I promise to do the best I can so that she doesn’t suffer in the future.”

Sudan: Inability to Move Food Is Resulting in Starvation

Sudan: Inability to Move Food Is Resulting in Starvation

 Source: Aljazeera published on 2 February 2024 an article titled “People ‘Dying of Starvation’ in Sudan, UN Food Agency Says.”

Nearly 18 million Sudanese are facing acute hunger and life-saving assistance is not reaching those who need it most.  Humanitarian aid personnel are not able to get appropriate cooperation from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan Armed Forces to deliver food.  

The murder of Somali wives by their husbands in Somalia is unacceptable

Source: Somalia International Rehabilitation Centre (SIRC): The killings of Somali women in recent years by their husbands in Somalia have been extremely shocking and unacceptable. The Somali state institutions and Somali people as a whole should take immediate action against these barbaric ugly actions which damage the name of Somalia and Somali people where ever they live.

Man arrested for stabbing wife to death in Qoryooley

Source: Hiiraan Online, Man arrested for stabbing wife to death in Qoryooley


Saturday February 3, 2024

Mogadishu (HOL) – Security forces in the Qoryooley district of Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region have detained a man accused of stabbing his wife to death. The incident, which occurred yesterday afternoon, is under investigation to determine the motive behind the fatal stabbing, which reportedly stemmed from a family dispute.

advertisementsAccording to reports, the assailant employed a sharp knife to inflict multiple critical injuries on his spouse. Local authorities acted promptly, capturing the suspect before he could flee.

This latest incident is part of a concerning trend of increased domestic violence in Somalia, coming a day after the murder of a pregnant mother in Mogadishu. The mother, who was caring for six orphaned children, succumbed to injuries from a fire set by her jealous husband.

Call for justice after pregnant mother of six murdered by husband in Mogadishu

Call for justice after pregnant mother of six murdered by husband in Mogadishu, Somalia

Source: Hiiraan Online, Mogadishu (HOL) – In a horrifying incident on Friday morning in Mogadishu, Luul Abdiaziz, a pregnant woman and airport worker, died from injuries after her husband allegedly set her on fire. The tragedy, rooted in what reports suggest may be jealousy, has sparked outrage and demands for justice from the victim’s family and the community

International Criminal Court Charges War Crimes in Sudan

International Criminal Court Charges War Crimes in Sudan

Source:  Aljazeera published on 30 January 2024 an article titled “ICC Accuses Sudan and Rebels of Darfur War Crimes.”

The head of the International Criminal Court informed the UN Security Council on 29 January that both the Sudan Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are committing war crimes in western Sudan’s Darfur region.  He said the situation in Darfur is “dire by any metric

UN, Somalia launch $1.6 Billion appeal for humanitarian aid


UN, Somalia launch $1.6 Billion appeal for humanitarian aid


Source: VOA, Thursday February 1, 2024

MOGADISHU, SOMALIA — The United Nations and the Somali government have launched a $1.6 billion appeal to address humanitarian challenges in Somalia. The 2024 Humanitarian Needs Action Plan seeks to provide life-saving support to over 5 million Somalis this year.

The U.N. says climate shocks, conflict, widespread poverty and disease outbreaks continue to drive humanitarian needs in the Horn of Africa country.
The appeal comes as Somalia struggles to deal with long dry spells followed by heavy rains and deadly flash floods.

“In terms of the overall humanitarian situation in Somalia for 2024, World Vision sees humanitarian needs remaining high in 2024 due to recurrent shocks induced by climate change and underlying factors such as conflict and insecurity,” says Suganya Kimbrough, program development and quality assurance director for World Vision Somalia.

But “the number of people needing humanitarian assistance in 2024 has decreased to 6.9 million from 8.2 million people in 2023, according to the latest draft of the 2024 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan,” she added.

Kimbrough says funding for the U.N.’s Somalia Humanitarian Fund currently stands at only $56.6 million, leaving a significant gap between resources available and the need.

She added that most of the funding goes to life-saving interventions because Somalia remains fragile.

However, Kimbrough said, humanitarian organizations, including World Vision, are gradually charting long-term sustainable solutions.

“Over the last few years, World Vision Somalia has seen a gradual shift in funding, focusing more on longer-term resilience linked to the humanitarian development peace nexus and away from short-term humanitarian responses,” she said.

“Continued investments in disaster risk management, system strengthening, social cohesion and livelihood adaptation, and including mechanisms such as crisis modifiers are all key to foster resilience and build the capacity of communities to cope with recurrent shocks,” she added.

Close to three million Somalis are living in internally displaced persons camps and largely depend on support from the government and aid agencies.

Marya Ahmed, a mother of seven based in a camp on the outskirts of Mogadishu, says, she has have been living with all children in the camp for the last five years. She said they get just a little food and medical support, and that she really wants to leave the camp one day and start a new life. Right now, she added, she doesn’t have the means.

Analysts say whereas the annual call for international support has been critical in staving off humanitarian suffering, it hardly resolves Somalia’s food security problems.

Ali Mohamed, a food security expert and researcher in Mogadishu, says the appeal by the Somali government and aid agencies is critical for millions of Somalis who are starving. But, he adds, we’re dealing with cyclical problems and we’re yet to find a lasting solution that will enable populations to develop the capacity to respond to shocks and sustainably generate their food.

Studies indicate that Somalia contributes only a tiny percentage of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warming but suffers more than most countries from adverse climate change conditions.

Mohamed says the situation could get worse because of dwindling global resources and dire humanitarian situations elsewhere.

“I am worried that donors are increasingly getting fatigued with Somalia as we have witnessed recently. There have to be deliberate efforts by the government to seriously invest in food systems and fully exploit the local resources to gradually reduce foreign dependence.”

According to the humanitarian agency OCHA, the 2023 appeal was only 43% funded, raising concerns about a similar scenario this year.

AU mission concludes second phase of troop withdrawal from Somalia

AU mission concludes second phase of troop withdrawal from Somalia


Source: CGTN, By DinahMatengo
Thursday February 1, 2024

The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) handed over nine military bases to the Somali government, marking the completion of the second phase of the troop withdrawal from the country.

“The drawdown of 3,000 troops, and handover of the seven military bases which conclude Bio Cadale, Raga Ceel, Parliament, State House, Qorillow, Burahache, and Kismayo Old Airport ENDF mark a watershed moment in the ongoing Somalia security transition process,” ATMIS said in a statement.
Speaking during the official handover ceremony, African Union Commission official, Alhaji Sarjoh Bah, said the drawdown marked a significant milestone in Somalia’s positive trajectory.

According to Bah, Somalia’s security forces have demonstrated incredible courage and resilience in degrading al-Shabaab as part of sustaining security sector development.

“Our collective efforts have enabled us to carry out an orderly and smooth transition of 2,000 troops last year and, this month 3,000 ATMIS troops through the handing over of seven key forward operating bases.

The African Union wants to start the phase 3 drawdown of 4,000 additional ATMIS troops by June 30.

Established in 2007, the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), previously known as the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), gradually drew an estimated 22,000 troops from Uganda, Burundi and neighbouring Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti.

The AU peacekeeping forces aimed to assist Somalia’s federal government in its conflict against al-Shabab.

When peacekeepers were first deployed, the al-Qaeda-linked armed group controlled nearly all territories in south-central Somalia.

Working with Somali security forces, the AU soldiers pushed the fighters into rural areas, which currently, are under al-Shabab control.

(Story compiled with assistance from Xinhua News Agency)