Tigrayan Forces Accused of War Crimes

 Source: Amnesty International published on 16 February 2022 a report titled “Ethiopia: Summary Killings, Rape and Looting by Tigrayan Forces in Amhara.”

Source: Amnesty International reports that Tigrayan forces showed utter disregard for fundamental rules of international humanitarian law.  Evidence is mounting of a pattern of Tigrayan forces committing war crimes and possible crimes against humanity in areas under their control in Amhara region from July 2021 onwards.

Labels: Amhara Region, AU, human rights, rape, sexual violence, Tigray Defense Forces, TPLF, UN, war crimes

South Sudan: The Secret of Salva Kiir’s Survival in Power

 Source: African Arguments published on 16 February 2022 a commentary titled “The Pawn Who Became King: How Has Salva Kiir Stayed at the Top So Long?” by Daniel Akech Thiong, independent consultant.

The author concludes that Salva Kiir has survived by employing a combination of carrots and sticks in his interaction with friends and enemies.  

Labels: Dinka, governance, Nuer, Riek Machar, Salva Kiir, Shilluk, South Sudan, SPLM

EU Refocuses on Partnering with Africa and Countering China and Russia

 Source: The Federal News Network published on 16 February 2022 an article titled “EU Summit Aims to Counter China, Russia Influence in Africa” by Samuel Petrequin.  

During a two-day summit in Brussels, EU leaders agreed to step up efforts to invest in Africa.  The goal is to make the EU Africa’s most trusted partner.  

Labels: Africa, Belt and Road Initiative, China, COVID-19, EU, Global Gateway, investment, Mali, Russia, trade, Wagner Group

EU Refocuses on Partnering with Africa and Countering China and Russia

 Source: The Federal News Network published on 16 February 2022 an article titled “EU Summit Aims to Counter China, Russia Influence in Africa” by Samuel Petrequin.  

During a two-day summit in Brussels, EU leaders agreed to step up efforts to invest in Africa.  The goal is to make the EU Africa’s most trusted partner.  

Labels: Africa, Belt and Road Initiative, China, COVID-19, EU, Global Gateway, investment, Mali, Russia, trade, Wagner Group

Sudan’s US envoy, forced to resign, tells us ‘the situation is disastrous’

Source: By Larry Luxner -February 16, 2022 0

When veteran Sudanese diplomat and educator Nureldin Mohamed Hamed Satti arrived in Washington back in July 2020, he was welcomed as Khartoum’s first ambassador to the United States in 23 years.

Yet Satti’s mission proved to be short-lived. On Jan. 31, the 75-year-old former United Nations official was forced to resign as a consequence of the military coup back home that has plunged Sudan into a political and humanitarian crisis.

“The situation is disastrous,” he told The Washington Diplomat last week via Zoom. “Politically, economically, socially, really from all points of view, Sudan is on the path to collapse.”

With 45 million people and a land area 2.7 times that of Texas, Sudan is Africa’s third-largest country in size. It had ranked as the largest until 2011, when the largely Christian south seceded from the predominantly Muslim north and formed the independent nation of South Sudan.

Yet Sudan has been wracked by civil war and instability for much of its history. For nearly 30 years, the country was led by President Omar al-Bashir, an unforgiving dictator and convicted international war criminal who was finally overthrown in April 2019 after massive protests by ordinary Sudanese furious over emergency austerity measures and a sharp currency devaluation.

Since then, the power-sharing Sovereign Council—an uneasy alliance between the military and civilian groups—has ruled Sudan. But on Oct. 25, 2021, the military under Sudan’s top general, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, dissolved the government, declared a state of emergency and temporarily put Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok under house arrest.

“I opposed that coup, and for that reason I am no longer ambassador,” Satti told us. “I thought it was better that I leave my post, and I informed the US government of my decision.”

As CNN explained in an article a day after the coup, “under the deal struck in July 2019 [by the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia], the military council would be in charge of the country’s leadership for the first 21 months. A civilian administration would then rule the council over the following 18 months. But it has proved to be a shaky alliance. The triumphant mood that swept the nation after Bashir’s removal soured, with tensions between the two sides mounting as they fought to main control over the nation’s future.”

For now, Satti’s chargé d’affaires is running the Sudanese Embassy on Massachusetts Avenue. It’s unclear what will happen next, with the military in full control—especially given that the Biden administration does not recognize the current regime in Khartoum (Hamdok was later reinstalled as prime minister, but resigned on Jan. 2, 2022, in the face of continuing street protests).

“There’s a tug of war, a confrontation between the military de facto government and the people in the streets. That’s why we’re in this mess now,” Satti explained. “This will continue unless the military decides to listen to the voice of reason and negotiate with civilians.”

Despite chaos, Sudan still offers ‘enormous potential’

Satti knows a thing or two about negotiating. A former French literature professor at the University of Khartoum, he served as Sudan’s ambassador to France (with accreditation to Portugal, Switzerland and the Vatican) and was also Sudan’s permanent delegate to UNESCO.

After joining UNESCO in 1996, he became director of the agency’s Nairobi-based Regional Program for Emergency Education and Culture of Peace, as well as UNESCO representative to the Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mauritius, Somalia and Tanzania.

In 2002, Satti—who has extensive experience in mediation and conflict resolution—was named UN deputy special representative for Burundi, where he helped end that country’s civil war.

There hasn’t been a US resident ambassador in Khartoum since 1997, and it was only after Bashir’s overthrow that Washington agreed to accept a Sudanese ambassador in the United States, he said.

“That’s why I came here some 18 months ago,” he said. “But now we are back to a situation where there is diplomatic representation but not at the ambassadorial level.”

In December 2020, the Trump administration took Sudan off from the US State Department’s list of terrorist-supporting states as part of a deal in which Khartoum agreed to normalize diplomatic ties with Israel. At the time, only three other countries were considered state sponsors of terrorism: Iran, Syria and North Korea, though Cuba—which the Obama administration removed from the list in 2015— was put back on during Trump’s final week in office.

Satti said Sudan’s removal from that blacklist had a “huge impact” on bilateral relations.

“It opened the way for Sudan to normalize relations with the US, to benefit from financial and political support, and also to begin the process of debt forgiveness,” said the former ambassador, noting that his country had been an international pariah for decades. “We were on the right track with the World Bank, the IMF, the African Development Bank and the Paris Club. Within the next two years, most of Sudan’s debt would have been renegotiated and probably forgiven. That would have lifted a huge burden from the Sudanese economy. We were on the path to full normalization, but now all this is finished. We are back to square one.”

Rahel Getachew, founder of Afrolehar Branding, a Washington-based cross-cultural PR and communications firm, said that “even though Sudan is currently in turmoil, it offers great opportunities for US investment in natural resources such as gold, aluminum and nickel, as well as agriculture.”

She noted that Sudan has more than 150 million hectares of arable land, and also boasts enormous potential for solar energy. “Within its limits, Sudanese embassies around the world should not only work on political engagement but also on economic diplomacy to educate investors and the private sector about the agriculture, transport and manufacturing sectors in Sudan,” she said.

Sudan’s Israel dilemma: Full normalization, but at what cost?

Another potential bright spot for Sudan could be normalization and trade with Israel—a country it once considered a sworn enemy. Sudan’s support for the Palestine Liberation Organization was well-documented over the years. In fact, it was in Khartoum where the Arab League famously met in 1967 and adopted the “three no’s”—no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, and no negotiations with Israel.

So it’s more than ironic that Sudan, of all countries, agreed to normalization with the Jewish state. In fact, Hamdok was supposed to come to Washington a year ago to sign the Abraham Accords—joining the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco in making peace with Israel.

“I know because I was part of this. I was the link with the administration,” said Satti. “Unfortunately, he was unable to come because of scheduling issues. Afghanistan was occupying the administration, so the signing was postponed to October. But it didn’t happen, and then we had the coup. That changed everything.”

Even so, the Sudanese military started normalizing ties with Israel on its own, a relationship that was jumpstarted in a 2019 meeting between former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and al-Burhan. Secret meetings continue, as evidenced by a Feb. 9 report in Times of Israel revealing that a top official of the Sudanese government is currently visiting Tel Aviv.

But such an approach can backfire for Israel, Satti warned.

“As I’ve always told Jewish organizations here, it’s in the interests of Israel to come to Sudan through the front door, with the people of Sudan—and not the military of Sudan, which for me is the back door. This relationship will not be sustainable, because there will be no stability in Sudan under military rule,” he said.

“My advice to Israel is to reconsider its position and try to mend fences with the Sudanese people and not with the military,” he continued. “A uniquely military and security-based normalization with Sudan does not fulfill the requirements of the Abraham Accords, which is about partnership, cooperation, people-to-people relations and peace.”

Meanwhile, Satti said he’ll stay in the United States—but has no plans to seek political asylum here.

“I am a retired UN employee and I have my own resources,” he said. “There are special arrangements for ambassadors and senior diplomats who wish to remain in the US for some time, upon recommendation from the State Department.”

And what will he do, we asked Satti, now that he’s no longer ambassador?

“I will continue to resist the military regime. It’s my duty,” he replied. “That’s going to be my new job.”

Source: US withdrawal in Somalia has strengthened hand of al-Shabab terrorists, top officials say

Stripes
Friday February 18, 2022

U.S.-backed forces in Somalia are now outgunned by Africa’s largest terrorist group, raising concerns that a 2021 decision to pull out American troops and curtail airstrikes has helped the militants’ insurgency expand, two senior officials said Thursday.

“It probably is not an effective long-term strategy,” said one of the defense officials, who was authorized to speak on background about security conditions in Africa.

Special operations forces had been assisting local units for several years in battling al-Shabab, which is linked to al-Qaida. But shortly before leaving office, President Donald Trump ordered some 700 U.S. troops out of Somalia.

Since then, U.S. Africa Command also has halted most airstrikes in the country. The new administration of President Joe Biden has sought to limit drone strikes in Somalia and elsewhere.

By comparison, the U.S. conducted 63 strikes against Islamic militants in Somalia in 2020. AFRICOM, however, has come under criticism in the past by advocacy groups that say the attacks on al-Shabab threaten civilians.

But with fewer airstrikes and less U.S. military involvement on the ground, al-Shabab is showing signs of resurgence in Somalia, the defense officials said.

“We are placing less pressure on them,” one of the defense officials said.
With a force estimated at between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters, the terrorist group now has more freedom of movement and therefore the ability attack more often, the officials said.

Still, although al-Shabab advertises ambitions to go after Western targets outside Somalia, it lacks the capacity to attack the U.S. homeland, the officials said.
For years, the U.S. has worked to strengthen Somalia’s fledgling army, especially the country’s Danab, or Lightning, advanced infantry brigade.

Before the 2021 withdrawal, U.S. special operations troops maintained a small but steady presence in the country and served as battlefield advisers to local forces. At times, that put American troops in the crossfire.

The militants, who have been a force in Somalia for nearly two decades, are well-funded. The group’s annual revenue, much of it coming from taxation in areas it controls, stands at about $120 million, the defense officials said.

Exclusive-Voting Delays Risk Starving Somalia of Budget Funds, Says IMF 

Source: Reuters, Friday February 18, 2022

A key IMF-supported programme funding military wages and other essential services in Somalia could expire in May if there are any further delays to elections, the chief International Monetary Fund representative in the country said.
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Riven by civil war since 1991, the impoverished Horn of Africa nation has paid its bills since 2017 thanks to the IMF as it slowly rebuilds its institutions despite a ferocious Islamist insurgency.

The current three-year budget programme, worth nearly $400 million, is also a required part of a deal to slash Somalia’s debt from more than $5 billion to around a 10th of that.

But the programme will terminate automatically if a new government is not in place to conclude a review of it by May 17, Laura Jaramillo, the IMF mission chief for Somalia, told Reuters.
“It will impact the government’s functioning and could have broader implications,” she said, referring to the risk that much-delayed elections are not completed in time to renew the deal.

Somalia’s Finance Minister Abdirahman Beileh, however, dismissed those concerns.

“We are confident that elections will be concluded in time so as to not affect the reform programme,” he said. “There have been no major challenges in meeting the IMF conditions thus far, and we do not anticipate any.”

Elections had been scheduled for a year ago but were delayed when President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed tried to extend his four-year term by two years, a move thwarted by parliament.

DELAY HITS FINANCES

Voting for lawmakers – who will then choose the president – began on Nov. 1. It was supposed to end on Dec. 24, but now may finish on Feb. 25.
The delay, exacerbated by a months-long dispute between the president and prime minister, has already hit finances.

Somalia expected $170 million in budget support last year but only got $38 million, the IMF said. The government covered the shortfall with new allocations that the IMF gave all members under pressure from COVID-19. But those could run out soon.

“That is when we will start to see the pressures mounting,” Jaramillo said.

Expiry of the IMF programme would also halt Somalia’s journey to debt forgiveness. Under the 2020 deal, approved by the World Bank and the IMF, Somalia’s debt was reduced to $3.7 billion, or 63% of GDP, from $5.2 billion or 89% of GDP.

If completed next year, debt should drop to $557 million or 6% of gross domestic product.

“It is a dramatic debt forgiveness and Somalia is close to reaching that goal,” said Jaramillo.

Somalia’s economy is expected to have grown by 2% last year, the IMF said, thanks to household consumption driven by increased remittances and new export markets for goods. It should expand by 3.2% this year if political challenges are resolved, the fund said.

Apart from budgetary support, the IMF programme also allows other development partners to offer financing to Somalia.

The debt relief programme has enabled the government to run a cash transfer scheme to vulnerable households battling drought, COVID-19 and insecurity

UN agencies appeal for 4.4 bln USD to assist 29.1 mln in Eastern Africa in 2022 

Source: CGTN, Thursday February 10, 2022

The United Nations humanitarian partners have appealed for more than 500 billion shillings (4.4 billion U.S. dollars) to provide life-saving assistance and protection to about 29.1 million people in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia in 2022, the UN relief agency said on Wednesday.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said between 12 and 14 million people are waking each day to face high levels of acute food insecurity and severe water shortages across the three countries, due to drought in the first quarter of 2022.

“We urgently call on donors to fund these appeals so that we can immediately respond to the life-threatening needs across the Horn of Africa,” UNOCHA said in its latest update on the drought situation in the region.

The UN relief agency called on donors to fund the vibrant network of local, community-based and women-led organizations, including refugee-led organizations, which carry out incredible work in drought-affected communities every day.

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It welcomed the emergency declarations issued by the governments of Kenya and Somalia and called on governments across the region to prioritize the drought emergency by allocating the necessary funds to provide timely comprehensive support to their communities.

According to the UNOCHA, about 5.5 million children are expected to be acutely malnourished in these three countries in 2022, including more than 1.6 million severely acutely malnourished.

It said the migration of livestock herds has reduced milk availability, negatively affecting nutrition, especially for children under five years old.

It said the October-December 2020, March-May 2021 and October-December 2021 seasons were all marred by below-average rainfall, leaving large swathes of Somalia, southern and south-eastern Ethiopia, and northern and eastern Kenya facing exceptional drought.

Egypt and Djibouti seek to “reinforce” bilateral relations

Source: africanews, Wednesday February 9, 2022

Egypt’s president met with Djiboutian counterpart on Monday. It was part of Egypt’s efforts to build more African alliances amid an ongoing water dispute with Ethiopia.
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During the talks in Cairo, Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Ismail Omar Guelleh discussed the controversial dam Ethiopia is building on the Nile River’s main tributary. Egypt deems the dam an “existential threat”.

At joint press conference, the Egyptian leader reiterated his government’s demand of achieving “a legally binding agreement on the filling and operating the dame […] according to the rules of international law and Security Council decisions.”

Guelleh said he and his Egyptian counterpart also discussed strengthening relations between their two nations “on all levels”. “We shared our visions and views concerning various topics and issues that are of mutual interest, we also agreed on the importance of taking the relationship between the two countries to new horizons”, he added.

Guelleh’s visit to Cairo comes more than eight months after el-Sissi paid visit to the strategic Horn of African nation. El-Sissi was then the first Egyptian leader to land in Djibouti since it declared independence in 1977.
An apple of discord

Under construction since 2011, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) is projected to generate some 6,000 MW of power once completed. The massive reservoir is worth about 4.6 billion US $. In July, Ethiopia announced that it had successfully finished the second phase of filling the dam’s reservoir, further raising tensions with Khartoum and Cairo.

Egypt and Sudan fear that the Ethiopian reservoir would affect their water shares, especially in times of drought. The dam dispute talks between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan have stalled and international and regional efforts have since attempted without success to revive the negotiations amid conflict in the Tigray region in Ethiopia.

Somaliland pitches ‘huge’ oil and gas potential during Taiwan trip

Source: Reuters, Wednesday February 9, 2022

Somaliland has “huge” investment potential in untapped oil and gas reserves, the foreign minister of Somalia’s breakaway region told Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday, pitching investment opportunities on a high-profile visit.

Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991 but has not gained widespread international recognition for its independence. The region has been mostly peaceful while Somalia has grappled with three decades of civil war.
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Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory and likewise diplomatically isolated, and Somaliland set up representative offices in each other’s capitals in 2020.

Meeting Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, Somaliland Foreign Minister Esse Kayd said they welcomed “giant” Taiwanese companies to invest and trade with them.

“In the mining sector, Somaliland has huge potential for foreign investment, including hydrocarbon deposits, oil and gas, as well as coal, which can be easily explored,” he said.
“We are encouraging maximising trade and investment potential rather than aid dependency.”

His delegation, which includes the finance minister, will also meet executives from state-owned oil firm CPC, according to Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry.

Tsai said both Taiwan and Somaliland were like-minded democratic partners.

“Somaliland is now an important location in East Africa for Taiwan’s Africa project,” she added.
Taiwan has been all but driven out of Africa diplomatically by China in recent years, with only tiny eSwatini now maintaining full relations with the island.

China has ramped up pressure on countries not to engage with Taiwan as it seeks to assert its sovereignty claims.

Kayd, in an apparent swipe at China’s opposition to their Taiwan friendship, said Somaliland was a sovereign nation with a right to international relations.

“All coercive or threatening measures to deny such collaboration between international partners …. do little to promote the peace and security that the region and the world require.”

Taiwan has been keen to show it is a selfless development partner for Somaliland and last month donated 150,000 doses of its domestically developed Medigen COVID-19 vaccine.

Strategically situated on the Horn of Africa, Somaliland borders Djibouti, where China maintains its first ever overseas military base.

Wednesday February 9, 2022

Somaliland has “huge” investment potential in untapped oil and gas reserves, the foreign minister of Somalia’s breakaway region told Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday, pitching investment opportunities on a high-profile visit.

Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991 but has not gained widespread international recognition for its independence. The region has been mostly peaceful while Somalia has grappled with three decades of civil war.
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Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory and likewise diplomatically isolated, and Somaliland set up representative offices in each other’s capitals in 2020.

Meeting Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, Somaliland Foreign Minister Esse Kayd said they welcomed “giant” Taiwanese companies to invest and trade with them.

“In the mining sector, Somaliland has huge potential for foreign investment, including hydrocarbon deposits, oil and gas, as well as coal, which can be easily explored,” he said.
“We are encouraging maximising trade and investment potential rather than aid dependency.”

His delegation, which includes the finance minister, will also meet executives from state-owned oil firm CPC, according to Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry.

Tsai said both Taiwan and Somaliland were like-minded democratic partners.

“Somaliland is now an important location in East Africa for Taiwan’s Africa project,” she added.
Taiwan has been all but driven out of Africa diplomatically by China in recent years, with only tiny eSwatini now maintaining full relations with the island.

China has ramped up pressure on countries not to engage with Taiwan as it seeks to assert its sovereignty claims.

Kayd, in an apparent swipe at China’s opposition to their Taiwan friendship, said Somaliland was a sovereign nation with a right to international relations.

“All coercive or threatening measures to deny such collaboration between international partners …. do little to promote the peace and security that the region and the world require.”

Taiwan has been keen to show it is a selfless development partner for Somaliland and last month donated 150,000 doses of its domestically developed Medigen COVID-19 vaccine.

Strategically situated on the Horn of Africa, Somaliland borders Djibouti, where China maintains its first ever overseas military base.

Ethiopian Head of WHO: Between a Rock and a Hard Spot

 Source: The Conversation published on 28 January 2022 a commentary titled “WHO Head Tedros Faces a Challenge All Humanitarians Know Well” by Mukesh Kapila, University of Manchester.

The government of Ethiopia strongly opposes the reelection of Tedros Adhanom as director general of the World Health Organization.  Tedros, a Tigrayan from Ethiopia, angered the government when he called attention to the humanitarian crisis in Tigray Region.

Labels: civil war, Ethiopia, human rights, humanitarian crisis, ICRC, Tedros Adhanom, Tigray Region, TPLF, WHO

UK, EU urge Somaliland to clarify preparations for upcoming presidential elections

Source: Hiiraan Online, Tuesday February 1, 2022

MOGADISHU (HOL) – The UK government, EU and other European countries have called on the Somaliland government to set out the timelines and framework for the upcoming presidential elections slated for later this year.

In a joint statement following a visit by representatives to Hargeisa, the EU nations said in a joint statement there was a need for clarity on the process to foster the break-away region’s democracy.

“We encourage Somaliland’s political leaders to clarify the way forward for the upcoming elections, due this year, through an inclusive dialogue process, by agreeing on a joint electoral roadmap in line with Somaliland’s laws and constitution and ensuring that the electoral processes reflect Somaliland’s internal diversity in terms of inclusion of women, youth and minorities,” the joint statement read in part.

The statement also signed by Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway and Sweden noted that the Somaliland National Elections Commission (SNEC) should also commence voter registration.

Somaliland is set to hold presidential elections in November ahead of the lapse of President Muse Bihi’s term in December.

Bihi was elected president on December 13, 2017 on a Kulmiye party ticket.
Somaliland held parliamentary and district council elections last on May 2021.

Fontelles: EU to continue funding Amisom, if it reforms

Source: The EastAfrican, Tuesday February 1, 2022

The European Union is demanding structural changes in the way the successor operation of the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) will work from now on, with emphasis on rebuilding the country’s broken institutions.

Funding

Josep Borrell Fontelles, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, told The EastAfrican that the European bloc agrees that Somalia will be exposed were the Mission to quit without adequate replacement.

But he suggested that the EU will not fund the Mission based on its old structure that focused on combat and troops on the ground with little attention to rebuilding institutions.

Amisom, the African Union counter-terrorism force, was created in 2007 and given mandate by the UN Security Council to operate. But the European Union funds 90 percent of its operational budget.

In 2017, the EU scaled back the funding, citing growing needs to combat terrorism beyond the Horn of Africa.

Transition

The Mission is undergoing a transition with discussions between Somalia and the African Union already settling on an interim operation to help hand over security responsibilities to Somalia security agencies after several years.

In March, the UN Security Council is expected to decide the fate of the Mission, possibly by transforming it to have a wider mandate.

“These efforts, financial effort on one side and military effort on the other, have not given enough results and I think that Amisom has to be reviewed,” Fontelles said in an interview on Saturday.

“We don’t want to abandon Somalia. We don’t want to stop financing Amisom, but we need to review how it works in order to ensure that results are better.”

Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Ethiopia and Djibouti contribute troops to the Amisom. They had all asked for the transformation into a multidimensional force, which Somalia refused. Somalia also rejected the idea of extending Amisom mandate beyond March.

Last week, the African Union proposed the creation of the African Union Transitional Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) which would have the same mandate as Amisom, but work as a preparatory organisation to help with the transition so that Somalia can take up security duties in two years or so.

It was unclear whether they will continue to send troops.

The ATMIS would have a stronger coherence between troops, something that has lacked in Amisom, including on disciplinary matters.

Peace mission

But the EU is worried that a continual military focus could fail to address the causes of long-term insecurity in Somalia, weak government institutions and few economic opportunities.

“If (Operation) Atalanta ships leave, piracy will come back quickly because the root cause unhappily remains.  If Amisom leaves Somalia, Somalia will hardly resist. So we need the effort of the Africans and we need the financial support of the European Union, but it has to be reviewed,” Mr Fontelles said.

“We want an effective mission and we are discussing about it and I hope that we will be able to reach an agreement in order to continue providing this financial support.”

He was also referring to the anti-piracy mission run by the European Union since 2008 in the Somalia sea and the Gulf of Eden and which was formerly known as the European Union Naval Force Somalia (EUNAVFOR).

Somalia has demanded that the operation is stopped so the country can take over the duties of guarding its sea.

Contributors

ATMIS, which will need the approval of the UN Security Council, may not have the same troop contributors as each of the current forces will need to volunteer to join.

The transitional mission will also attract troops from across the continent, although it was unclear if other countries could contribute. In the past, Sierra Leone contributed troops to Amisom but could not replace the forces who had completed their tour of duty when West Africa experienced an Ebola outbreak.

Ahead of the Amisom transition, troop contributors had demanded assurances on funding, suggesting that the UN takes up the cost of operations.

But sources had told The EastAfrican that all the veto-holding members of the Council (France, Russia, UK, US and China) were uncomfortable with such an arrangement as it could open a floodgate of demands to fund similar operations across the world.

PM Roble leaves for UAE for high-level meetings

Source: Hiirran Online, Sunday January 30, 2022

Mogadishu (HOL) – Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble left for the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, weeks after announcing that his government will improve relations with the Gulf state.

advertisementsThe trip would mark the Prime Minister’s first visit to the United Arab Emirates since taking office. 

PM Roble’s travel to the UAE comes at a time of heightened election turmoil and a bitter feud between him and President Farmajo – who is supported by Qatar.

Earlier this month, Roble apologized to the UAE for having their money seized by Somali intelligence at Mogadishu airport in April 2018, promising to return it to the UAE.

On Sunday, the Banadir Regional Court ruled that the money remained with Somalia’s central bank until an investigation was completed. Legal observers have noted that the court does not have the legal jurisdiction to adjudicate the case. 

The UAE has maintained good relations with Puntland and Jubbaland regional administrations, assisting with development projects and training its troops. 

Court in Somalia bars Prime Minister from wiring back seized funds to UAE

Source: Sunday January 30, 2022

MOGADISHU (HOL) – A court in Mogadishu has stopped the country’s Prime Minister Mohamed Roble from returning $9.6m seized by security forces in 2018 to UAE shortly after the PM left for the Gulf nation.

Banaadir Regional Court issued the order few hours after Roble boarded a plane to UAE in what sources said was a trip meant to finalise the return of the money.

In the order today, the court sitting Mogadishu said the money will not be returned until investigations on the circumstances surrounding its arrival in the country are concluded.
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PM Roble announced early this month that the money which was seized at Aden Adde Airport on June 18, 2018 would be returned to UAE.

However President Mohamed Farmaajo dismissed the PM’s directive noting the funds were illegally wired into the country and will therefore not be returned.

The court order is expected to open another rift between Farmaajo and Roble who have publicly differed on several issues.

The agenda of the PM’s visit to UAE was not immediately clear but sources said the seized funds would be a subject of discussion  and the resetting of relations between the two countries.

Kenya on High Alert After France Warns of Impending Terror Attack

Source: VOA, Saturday January 29, 2022

The French Embassy in Kenya has issued a terror alert to Western nationals, urging them to avoid places this weekend where foreigners gather, such as hotels and shopping centers, especially in the capital, Nairobi.
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The German Embassy sent that country’s citizens a less specific terror alert, urging caution. Kenyan police say they have seen the terror alert and have beefed up security.

Kenyan authorities say they have deployed enough security to respond to any planned terror attack in the country.

The step comes as France issued a terror alert and warned its citizens against visiting shopping malls and hotels, especially in the capital, Nairobi.

Kenya’s police spokesman, Bruno Shioso, told VOA they saw the alert on social media and there was no need to fear.

“I can’t comment on that but what I can tell you, Kenyans and the world, is that the country is so safe, we have put measures in place, we placed all major towns and critical areas with our security, our security guys are very alert and on the ground. So there should be no need for fear,” Shioso said.

In 2013, al-Shabab militants stormed the Westgate mall in Nairobi, killing more than 60 people. Another attack by the Somali terrorist group on the Dusit hotel three years ago killed 21.

Hassan Khannenje is the head of the Horn Institute for Strategic Studies. He says Kenya and other countries must work together to combat any security threat to the East African nation.

“It’s important because the terror problem is an international problem that foreign countries with missions countries in the region are able to work with their local counterparts either to preempt or at least to be able to approach it in a more coordinated fashion because one of the challenges in fighting terror has been poor coordination among the key stakeholders, and that includes governments,” Khannenje said.

The Horn of Africa region is facing both political and security challenges. The Ethiopian government is involved in a war with its northern Tigray region. Somalia faces a political crisis that emanates from the delayed elections and Kenya is preparing for general elections in August.

Khannenje says the region needs to be on high alert to deal with those who want to benefit from its political volatility.

“This year is going to be very critical for the region in trying to manage those threats, because the challenge the region has faced, not just Kenya, is the moment there isn’t a massive attack, then people tend to be complacent and government response tends to be a little bit complacent and so this calls us to attention that as stakeholders and people who care about peace, peaceful citizens of the region should be more vigilant with regards to potential exploitation of the confusion of the chaos exist in the region today,” Khannenje said.

Since the beginning of this year, Kenyan security agencies have reported several attacks against people in Lamu County, which borders Somalia.

On Wednesday, suspected al-Shabab fighters in Lamu sprayed a convoy carrying judicial officials with bullets, injuring several people.

Diaspora group: Ethiopia PM open to talks with Tigray forces

Source: 26 January 2022, AP, By CARA ANNAyesterday

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopia’s prime minister has said there will be negotiations on a cease-fire between his government and the rival Tigray forces who have been waging war for almost 15 months, the chairman of a diaspora group that had a private meeting with him told The Associated Press.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has never said so publicly as international mediation efforts continue amid one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Mesfin Tegenu, chairman of the American Ethiopian Public Affairs Committee, on Tuesday described the tone of Saturday’s five-hour meeting with the prime minister as “a very earnest desire to stop this thing. … Of course, the other side must be willing.” The prime minister “said that there will be negotiations, reasonable negotiations, that will keep the interest of the integrity of the nation first,” and the new U.S. special envoy who visited Ethiopia last week “would have ideas” about the process, Mesfin said.ADVERTISEMENT

Even approaching negotiations between Ethiopia’s government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which dominated the country’s repressive government before Abiy took office, has been a challenge in part because the government declared the TPLF a terrorist group after the war began in November 2020.

The war shifted late last month when the Tigray forces, who had been moving closer to the capital, Addis Ababa, retreated into their northern region under pressure from a drone-supported military offensive. Ethiopia’s military at the time said it would not pursue the fighters further, opening the way for renewed mediation efforts. But deadly drone strikes have continued, killing civilians in Tigray.

The decision not to pursue was an unpopular one for many Ethiopians, Mesfin told the AP. “Most people wanted (the prime minister) to advance, really finish this war,” he said. That’s why his committee requested a meeting, he said. They expected Abiy’s deputy or chief of staff to attend, but the prime minister walked in.

At first the discussion was “a little hostile” to Abiy, Mesfin said, but the prime minister told the diaspora group that “you have to trust me on this one.” He told them that the Tigray forces were contained, and that not pushing further into the Tigray region gives the government time to “force” ethnic Tigrayans to reconsider their support for the fighters.

“They want the population to push the TPLF to negotiate,” Mesfin said of Abiy’s government. He described the prime minister, a Nobel Peace Prize winner who has largely shied away from the international spotlight since the war began, as “charming at times, serious most of the time, very patient with us. He listened.”

There was no immediate comment on the chairman’s account from Abiy’s spokeswoman, Billene Seyoum, or from Tigray forces spokesman Getachew Reda. An official with U.S. special envoy David Satterfield did not immediately respond to questions.ADVERTISEMENT

The U.S. has given no details about Satterfield’s first Ethiopia visit as special envoy last week. On Tuesday, the State Department said he would be traveling to Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Israel through Feb. 4 to discuss Sudan and the Horn of Africa at large.

Estimated tens of thousands of people have been killed in Ethiopia’s war, and millions displaced. While rebuilding efforts have begun in the country’s Amhara and Afar regions since the Tigray forces’ retreat, some 6 million people in Tigray remain under a government blockade that has kept out most food aid, medicines, cash, fuel and other badly needed supplies.

The prime minister told the diaspora group that “we are going to do all humanly possible to get supplies in, to make sure the population suffering will not continue to suffer,” Mesfin said.

The United Nations last week said food distribution in Tigray has reached its “all-time lowest” while more than 50,000 children are thought to be severely malnourished.

The Tigray forces on Tuesday said they had taken “robust actions” to counter fighters from Afar and clear areas near Tigray “that could serve as a springboard for further attacks on our positions,” saying they had not taken such measures for weeks “to give peace a chance.” The fighting has been blamed for the latest delays in aid delivery to Tigray along what is considered the only open land route for humanitarian deliveries.

The war’s combatants also include soldiers from neighboring Eritrea, who are allied with Ethiopian forces and blamed by witnesses for some of the worst atrocities in the war, as well as fighters from Amhara who now occupy western Tigray.

With Eritrea’s involvement, “any possibility of ending the war through a negotiated settlement goes directly through Asmara,” Eritrea’s capital, the leader of the Tigray forces, Debretsion Gebremichael, wrote last week in The Africa Report.

Ethiopia upgrades its consular in Somaliland to ambassador

Source: Hiiraan Online, Thursday January 27, 2022

ADDIS ABABA (HOL)- Ethiopia has upgraded its diplomatic standing with the break-away region of Somaliland following the appointment of an ambassador to Hargeisa.
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President Sahle Work Zewde decreed Wednesday the promotion of Said Mohammed, who has been the head of consular in Somaliland to a full ambassador.

The new changes follow a visit by President Muse Bihi on January 19 to Ethiopia where he had been invited by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

 Though Ethiopia has maintained, including last week, that Somaliland is part of Somalia, the upgrade of its diplomatic status sends a strong indication of its intention of considering the recognition of the breakaway region.

The upgrade of to full embassy of its consular in Somaliland also comes amid reports that Ethiopia is negotiating a stake in the ancient port of Zeyla in Somaliland.

Currently, Ethiopia has a 19% per cent stake at the port of Berbera in a joint concession with UAE’s P&O Ports.

UPDF contingent in Somalia not paid allowances for 10-months

Source: Mulengera News
Tuesday January 25, 2022

Uganda Peoples Defence Forces troops serving under the African Mission in Somalia have not received allowances for the last 10 months.

The matter came up during a meeting between a team from the Defence Committee of Parliament and the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs this afternoon.

The team led by Jacob Oboth, the Minister of State for Defence had appeared before the Committee to present their budget estimates for the financial year 2022/2023.

During the meeting, Bukanga South MP Stephen Kangwagye asked for the Ministry’s clarity on reports that Uganda’s troops under the African Union Mission for Somalia (Amisom) had not been paid for two years.
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But in response, Edith Butuuro, the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Defence dismissed the reports that the troops had not been paid their allowances for two years. Instead, she says, they are demanding payments from March 2021.

“The money we pay to our troops is allocated to us by the African Union-AU and it follows certain understandings, legal frameworks and budgetary frameworks.

So we follow what these documents provide,” Butuuro said. She added that for the months before March 2021, the troops were paid allowances on top of their salaries from the Government of Uganda that is not in arrears.

Amisom is a regional peacekeeping mission that is operated by the African Union-AU, with the approval of the United Nations –UN Security Council.

Uganda was the first African country to send its soldiers to Somalia, therefore spearheading the Amisom in March 2007.

These are fighting the al-Shabaab insurgents and protecting the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu. The other countries in the Amisom are Kenya, Ethiopia, Burundi and Djibouti.

Sudan: A Generational Conflict

 Source: The BBC posted on 22 January 2022 an article titled “Sudan Protesters: Ready to Die for Freedom” by Mohanad Hashim.  

One of the Sudanese protesters describes the protests as a generational conflict with the young wanting a more equitable, peaceful and democratic future.  They want to stop the cycle of military coups and authoritarianism.  

Labels: Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, coup d’etat, democracy, EU, Forces for Freedom and Change, military, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, protesters, Rapid Support Forces, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, UAE, UK, US, youth