‘Africans will be biggest losers after letting foreign military into their continent’

          Africa has become a staging ground where foreign countries can show off their military capabilities against one another away from their country of origin at the expense of Africans, says African affairs expert Ayo Johnson.

Turkey is gearing to open its largest overseas military base in Somalia.
The United Arab Emirates are building a military base at the port of Berbera, in the self-declared Republic of Somaliland.
Africa is an attraction to foreign militaries: China opened its first overseas military base on August,1 in Djibouti on the Horn of Africa. Djibouti is also currently housing Americans, Japanese and French troops. readmore

Somalia turns down $80m to cut ties with Qatar

     

June 12, 2017 at 2:35 pm | Published in: Africa, Middle East, News, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, UAE

Image of Somali President, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo on 8 February 2017 [AMISOM Public Information/Flickr]

June 12, 2017 at 2:35 pm

Somali President, Mohammed Abdullah Farmajo, has been offered $80 million in exchange for his agreement to sever diplomatic relations with the State of Qatar, the New Khalij news outlet reported a prominent journalist has revealed.

“After two hours of enticement, Farmajo rejected the tempting offer,” journalist Jaber Al-Harimi said.

Yesterday, the newspaper Somalia Today quoted unnamed sources saying “there was pressure put on the Somali government by Saudi Arabia to reverse Somalia’s decision to stay neutral in the siege imposed by some Arab governments on the State of Qatar.”

Read: Trump chooses multibillion-dollar Saudi deal over security cooperation with Qatar

The sources confirmed that Saudi Arabia threatened to withdraw financial aid to the Somali government unless Somalia change its neutral stand in which it has called for an end to the political dispute between Qatar and the other Arab nations through dialogue via Islamic organisations like the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC).

The sources added that “ministers of the Somali government returned from Saudi Arabia after meetings with their counterpart were unexpectedly postponed.” It is understood that the rulers of the UAE, with the knowledge of Saudi Arabia, have already sought to persuade Farmajo, who won the presidency despite opposition from the UAE, to change his position.

Sources close to Mogadishu and Abu Dhabi, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue, explained to the New Khalij that the rulers of the UAE, in particular the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed Bin Zayed, would have preferred the former president, Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, to remain in power, especially because of the concessions that the UAE were given by Mahmoud, including contracts for the unfettered access and management of a number of Somali ports that would have provided the UAE with an important strategic position in trading across the world. The new Somali President, Farmajo, has vowed to reverse a number of agreements, some of which have been described as “illegal”.

Read more: Qatar says no expulsions of nationals from countries that cut ties

Also arriving yesterday in the Somali capital were a Qatari delegation headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sultan Bin Saad Al-Muraikhi, to hold talks between the Gulf States and officials of the Somali Federal government. According to sources, the Qatari delegation met with the Somali Prime Minister, Hasan Ali Khairi, and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and are also expected to meet Farmajo.

The Qatari delegation praised the non-aligned stance taken by government towards the Gulf countries and encouraged Somali leaders to maintain their stance against the embargo on Qatar at any cost.

Somalia allowed Qatar the use of its airspace to break the no fly restriction imposed by the Arab countries. “At least 15 Qatari planes flew through Somali Airspace on the first day of the blockade on Qatar,” the Associated Press quoted an official with the aviation authority as saying. source  https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170612-somalia-turns-down-80m-to-cut-ties-with-qatar/

The UAE expands military presence in the Horn of Africa

The United Arab Emirates is developing a strong military foothold in the Horn of Africa.
Recently, it secured a renewable 25-year contract to establish an air and naval base in Somaliland's coastal city of Berbera.
Last year - in 2015 - the UAE signed a 30-year lease agreement for military use of the port of Assab in Eritrea.
When it comes to security cooperation, the UAE train and equip counterterrorism and security unites in Somalia. And in Puntland, it paid to establish a maritime police force by providing training and equipment.
Alex Mello is the lead security analyst at Horizon Client Access, a security consultancy group based in New York. He says that the war in Yemen is the main reason why the UAE is fast expanding its military presence and influence in the Horn of Africa. The United Arab Emirates is fighting, since early 2015, alongside other Middle-Eastern nations against Houthi militias backed by Iran.
“The UAE has been building influence in the Horn since the mid-2000s," Mello said. "The military bases are just the latest phase. For years, the UAE has invested in the Horn of Africa, East Africa and the Indian Ocean islands supporting tourism, port infrastructure, natural gas, food security and development aid.”
The port and air base in Eritrea’s port city of Assab is their main logistics hub for all their operations in Yemen. “This year, they’ve also begun developing it into what’s going to be a long-term, permanent base that will allow them to monitor naval traffic”, adds Mello.
The UAE’s military investment in the Horn of Africa seems to pay off. Alex Mello says it graduated from a local power into regional force that has the capacity to do power projection far from the UAE homeland. A win-win situation
To what extent are states like Eritrea, Somaliland, Puntland and Somalia benefitting from an Emirati military presence and influence?
The UAE has been extensively funding the security services as well as intelligence and counter terrorism services in Somalia, Somaliland and Puntland. An invaluable input for states with limited resources.
According to Alex Mello Somalia could seek Emirati assistance to be more effective in fighting the Al Shabab militia, a thorn in its side that just will not go away.
“The UAE has gained a lot of experience from operations in Afghanistan and Yemen in local level counter-insurgency, counter-terrorism work. In a sense, they have an advantage, over the United States for example, because they are more familiar with the terrain.”
Furthermore, Mello said, the military and security aid ties in with the economic aspect: “The air and naval base in Somaliland is being built now after the UAE won a very big contract in May to manage and expand the port of Berbera.”
The 30-year contract won by Dubai Ports World will help break up Djibouti’s monopoly on land-locked Ethiopia’s freight and, if it works out, will prove to be economically very lucrative for Somaliland.
Mello believes that the United Arab Emirates is beginning to emerge as a powerful actor in the Horn of Africa and beyond.
“It’s been really interesting to see how their presence there has evolved from the 2000s to where we are now. And I think it will definitely expand in the coming years. We’ll probably see the UAE develop more of a blue-water power projection capability. They are going to expand their navy in the next couple of years and that will allow them to really project power all along the East African seaboard, the Indian Ocean. That comes with increased economic influence in the area. source http://m.en.rfi.fr/africa/20161224-uae-discreet-yet-powerful-player-horn-africa

Somalia Human Development Report 2012

: The future of Somalia and the well-being of its people rests significantly on empowering its large youth population. This is the first report of its kind on this war-torn Horn of Africa country in more than a decade. The new report – which is based on surveys conducted in more than 3,000 households in south central Somalia, Puntland and Somaliland - reveals that although the majority of Somali youth believe they have a right to be educated (82%) and a right to decent work (71%), they feel disempowered by multiple structural barriers built into the family, institutions, local government and society at–large. This lack of viable education and employment opportunities – in addition to clan and cultural prejudices – has created a high level of frustration and discontentment among young people. Therefore, radical shifts in policies and attitudes are needed in order to empower and place them at the core of the development agenda. Read more

Solving Somalia’s Food Security Emergency

Two years of poor rainfall, insecurity and rising world food prices have led to a devastating food security emergency in parts of Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and probably Eritrea. Somalia is the epicentre of the regional crisis, and without massive food, nutrition and livelihood interventions, the famine is likely to continue spreading. The death rate will be compounded by seasonal rains that will spread disease among the already severely weakened population. Elderly people and children are worst hit. The UN warns that 750,000 could die by December. To prevent this from happening, the international community must increase humanitarian assistance efforts, removing all remaining barriers to aid, and support longer-term efforts to promote peace and stability. Read more

Kenya: Kibaki Gambles On Regional War With Al Shabaab

As the Kenyan army ventured deeper into Somalia, in its first cross-border campaign in 44 years, a regional grand strategy to deal with Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen is beginning to emerge.

Kenya's intervention was under detailed consideration several weeks before Nairobi's official declaration of war against Al Shabaab on 15 October. There is little substance to media claims that United States diplomats based in Nairobi were surprised by Kenya's operation. Both the USA and Britain run substantive regional counter-terrorism operations from Nairobi.

Although the mobilisation was initially announced as a 'hot pursuit' operation against Somali-based groups who had kidnapped tourists in north-eastern Kenya, President Mwai Kibaki's government and Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) quickly characterised the military campaign as a coordinated effort, even if Kenya appeared to be acting unilaterally. Read more

Urban Refugee Protection in Cairo: The Role of Communication, Information and Technology

The sharing of information about asylum – its rules, rights, processes and privileges – is an inherent part of refugee protection and service provision. With the rise of new technologies, research and policy has paid increasing attention to the use and potentials of changing channels of communication. Refugees increasingly live in urban settings in the global south. Yet little is known about how communication about asylum happens in such cities, or what kinds of issues need to be navigated to effectively deliver information to diverse and dispersed communities within them.

Cairo, Egypt, with its large population of refugees from Iraq, Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia amongst others, is a significant case. Over nearly a decade, demonstrations by refugees at UNHCR have thrown up issues of urban refugee protection, and the political and civil unrest of 2011-12 has presented further problems. The Arab Spring brought communication’s importance in Cairo to a global stage. This paper explores circulation of information about asylum in the city, barriers that have blocked and capacities that might expand its way, based on ethnographic research in Cairo in 2011-12.

The research explores two related themes. First, what have been the dynamics, gaps and constraints of asylum-related information delivery in Cairo, and what impact have they had on refugee protection and service provision? Second, how are communication channels being used to provide information to refugees and asylum seekers, and what capacities and cautions should be considered for each? The paper first reviews related research, project methodology and Cairo’s refugee context. Then it attends to the two research themes, highlighting the role of information in refugee protection, the potential for new and old technologies to help, and the importance of attention to matters of clarity, language and audience
Read more

PROFILE OF THE SOMALI REFUGEES IN EMKULU CAMP ERITREA

he Somali refugees in Emkulu Camp Eritrea are mainly of the Madiban tribe who immigrated to Djibouti region after the down fall of President Siad Barre in 1992. They crossed from Djibouti to Eritrea in 1993 in search of better protection and job opportunities and settled in Assab, the second largest port city of Eritrea. The influx of refugees from Djibouti towards Assab was never-ending and UNHCR established a refugee camp about 20 kms. South of Assab at Harsile Camp. The camp did not last long due to the war that took place between Ethiopia and Eritrea in 1998. Yet again the same refugees were relocated from Harsile Camp to Emkulu Camp. Currently Emkulu Camp hosts over 4000 Somali refugees and even now there are new arrivals each month. The first arrivals have resided in the camp for the last 8 years and have good relationship with the locals in Emkulu district and the vicinity Read more

Building Peace in the Space of Civil Society: The Case of Somali Women

Of all the Post-Cold War conflicts to arise in Africa, one of the most disastrous has been the collapse of the Somali state (legally and administratively) following a civil war in which Somalia degenerated into a collection of feudal enclaves, each controlled by a self-appointed ‘warlord’ and Islamic courts. The current Transitional Federal Government faces enormous challenges to assert its authority beyond Baidoa (is a tiny town). Somalia is a nation plagued by hunger, disease and poverty. It is a nation facing a very complex humanitarian crisis. The people of this nation have been experiencing economic, political and environmental insecurities. Women have been particularly affected as there are no publicly funded social services available (these include: employment, healthcare, education and protection). Even some of the gains which women made in education and politics were rolled back (the lost decade for Somali women). Read more

Famine and Politics in the Horn of Africa

Since the summer of 2011, there has been a crisis that the world’s media has not been reporting upon with the urgency that it deserves. The Horn of Africa, comprising Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia, is facing another famine that the constituent countries are unable to deal with. The online resource, Famine Early Warning System (www.fews.net) claims that at least two large areas of Southern Somalia are facing catastrophic conditions. Those fleeing the effects of the famine have made their way to the eastern part of Kenya, where according to conservative estimates, there are more than 3 million people living in makeshift relief camps. Geographers and social scientists are calling this the worst famine that has been visited upon the people of the Horn of Africa in over 60 years. The main causes for the famine are actually a combination of climatic and political factors. According to Swiss political scientist, Dr. Tobias Hagmann, who is based at the University of California at Berkeley, the price increase in staple crops like sorghum and rice, as well as debilitating droughts in the region, have merged to create famine conditions. What compounds matters, he says, is the erroneous media assumption that pastoralist depredations and the absence of a strong centralised state have added to the crisis. As a matter of fact, Hagmann and his clutch of colleagues who work on east Africa and Horn of Africa related conflicts, opine that the collapse of the state is only one aspect of the issue. They also feel that the anti-pastoral discourse is flawed, for it remains a major source of livelihood for many Somalis and to abandon it, as experts are wont to suggest would mean the end of their culture and economy Read more

Kenya sends troops to attack al-Shabab

Somali opposition fighters driven out from two bases near the border in joint Kenyan-Somali military offensive. Kenya sends troops to attack al-Shabab[ Kenyan troops have crossed into Somalia and have driven out al-Shabab fighters from two bases near the border in a joint operation with Somali soldiers, according to a Somali military commander. Kenya has said it will hunt the fighters they accuse of being behind several recent kidnappings of foreigners. Abdi Yusuf, a senior Somali military commander, said on Sunday that fighter jets struck two al-Shabab bases in southern Somalia, but could not confirm if the aircraft belonged to Kenya. "There have been air strikes in ... al-Shabab bases near Afmadow late yesterday and today. We are heading towards Afmadow now. Al-Shabab have already vacated the town," he said. Alfred Mutua, the Kenyan government spokesman, said that its troops had entered southern Somalia to fight the al-Shabab, who it says are responsible for attacks on its territory. Read more

Somalia-Ethiopia, Kenya Conflict

Despite the difficulties encountered in integrating north and south, the most important political issue in postindependence Somali politics was the unification of all areas populated by Somalis into one country--a concept identified as pan-Somalism, or Greater Somalia. Politicians assumed that this issue dominated popular opinion and that any government would fall if it did not demonstrate a militant attitude toward neighboring countries occupying Somali territory. Preoccupation with Greater Somalia shaped the character of the country's newly formed institutions and led to the build-up of the Somali military and ultimately to the war with Ethiopia and fighting in the NFD in Kenya. By law the exact size of the National Assembly was not established in order to facilitate the inclusion of representatives of the contested areas after unification. The national flag featured a five-pointed star whose points represented those areas claimed as part of the Somali nation--the former Italian and British territories, the Ogaden, Djibouti, and the NFD. Moreover, the preamble to the constitution approved in 1961 included the statement, "The Somali Republic promotes by legal and peaceful means, the union of the territories." The constitution also provided that all ethnic Somalis, no matter where they resided, were citizens of the republic. The Somalis did not claim sovereignty over adjacent territories, but rather demanded that Somalis living in them be granted the right to self-determination. Somali leaders asserted that they would be satisfied only when their fellow Somalis outside the republic had the opportunity to decide for themselves what their status would be. Read more

Court drops one of three charges against Swedish journalists

Reporters Without Borders is relieved to learn that an Addis Ababa court today dropped a charge of participating in terrorist activity against Swedish journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye of the Kontinent news agency, who nonetheless continue to be tried on charges of supporting a terrorist group and entering Ethiopia illegally.

At the end of today’s hearing, the trial was adjourned until 6 December. The two journalists will meanwhile remain in detention.

“We hope that the court will also drop the charge of supporting a terrorist group,” Reporters Without Borders said. “Persson and Schibbye are recognized journalists and have nothing in common with terrorists. All they did was enter the Ogaden without proper documents because that region is closed to the media. Their goal was just to report on what is going on there.” Read more

East Africa: Why Capturing Kismayu Could Trigger Proxy Wars for Kenya

In conversations with diplomats, government officials, and intelligence sources in the region, a clear picture has started emerging of a war that has been in the making over the past five years and one that could dramatically reorder the Somali state, and just possibly bring about the peace that has proved so elusive over the past two decades.

According to these sources, Kenya's military offensive was timely, coming as it did when the Al Shabaab militants are at their weakest and at a time when there is convergence of opinion in the wider East African region about what to do about the crisis in Somalia.

However, a clearer strategy crafted by Somali leaders and regional players in the conflict is also emerging. The first step, the sources say, is to create three new "areas of influence" in the rest of Somalia, beside Somaliland and Puntland, which now function as independent territories.

These territories would provide a buffer zone for Kenya and Ethiopia. Already, Ethiopia has created a buffer zone spanning Galgadud, Hiraan, Bay, Bakool and Gedo.

Kenya's military ambition is to create a buffer zone spanning Gedo El Wak, Middle and Lower Juba regions.

Ultimately, these regions will be governed as semi-automous states at first that could one day form part of a strong united federal government of Somalia.

The second step after the fall of Kismayu would to be to hand over all "liberated" areas to Amisom. Read More

Shock and awe in Somalia? Sorry, it isn’t a board game

enyans are justifiably worried too — artists, journalists and writers associated with Concerned Kenyans Writers have already issued a statement essentially saying that this is not being done in our name.

Diplomatic missions have issued upgraded security advisories to their citizens resident in Kenya. And, publicly, are taking a naive sort of wait-and-see position, professing lack of prior knowledge as to what Kenya had clearly been planning for a while.

The recent kidnappings attributed to Al Shabaab, based on changing official statements, were clearly just an excuse to legitimise the offensive.

Al Shabaab has itself denied responsibility for the kidnappings — somewhat curiously, given its propensity for publicity. And it has, naturally, promised retaliation.

Kenya’s security apparatus seems determined to trudge on. Its attitude is that all “irrelevant” security issues — the minor matter of human-rights violations committed by Kenyan security services in an almost routine manner, for example — can be disregarded as so much buzzing around of flies to be swatted away. Read more

Kenya: Kibaki Gambles On Regional War With Al Shabaab

As the Kenyan army ventured deeper into Somalia, in its first cross-border campaign in 44 years, a regional grand strategy to deal with Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen is beginning to emerge.

Kenya's intervention was under detailed consideration several weeks before Nairobi's official declaration of war against Al Shabaab on 15 October. There is little substance to media claims that United States diplomats based in Nairobi were surprised by Kenya's operation. Both the USA and Britain run substantive regional counter-terrorism operations from Nairobi.

Although the mobilisation was initially announced as a 'hot pursuit' operation against Somali-based groups who had kidnapped tourists in north-eastern Kenya, President Mwai Kibaki's government and Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) quickly characterised the military campaign as a coordinated effort, even if Kenya appeared to be acting unilaterally. Read more

Somalia • Famine & Drought

Just over 100 days have passed since famine was declared in southern Somalia on 20 July. Since July,
there has been a significant scale-up in response activities. At least 2.2 million people have benefited from
enhanced access to food, up from 770,000 before July. Nearly 1.2 million people now have sustained access
to safe drinking water compared to 850,000 by
the end of June, with an additional 1.8 million
people receiving temporary water provision.
Partners have established at least 217 new
nutrition treatment centres since July, with 1,142
static and mobile centres able to treat children by
the end of September. Some 1.16 million
children have been immunized against measles
since July. Partners significantly increased food
voucher, cash-for-work and cash relief
programmes since the declaration of famine, with
1,177,229 people benefiting from these
programmes since July, compared to 100,201
from January to June. Read more

A Diplomatic Surge to Stop Somalia’s Famine

Somalia is dying. Three-quarters of a million people are at immediate risk of famine;
another 750,000 are refugees in neighboring countries, and 4 million – half the total
population – is in need of emergency aid. It is a calamity that could join the ranks of the
Rwanda genocide and the Darfur crisis in terms of scale and human suffering. And for
Somalia it is a terrible repeat of the 1991-92 famine that claimed 240,000 lives.
The international response to date has been shockingly inadequate – not just because
funds for humanitarian aid have fallen short, but because of the absence of political will
to take bold diplomatic action to remove impediments to the delivery of aid. Read more

Somalia and 6 others Report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea pursuant to Security Council resolution 1916 (2010) (S/2011/433)

The UN panel is tasked with monitoring compliance with embargoes on the delivery of weapons and military equipment to Somalia and Eritrea, as well as probing activities – financial, maritime or in another field – which generate revenue used to violate those embargoes.

The report states that the Eritrean Government “conceived, planned, organized and directed a failed plot to disrupt the African Union summit in Addis Ababa by bombing a variety of civilian and governmental targets.”

It adds that “since the Eritrean intelligence apparatus responsible for the African Union summit plot is also active in Kenya, Somalia, the Sudan and Uganda, the level of threat it poses to these other countries must be re-evaluated.”

The report, which is over 400 pages, also points to Eritrea’s continuing relationship with Al-Shabaab, the Islamist militant group that controls some parts of Somalia’s territory and has been waging a fierce battle against the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) there.

While the Eritrean Government acknowledges that it maintains relationships with Somali armed opposition groups, including Al-Shabaab, it denies that it provides any military, material or financial support and says its links are limited to a political, and even humanitarian, nature.

However, evidence and testimony obtained by the Monitoring Group, including records of financial payments, interviews with eyewitnesses and data relating to maritime and aviation movements, all indicate that Eritrean support for Somali armed opposition groups is not limited to the political or humanitarian dimensions.

The Group says that Eritrea’s continuing relationship with Al-Shabaab appears designed to “legitimize and embolden the group rather than to curb its extremist orientation or encourage its participation in a political process.”

Moreover, Eritrean involvement in Somalia reflects a broader pattern of intelligence and special operations activity, including training, financial and logistical support to armed opposition groups in Djibouti, Ethiopia, the Sudan and possibly Uganda in violation of the Security Council’s embargoes. Read more

Twenty Years of Collapse and Counting The Cost of Failure in Somalia

The disastrous famine in Somalia is the worst the world has seen in 20 years, and it again casts a harsh spotlight on the situation in that country. With millions of people now at risk of starvation, and appalling stories of human hardship dominating the evening news, the name “Somalia” once again conjures images of crisis and despair—a famished, suffering country peopled by pirates, terrorists, and warlords.

Somalia is best known for the civil war and famine of the early 1990s, which killed some 250,000 people and triggered a massive, U.S.-led humanitarian intervention that culminated in the infamous “Black Hawk Down” incident of 1994. More recently, the rise of indigenous Islamist movements in southern Somalia has rekindled fears that the anarchic territory could—or has—become a safe haven for Al Qaeda and other transnational terrorist movements. Read more