Nasir I know you are all cheering with this little incident Nooo! Which son of a witch would do that? :confused:

^^^OK Alxandulillah and thanks for asking, you been greatly missed and I think am speaking on behalf of many. Quite a few souls have trying to mess with our Dhaqan while you've been away. Back to the topic, this is whos going to win the US elections.>>>>>>> skull and bones ''John Kerry went to a boarding school in Switzerland, to a top private school in New Hampshire and then to Yale, where he studied law and joined the secret and elite Skull and Bones club, just as George W Bush did two years later'' .>>>>> full articleProfile: John Kerry

^^^Your imagination worries me more than anything. :cool: I don't have a firm opinion one way or the other. I've read what Buurmadow's lawyer and said and I'M to waiting to see what proof will be brought forward against him. This gentleman sums up my 'opinion': Kama hadlaayo in Boqorku dambi galay iyo in kale Maxkamad ayaa taas cadayn doonta hadii dariiq sax ah loo maro laakiin waxaanu ka hadlaynaa in qaabka loo qabtay uu yahay qaab baal marsan ka horimanaya amase uu diidayo Dastuurka qaranka u yaalaa.-Daaud Geelle (Kulmiye Party) I leave it to the likes of him on the ground to keep an eye on things. Samurai I was one of the first to denounce the administration in Garowe at the time when Sultan Hurre’s death has reached in our part of the world. I'll take your word for it, but will the Sultan Hurre get justice?

Nin Yaaban nice to see you again bro, are you on parole?

Very sad and if true I don't think its something Buurmadow would have condoned. inna lillah wa inna ilaihi rajicuun.

BARI I'm not agreeing with those numbers either--since the population is closer to 350,000 Since these figures are your 'estimates', why don't your cheer yourself even more and 'estimate' a cool million and give us another misleading link.

Samurai Sultaan Hurre died in a regrettable, unfortunate shootout ‘ween his bodyguards and the Dervishes, and NOT ‘cause of expressing his opinion. I expected you to give me Col Yusuf version of events and you didn't disappoint at all. Col says ''Al Qaacida'', you rush to scribble articles accusing all his opponents of being terrorists. He says ''Djibouti'' and you oblige and I was not surprised to read the article you posted calling the Mbagathi agreement a fraud. To answer your badly-phrased question, I leave it to opposition parties and free media to deal or expose the rights/wrongs of the RSL officials. A good example of this is the article reporting the opposition party leader Muj. Silaanyo's comments which you tried to milk for your own twisted agendas earlier this very week. As long as patriots like Raagiya Omaar are on the ground and free to say what they like, Mandeeq is on the right course. I'll let Mr Xassan M Dhilood educate you: "Anigu waxan ka soo galay Ceerigaabo, waxaana soo maray dhul badan, markaa Ceerigaabo laga soo bilaabo ilaa laamiga waxa ku soo arkay mashaariic dadka iyo dawladduba samaynayaan oo kharash badani ku kacayo, kuwaas oo aanay dawladda la citirifaafsan yahay qaarkood samayn karin, waxa ka mid ah wadada Jayga ah ee Ceerigaabo, taas oo degmo waliba waxay samaysay 20 – 23km. Markii aan Hargeysa imina waxaan arkay dadku inay wax qabsanayaan, dalkooda jecel yihiin oo maal-gashanayaan oo ku ganacsan yihiin, waana arrin wanaagsan, waana faham ay taa fahmeen, hadayse Soomaali daba ordi lahaayeen maanta iyaguna waxba ma hayeen. Aniguna waa mid aan ku amaanayo kalana qayb qaadanayo." -Puntlands Ex-Education Minister.

Hornafrique Main cities Somalia: Mogadishu (capital, estimated population 1.2 million in 2003), Kismayu (209,300) , Merca (179,700). Bari Nomad I'm not agreeing with those "estimates" about what is the population of whatnot, I posted them not to contradict with anything you had to say, but to show you how different estimates can actually be. Estimate = A judgment based on one's impressions; an opinion. Hornafrique, i think Bari is trying to pull a fast one on us. The ''estimated'' 250 thousand figure is for Bosaaso district as a whole and not the town. It would take a helluva effort and resources for the population of the town to multiply 250 thousand.

Sophist C/qani can air his personal sentiment without the fear of being of being jailed by our Admin. We have respect for the Article 10 of Human Rights convention Rights! Freedom of Expression. Don't make me laugh, where do you think I am from Outer Mongolia? If you read the article carefully or sober, you would have noted what your Gaarad Cabdigani said "Meeshatan Laascaanood intii ay ciidamada Puntland yimaadeen wareer badan ayaa ka taagan, mana xasiloona, dad baa lagu dilay, waxaadna moodaa in ay si xoog ah wax ku maamulayaan ciidanka Puntland. People are been killed by Col Yusuf's malitia for saying they are pro-Somaliland and you are talking having Human Rights. Was Suldaan Ahmed Maxamed Huurre not shot dead in broad daylight for expressing his views in Puntland? We have respect for the Human Rights my ....

Baashi; we all know there are 'Abdiis' in Nairobi capable of saying and doing far worse than whats in that article. And is Somalia not one African country, war-damaged, extremely lawless and very poor. Former owners include An Italian fascist dictator and a host of unbalanced brigand leaders. Requires serious renovation and considerable maintenance ?? If the Telegraph piece was not true what do you say about this one? The Nation (Nairobi) July 21, 2003 Posted to the web July 21, 2003 Ken Opala Nairobi Somali delegate Hawa Kheri protests after being thrown out of the talks at the Kenya College of Communications Technology, Mbagathi, Nairobi. She was one of the 170 delegates ejected for allegedly using fake cards to register. It is about 11am on Friday. Somali delegates are clustered in groups. The ambience is relaxed yet the voices are mere murmurs. Four groups are in the tea room on the second floor of the Kenya College of Communication Technology (KCCT) hotel while outside at the entrance, on the tarmac parking bay, are perhaps half a dozen people. About four diplomatic cars are parked outside the hotel. The "observers" are from Egypt, Italy, Djibouti, United Nations, Arab League, Ethiopia, the UK, and the US. In low tones, these diplomats coach the delegates on how to influence the deliberations. This is characteristic of the Somali peace and reconciliation talks at the KCCT, Mbagathi, in Nairobi's outskirts, nine months after former President Daniel arap Moi assembled protagonists around a ceasefire table. But who are are these "observers"? "People are here to pursue own interests. In fact, one would say that Somalia is up for grabs," says a delegate from Somaliland, the renegade region whose "head of State" has snubbed the Nairobi talks. Mr Awad Ashara, spokesperson for Puntland region, talks of vested interests at play "outside the meeting rather than inside". Kenya is impartial, he told this writer earlier in the week. "Kiplagat is a very, very compassionate and respectable, conciliatory person, he is an all-inclusive," he says of the Kenya Government's appointed mediator, Mr Bethuel Kiplagat. As the Somaliland delegate talks, an Italian envoy in Kenya emerges from the building sandwiched between five elderly Somalis, all chatting away in Italian. This writer tries to stop him for a question or two but he says he is in a hurry. "Call me in the office and let's see whether we can set up an appointment." A representative of the Arab League gestures, saying: "The talks are going ahead all right but there are little things here and there we feel strongly about." He abruptly pauses, stealing a glance at an approaching delegate. Then his voice drops, and he momentarily stops mid-sentence until the passer-by disappears. "We are not comfortable with the federal system and we want Arabic language to be retained in Somalia. These two issues are top on our agenda". He adds: "The unity of the Somali people has to be highlighted. This is very important". The observer has made it known to the delegation that Somalia's continuity in the Arab League depended on whether or not the country retained Arabic as the official language. According to a British envoy, the Somalia negotiations "show a bit of a way to go". But there was hope, he said. Interestingly, the presence of the US at KCCT has been erratic. However, an American of Somali origin has been constantly monitoring the discussions. The ghosts of foreign interference have refused to leave the backyard. Last Tuesday, a number of delegates accused the Egyptian ambassador to Somalia of backing the current President of the Transition National Government, Mr Abdikassim Salat. Mr Salat has been the lone voice against federalism, a stance that has infuriated his critics. In a letter to the just-concluded African Union summit in Maputo, Mozambique, dated July 9, 2003, a number of delegates asked the Union to banish Mr Salat for "being against" Nairobi negotiations. About 21 signatories said since the Nairobi talks had made breakthrough in adopting a charter and laid the structure for a transition government that would guide them for the next four years, Mr Salat should not speak as president. His mandate, they said, had been cancelled by the new charter. "The TNG president failed to implement the charter (that asked for federalism) for the two years he has been in power. In fact, that is why he is opposed to the charter," says Mr Ashara, who is also Puntland's minister for Justice. But Mr Salat blames his predicament on neighbouring Ethiopia which, he says, has sponsored Somali rebels to frustrate his reconstruction efforts. "In short, Ethiopia's strategy is to undermine the re-emergence of a strong, united and vibrant Somalia," he says. Some people call the negotiations "the scramble for Somalia", the Horn of Africa country reduced by militia to a clutter of regions. The ousting of strongman Siad Barre on January 26, 1991, opened a pitched struggle of sorts. His adversaries went for the spoils on failing to agree on power-sharing. They grabbed regions populated by their own clans. Unlike other African countries strewn by multi-lingual and ethnic loyalties, Somali is of one tribe: Somali. Islam is the only religion while the culture is distinctly homogeneous. Yet its own survival is in the hands of a social order knit together by clan loyalties and political disorientation, all wrapped up by decades of dictatorship since independence in 1960. Soldier Barre seized power on October 21, 1969, following the assassination of then President Abdirashid Ali Shermarke a week earlier. According to From Barre to Aideed, a book by former Somali ambassador to Kenya Hussein Ali Dualeh, Somalia's political order is based on kinship clans, namely: ****** , **** , D*r, ***** , D***l and ********* . And, the clanship is a weave of sub-clans. Thus conflicts in the population is traced to the multiplicity of political parties, each of them drawing support and loyalty from specific clans or alliances. Currently, 60 clan-based political factions straddle the country. So obvious have been fears that the clan loyalties threaten to balkanise the country, and historically, some of the big groups, such as the ****** , have insisted on cessation. Now without a central administration, Somalia is balkanised into 16 regions, each led by a warlord. Mr Asmara estimates the militia force at 100,000 soldiers. The peace talks enter a crucial phase tomorrow. The 400 delegates will nominate 351 MPs who will in turn elect a transitional president and Speaker of the House and two vice-Speakers. These officials will have four years to oversee the disarmament of the militias, pursue reconciliation and lay the ground for a popular government. Somali leaders expect the international community to fund the transition. Yet to be worked out is the amount of finances required to bring order in the country, but if the apparent involvement of foreign nations in the mediation indicates their interest, the assistance should be readily available. Puntland President Abdullahi Yusuf wants the federal forces to be blended with an international force with the mandate to mop up illegal guns. "If we do not do that, we will fall in the way of Salat. He has been holed up in Mogadishu and he cannot administer because he is unable to implement the charter," he says. "Well, we want to immediately establish a government here and immediately disarm people and pacify the country". The President of Somaliland snubbed the talks. Mr Kiplagat says Somaliland leaders declined reconciliation overtures. His predecessor, Mr Elijah Mwangale, travelled to Hargeisa, Somaliland's capital to convince the leadership to take part in the negotiations but they declined. Mr Kiplagat himself sent a letter to the Somaliland administration but he received no reply. Yet the talks are riven with fears that some delegates and non-governmental organisations are uncomfortable with the likely end of hostilities because that would threaten their easy money. However, Kenyan scholar, Prof Ali Mazrui, says Somaliland should be let to go its way, for it has resources to sustain itself. "The situation in Somalia now is a culture of rules without rulers, a stateless society," he said last week. "There is order there, they have the potential to survive". One day, he says, Somaliland will organise and get back to the larger Somalia.

Reer Bari No one from Puntland say that 100% of the people in Sool region want to be part of Puntland,--although it is in the high 90% region Some Miskiin Muriidi from Baraawe might buy that from you not I. You love plucking figures from the thin air don't you? The question I am asking myself is should I believe the Garoowe trio above or the Sool people like Fuad Aadan, Dhilood (Ex-Puntu minister), your VP, or even the likes of Garaad Jamaac Cabdigani in Las Caanod. Here is what he said: Garaad Cabdiqani Garaad Jaamac oo ah garaadka guud ee beesha D******te ayaa ugu baaqay ciidamada maamul goboleedka Puntland ee ku sugan degaankiisa in ay si deg deg ah uga baxaan degaanka Sool. Garaadka oo u waramay idaacada BBC ayaa sheegay in reer Sool ku kala qeybsameen taageerida labada maamul ee Somaliland iyo Puntland ee isku haysta maamulida gobolkaas. "Arrimahakan dadku waa ku kala qeybsan yahay oo meel uma wada jeedo" ayuu yiri garaadku, isagoo intaa raaciyay in tan iyo markii ay magaalada Laascaanood gaareen ciidanka Puntland ay magaaladu ku jirto xasilooni daro. "Meeshatan Laascaanood intii ay ciidamada Puntland yimaadeen wareer badan ayaa ka taagan, mana xasiloona, dad baa lagu dilay, waxaadna moodaa in ay si xoog ah wax ku maamulayaan ciidanka Puntland. Waxaan dalbaneynaa in ay naga baxaan ciidamada Puntland, dhulkayaga lama rabno ciidamo na qabsada oo ay soo dirsadeen maamulo kale". Garaadka ayaa sidoo kale ugu baaqay maamulka Somaliland in aysan wax ciidamo ah usoo dirin degaanka Sool, isla markaana wuxuu carabka ku adkeeyay in ciidamada maamul goboleedka Puntland ay ka baxaan degaanka Sool. "Xooga maamuladan waxba igama quseeyaan ee nabadgelyada degaanka ayaa i quseysa" ayuu Garaadku yiri isagoo muujiyay in ciidanka Puntland ay magaalada Laascaanood ka abuureen xasilooni daro isla markaana aaney Garaadada degaanka iyo shacabkuba raali ka aheyn joogitaanka ciidanka Puntland ee Laascaanood. "Nin tuur leh siduu u seexdo isagaa yaqaan, dhulkeena, maamulkeena, iyo nabadgelyadeena awalba anagaa mas'uul ka aheyn, anagaana is maamuleyna" ayuu yiri Garaad Cabdiqani. Full article>>>>> The truth there some who are neither Puntu nor Somaliland supporters and your 90%:10% figure is not real and does not make sense.

Geel-Jire But one thing I hate about the article is that the writers are sort of implying that Islam is a product that Muslims are promoting to get more non-muslims to convert. Nay, Islam is Allah's deen and we are basically there to convey the message to anyone who would listen. And this people have heeded, thus embraced Islam and saved themselves An-Naar. I agree bro, but thats the best you can get out of a Yahudi-owned newspaper. The above piece has two writers for a reason. Here is another article about a reporter who embraced Islam: ------------------------------------------------- Articles of faith Yvonne Ridley was a hard-drinking, hard-nosed news reporter until her capture by the Taliban and subsequent conversion to Islam. She tells Eloise Napier how the Koran changed her life Tuesday February 24, 2004 The Guardian It was September 28 2001 - just 17 days after the destruction of the World Trade Centre. Yvonne Ridley, a 43-year-old single mother, and chief reporter at the Sunday Express, had been sent to Islamabad in nearby Pakistan to cover the start of George Bush's "war on terror". In search of a scoop, she had dressed in a burka and made an illegal sortie over the border into Afghanistan. It was on the return journey, just two miles from the border, that her careful plans unravelled, with disastrous consequences. Ridley was passing by a Taliban checkpoint when her donkey bolted. She was just attempting to scoop up the reins when her camera slipped from her shoulder and into full view of a Taliban soldier. Ridley thought she was either going to be gang-raped or stoned to death. "I wondered how much pain I could take and prayed that, whatever happened, I would die quickly," she says. In the event, she was only taken to jail, first in Jalalabad and then in Kabul, and held for a total of 10 days. In her diary, she recorded: "They [her Taliban captors] constantly refer to me as their guest and say that they are sad if I am sad. I can't believe it ... I wish everyone at home knew how I was being treated. I bet people think I am being tortured, beaten and sexually abused. Instead, I am being treated with kindness and respect. It is unbelievable." Her capture was to mark a watershed in Ridley's life - it began her own road to Islam and her decision to become a committed peace campaigner. She quit her job at the Sunday Express and moved to Qatar, leaving her only child in the UK. "I always wanted to be an actress," says Ridley with a lopsided smile. It is now two years and three months since her capture, and we are sitting beside a swimming pool in the well-heeled compound where she lives in Doha, Qatar's capital. It is midwinter, and the heat from the sun is gentle on our backs. Far from wearing the voluminous robes sported by many Muslim women in Qatar, she is clad in green combat-style trousers and a large black T-shirt bearing the words "Don't panic, I'm Islamic!" When, last year, Ridley converted from C of E to Islam, some commentators suggested that she was suffering from Stockholm syndrome - the psychological condition in which captives divest themselves of former beliefs and adopt those of their captors. Ridley rejects this, saying that at no time did anyone try to brainwash her. She tells me that, at one point, she was visited by a cleric who asked if she wanted to convert to Islam. She refused but said that she would read the Koran if she ever got out. She kept her word, and what began as an academic exercise became a spiritual journey. It seems ironic that such a strident believer in the equality of the sexes should choose a religion that appears to encourage the subjugation of women. "On the contrary," she says, "the Koran makes it clear that women are equal in spirituality, worth and education. What everyone forgets is that Islam is perfect; people are not." What has impressed Ridley more than anything else is the sisterhood among Muslim women. "They are always helping each other in matters such as childcare, fundraising and studying. They want each other to do well. I hadn't expected this. In the west we're all too busy pinching each other's boyfriends, and criticising each other's clothes or weight." The daughter of a miner from Durham, Ridley started in provincial newspapers before progressing to jobs with the Daily Mirror, the News of the World, the Sunday Times and the Daily and Sunday Express. "I reached the rank of editor by being one of the boys, although I didn't recognise this until much later," she says. Things changed when Ridley had her daughter, Daisy - the result, as she bitterly regrets admitting, of a burst condom. Suddenly, she couldn't do the after-work drinks where all the networking was done and deals were struck. For her, motherhood was "like being in a three-legged race with a ball and chain on the legs". Her solution to the problem was to send Daisy, now 11, to boarding school in the Lake District. (Daisy's father and grandparents live close by and provide a stable home life for her.) In the holidays, Daisy often flies out to join her mother and the two of them take off on travel expeditions. As we wander back to Ridley's villa, with its airy rooms and marble floor, I comment that private education doesn't come cheap. She gives me a semi-smile. "In my bleakest, blackest moments I look at Daisy and I think: 'Porsche Boxster!' " Ridley has no zeal to convert the rest of the world to Islam, and is happy for Daisy to be brought up a Christian - although "of course, it's a very good stepping-stone to Islam." In the background, the call to prayer echoes through the windows. I ask her if she prays five times a day, as good Muslims are supposed to do. She says she tries to, although she hasn't appeared to do so while I have been with her - despite having heard the call several times already. The indiscriminate bombing of civilians during the war in order to destroy Afghan morale affected Ridley more than anything before or since. As a result of her disgust, she contacted the anti-war campaigner and Labour MP, Alan Simpson. He persuaded her to talk at the Stop the War Coalition rally in Trafalgar Square in September 2002. Since then, she has travelled across the world addressing anti-war conferences, meetings and rallies. Her retainer with the Sunday Express ended in February 2003 and, shortly afterwards, al-Jazeera offered her a job as senior editor of its English-language website. Life at the new job was rosy to start with but, within six months, a secretary from the office was sent round to her home with the message: "You've been terminated." Her dismissal has never been fully explained by the news station, though a spokesman cites "administrative reasons". Reading between the lines, it seems that Ridley was just more trouble than she was worth. Not only did she attempt to set up the first branch of the National Union of Journalists in the Middle East, but her reports on the conduct of US soldiers in Iraq are also said to have angered the White House. When al-Jazeera suggested she sign an inferior contract, Ridley refused. In retaliation, her former employers declined to sanction her exit visa and so, when I visited her, she was stuck in Doha, twiddling her thumbs while the lawyers tried to thrash out the problem. Unprompted, she reveals that al-Jazeera is sitting on several Osama bin Laden videotapes, none of which has been released because of White House fears that they will incite more terrorist attacks. She then mentions that the UK intelligence services called her in for questioning after her business cards were found on terrorist suspects. With a certain panache, she refused to be questioned in Scotland Yard and, instead, insisted on meeting her interviewers in Patisserie Valerie on London's Old Compton Street. With rows of croissants and strawberry tarts sitting prettily behind the glass counter, she told the officers firmly: "If I was involved in anything suspicious, do you think I'd be ****** enough to give my card to a known suspect?" Next, Ridley brings up the subject of possible sleeping al-Qaida terrorist cells in the UK. "My theory is that MI6 knows full well who some of the players are," she says. "I suspect there is an unwritten agreement that nothing [terrorist attacks] will happen in the UK, so long as MI6 is kept in the loop." I ask her how she has come to this conclusion, and her answer is simple. "Through talking to people from all backgrounds - the intelligence service, the Muslim world ..." Later that evening, we visit a restaurant close to her home. The food is delicious, although Ridley, now swathed in dramatic black robes, eats little and instead puffs cherry tobacco from a large, ornate hookah. A few of her former colleagues from al-Jazeera join us. They are all British Muslims, bright and younger than Ridley. They have an open affection for her and, when the conversation is not centred on office gossip, they tease her gently. She entertains everyone with an anecdote from her Taliban odyssey. The last few days of her incarceration were spent in a Kabul jail, where a group of evangelical Christian missionaries were imprisoned. They were accused of trying to convert Muslims to Christianity, a charge they hotly denied. When Ridley made a second trip to Afghanistan the following year, she discovered that the Christians' headquarters had been located right next door to Osama bin Laden's former house. They had had no idea. Ridley's first novel, Ticket to Paradise, has just been published in the US. Rife with thinly disguised scandal, it is likely to stir up a hornet's nest in Fleet Street. More novels and a move into politics look likely; she is considering standing for the European parliament. She has no regrets about the path her life has taken. The sobriety that has come with her new lifestyle has made her realise that much of her old confidence was founded on alcohol. "I don't know how long my celebrity/notoriety is going to last, but I am going to use it for as long as I am able, to highlight injustices and atrocities," says Ridley. "Hopefully, it will change perceptions, or at least get people talking more about what is happening - and how bombs and bullets are not necessarily the answer." · This interview appears in full in the March 2004 edition of Harpers & Queen.

February 22, 2004 Islamic Britain lures top people Nicholas Hellen and Christopher Morgan Times Online MORE than 14,000 white Britons have converted to Islam after becoming disillusioned with western values, according to the first authoritative study of the phenomenon. Some of Britain’s top landowners, celebrities and the offspring of senior Establishment figures have embraced the strict tenets of the Muslim faith. The trend is being encouraged by Muslim leaders who are convinced that the conversion of prominent society figures will help protect a community stigmatised by terrorism and fundamentalism. Zaki Badawi, chairman of the Imams and Mosques Council, said: “The community has been unfairly targeted and these developments encourage it in a time of difficulty.” Meanwhile, the Muslim Council of Britain has co-opted Joe Ahmed-Dobson, son of Frank Dobson, the former health secretary, to chair its regeneration committee. The new study by Yahya (formerly Jonathan) Birt, son of Lord Birt, former director-general of the BBC, provides the first reliable data on the sensitive subject of the movement of Christians into Islam. He uses a breakdown of the latest census figures to conclude that there are now 14,200 white converts in Britain. Speaking publicly for the first time about his faith this weekend, Birt, whose doctorate at Oxford University is on young British Muslims, argued that an inspirational figure, similar to the American convert Malcolm X for Afro-Caribbeans, would first have to emerge if the next stage, a mass conversion among white Britons, were to happen. “You need great transitional figures to translate something alien (like Islam) into the vernacular,” he said. “The image of Islam projected by political Islamic movements is not very attractive.” Initially, Birt said, he had no coherent reasons for converting, but: “In the longer term I think it was the overall profundity, balance and coherence and spirituality of the Muslim way of life which convinced me.” The faith has made inroads into the Establishment. It emerged this weekend that the great-granddaughter of a British prime minister has converted. Emma Clark, whose ancestor, the Liberal prime minister Herbert Asquith, took Britain into the first world war, said: “We’re all the rage, I hope it’s not a passing fashion.” Clark, who helped design an Islamic garden for the Prince of Wales at Highgrove, his Gloucestershire home, is now helping create a similar garden for a mosque in Woking, Surrey, on the site of a car park. Many converts have been inspired by the writings of Charles Le Gai Eaton, a former Foreign Office diplomat. Eaton, author of Islam and the Destiny of Man, said: “I have received letters from people who are put off by the wishy-washy standards of contemporary Christianity and they are looking for a religion which does not compromise too much with the modern world.” Others have come to Islam through love or marriage. Kristiane Backer, a former girlfriend of the cricketer Imran Khan, said she was introduced to the religion through love but converted after her break-up. She has shrunk from speaking publicly about her religion before because of fears it might affect her work prospects. “Imran sowed the seeds, but when (the relationship) finished (the faith) took on a momentum of its own,” she said. Backer, who is drawn to Sufi mysticism, said white converts had to overcome prejudice both from those born into Islam and from non-believers. “In the mosque women come up and say to me, ‘You have hair showing: you must cover up completely.’ I say, ‘Mind your own hair, you’re here to think about God’.” She has ditched the revealing wardrobe she had as an MTV presenter, but, equally, will not wear headscarves about town. “I don’t show any legs or cleavage, or at least not together,” she said. Some prominent converts are even more wary. The Earl of Yarborough, 40, who owns a 28,000-acre estate in Lincolnshire, declined to discuss anything about his faith. “I have nothing to say to you,” said Yarborough, who has apparently taken the name Abdul Mateen. Muslim leaders are harnessing modern campaigning methods to promote their faith. Groups have sprung up on the internet publishing “trophy lists” of white converts. The state-funded school in London founded by Yusuf Islam, formerly the singer Cat Stevens, has turned to Premiership footballers to provide role models. Sources close to the school say converts including Nicolas Anelka, the Manchester City striker, and Omer “Freddie” Kanoute, of Tottenham Hotspur, have made visits. Fresh evidence came this weekend that Islam has received formal acceptance at the heart of the Establishment. The Queen has approved new arrangements to allow Muslim staff at Buckingham Palace time off to attend Friday prayers at a mosque: a member of staff in the finance department is the first to take advantage of it.

February 24, 2004 HornAfrik. Mogadishu Somalia A prominent Somaliland elder who has been in custody for more than three weeks after being accused of committing crimes against the state has made a court appearance on Tuesday for the second time amid tight security. The prominent elder Boqor Osman Mahamud was picked up by a contingent of police officers led by the Somaliland Police Muhammad Ige last month, from the Hargaysa Club hotel where he was staying. Speaking to the reporters in Hargeysa, Mr. Mahamud said that he was not ill treated while in custody but accused the government of denying his relatives to visit him. His lawyer Rooble Mikal Maryame described his detention as illegal and unacceptable. Shortly after his detention, Somaliland Interior Minister Isma'il Adan Usman told IRIN that the elder had been arrested for breaking Somaliland laws and "committing crimes against the existence of the state". Boqor Usman is also being accused of "having contacts with Puntland [the neighboring self-declared autonomous region]". Tension has been high between Somaliland and Puntland over the Sool and Sanaag regions, which are claimed by both. The Boqor had reportedly contacted Puntland authorities in an effort to ease the tension and avert armed confrontation, sources said. Isma'il, however, said that the Boqor "supports the reunification of Somaliland with Somalia and has therefore called into question the existence of the country [somaliland]". It is a crime under Somaliland law to advocate the reunification of Somaliland with the rest of Somalia. Somaliland unilaterally declared independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 after the fall of former President Muhammad Siyad Barre. It has remained relatively free from the chaos and war still ravaging other parts of Somalia, but has failed to gain recognition as an independent country.

Shaqsii Interesting Article for the impartials.. This is definitely the right place to find impartials.. Second, a crucial difference from previous agreements is that the competing sides have agreed to operate a federal system, to come into effect in two years’ time. This was the key demand of the autonomous north-east region of Somalia known as Puntland, and exiled politicians from the republic of Somaliland in the north-west which in 1991 declared independence from the rest of the country. 'Exile politicians' with no mandate to represent Somaliland.

When asked of the recent defection of one of his ministers to Somaliland, Mr Hashi responded “There are people here who tend to glance over there to Hargeisa, and he was certainly one of those people. He was neither a bad person, nor a radical, but his convictions were influenced by the local politics. I believe he rushed to judgment. And his decision will cause us no harm. It will not be long before we will see Dhilod [Hassan Mohamoud Dhilod] standing here beside us as we believe we are on the right path. We see people here who say they are for Somaliland, and if he becomes one of those, we see no harm in that either” Bari mate I had the chance to read what Mr Xashi said before Allpuntland.com lost some key words in the translation. Here is a a Somali version of what he said, please try to spot what was left out: Radio Lascaanod :- Madaxweyne waxaa jirta arrin dhawaan la soo gudboonaatay dawlada, arrintaas oo ahayd , waxaa jirtay in wasiirkii waxbarashada Xasan Maxmuud Dhiilood uu dhawaan isu dhiibay maamulka Waqooyi Galbeed , arrintaasi sidee ayey xukuumada Puntland saamayn ugu yeelatay?. Madaxweyne Ku Xigeenka :- Horta dad badan oo reer Puntland ah oo jaleeca dhinaca maamulka W/G waa iska jiraan , anigu waxaan qabaa mid ka mid ah kuwass ayuu ahaa, oo jaleecu xagaas u qaaday iyo Hargeysa , isaga laftarkiisu nin xunoo , xad-dhaafa ma ahayn , siyaasada uun baa ka xumaatay uma arko si kale, wuu deg dega, annigu waxaan u arkaa wax khalkhal ah oo ay na gelisay ma jirto, maalin walba agtayada waxaa taagan kuwo reer sool ah oo leh anagu somalilad ayaanu nahay ,haduu mid ka mid ah noqday kuwaas wax dhibaato ah anagu uma aragno .................... I wonder why you chose to post the English version

Boqor Cismaan will get his day in court and I hope he gets justice unlike Suldan Hurre, if you still remember him.

Originally posted by Sahal: I hope that the ADMIN should ban such people .. Sahal the topic is: HABAARKA DIGAAGU KUMA DHACO DHUURYADA How ironic! The writer summed it up when he said: intay indho xun xun inagu soo eegaan ayey qu-qu-qa-qaaaqdaas lahaayeen oo marba kabash kabash lahaayeen iyagoo shabakadahooda ku soo bandhigaya been abuur iyo qabyaalada sumeysan ee ay adeegsadaan; marna waxay isku qaadaan oo e-mail-lo iyo warbixiino diciif ahi ku faafiyaan dacalada aduunka Baashi Have you written to the US Senetors yet?

^^^I still don't know which way the king was pissing, do you? :cool: BTW, when will the pro-Puntland media break the Dhiilood story, they still haven't touched the story regarding the jailing of Deputy Sports Minister and his crew. :confused:

Baashi True! The minister defected from Abdullahi. What does that mean now? Ayoub I find it amusing about the whole thing. A week ago the good minister was this side of the fence. Today he is the other side of the fence. Tells u something about them - all of them. I see u jumping up and down as if the fundementals of this conflict has changed... Baashi mate, I know what sort of people Somali politicians are, and I for one was not be surprised by Mr Dhiilood's action. What you have to accept is a lot has changed in the 'fundermentals of this conflict' because Mr Dhilood was one of the organisers in Puntland when it came to Sool. He didn't spend the last few days in Xudun and the surrounding areas for no reason and what he says and does in the next few days will have some impact. Someone famously said its better having someone pissing out from inside the tent than having them pissing in from the ousite. Originally posted by Gediid “Waxaan aad ugu faraxsanahay inaan dalkayga dib ugu soo laabto, waxaanan ka mahad naqayaa sida magaalooyinka Somaliland laygu so dhaweeyay” ayuu yidhi Md. Dhiilood oo daal ka muuqday. Welcome home son, all is forgiven.

HABAARKA DIGAAGU KUMA DHACO DHUURYADA Waxaa Digaag ah: Laanta Soomaaliyeed ee BBC-da iyo ****sh Yuusuf Garaad, Kooxda Carta iyo Dhagarqabe Cabdiqaasim Salaad, Dhamaan Dagaal Oogeyaasha Somalia, Maamul Goboleedka ******nia iyo Dhagarqabe Cabdillaahi Yuusuf, Jabhad Ku-sheega ee ONLF, iyo Damiirlaaweyaasha inaga dhashay ee kaba leefka ah ee u adoomoobay Wanlaweynta dhaqanka xun ee danlaaweyaasha ahi. Waxaa Dhuuryo(haad ka adag) ah: Shacbiga Somaliland ee gesiga ah, Jaaliyada Somaliland ee firfircoon ee Qurbajooga ah, Guurtida Somaliland, iyo Jamhuuriyada Somaliland. Su’aashuna waxa weeye: 1.) Waa maxay sababta ka dambeysa in xaqiiraada qaawan iyo beenta joogtada ah ee BBC-du iyo warbaahinta UN-ta ee IRIN ee ay hadh iyo habeen afuufayaan kuna liidka ah ummada iyo dalka Somaliland ay ugu guul dareysteen falalkoodaas foosha xun ee xaqdarada ahi? 2.) Waa maxay sababta ka dambeysa in xaasidnimada, baroobagaandaha diciifka ahi, ka daba niicleynta, ka daba lulashada jaahilnimada ahi, iyo ka daba tumida daasada madhan ee Wanlaweynta Somalia oo dhami iyo xulufadoodu ay kaga soo horjeedeen qadyada Reer Somaliland taaso hada quus joogta waxna ugaga qaadi kari waayeen jiritaanka Somaliland, mudada dhan 13-ka sannadood? Hadaba, Sawaaxiligu waxay ku maah maahaan (u akhri sida far soomaaliga): Dua La Kuku Halimpati Mwewe; taaso marka loo turjumo Soomaali noqonaysa: Habaarka Digaagu Kuma Dhaco Dhuuryada (haad ka adagta); taaso haddii Ingiriisi lagu turjumo iyana noqonaysa: The Curse Of The Chichken Does Not Befall On The Eagle. Maah maahdan Sawaaxiliga ahi waxay ku soo baxday sida hoos ku xusan: Sida aad ula socotaan, digaagu cadow badan ayuu leeyahay sida xoorka, maska, iwm., hase yeeshee, cadowga koowaad ee digaaga waa dhuuryada ama haad ka adagta taaso aan digaaga wax iskaga tirin argagixisona ku noqotay. Dhuuryadu cabsi weyn bey ku haysaa digaaga naftiina wey isugu keentay waayo hab heer sare ah ayey wax u ugaadhsataa oo marba intay digaaga cirka kaga soo boodo ayey dhashooda yar yar hadba mid daftaa oo cuntaa. Sida keliya ee digaagu isku badbaadin karaa waa haddii ay iyagu hor arkaan dhuuryada intaan iyaga la hor arkin taasoo ku keliftay inay digaagu had iyo jeeraale cirka ka baadi goobaan dhuuryooyin si ay isu badbaadiyaan. Marka ay digaagu arkaan dhuuryo hawada lalaysa, qaylo ayey ooda ka wada qaadaan iyagoo leh qu-qu-qa-qaaaq, qu-qu-qa-qaaaq........taasoo u dhiganta hayaay wataa dhuuryadii ee iska jiraay, markaasey digaagu cagaha wax ka dayaan oo meelo ay dhuuryada kaga gabadaan raadiyaan sida musaska, godadka, iwm., hase yeeshee, dhuuryadu ma weydo qaar meelay galaan la’ oo weli sii kabash kabash leh ama kuwo markoodi horeba meel banaan ah u foof tegay kuwaaso ay si dhib yar u dafto una cunto. Marka dhuuryadu digaagad dafto lana duusho, ayaa digaagii kale oo dhami musaska iyo goobihii ay isku qarinayeen kasoo wada baxaan iyagoo cirka wada eegaya ayey dhuuryadi wax ka dishay ka daba qayliyaan iyagoo hadana leh qu-qu-qa-qaaaq, qu-qu-qa-qaaaq.......taasoo ay Sawaaxiligu u qaatey in digaagu habaarayo dhuuryada maadaama aaney si kale wax isaga celin karin. Hadaba, markii Sawaaxiligu u fiirsaday colaada u dhaxaysa digaaga iyo dhuuryada, ayaa waxay isku raaceen in habaarka digaagu aanu ku dhicin dhuuryada waayo wataa dhuuryadu sii najaxayso ee ilaa iyo maanta hadba digaagad hawada kaga soo boodayso ama dafeyso welina cunayso; sidaaseyna maah maahdani ku soo baxday. Sidaas daraadeed, markii Dhuuryada Somaliland aayaheeda ka tashatay ee ay hadba arrin muhiim ah soo dafeysay khaas ahaan aasaaskii SNM, Halgankii hubeysnaa ee aanu kaga adkaanay rigiimkii fashiistaha ahaa ee hororkii haligmay ee Siyaad Bare, Shirkii Burco ee 1991 ee beelahi Sanaag Bari iyo Sool saamaxaada balaadhan loo fidiyey dhibadana loogu aasey gooni isu taaga Somaliland, Dhisiddii dowladdii koowaad ee marxuun Cabdiraxmaan Tuur, Shirkii Borame ee 1993 ee lagu soo dhisay dowladdii labaad ee marxuun Cigaal, Sameynta Dastuurka iyo Sharciyada dalka, Sameynta labada gole ee baarlamaanka, Laanta Cadaalada, iyo Madaxtooyada, Sameynta lacagta Somaliland, Xalinta dagaaladii sokeeye, Shirkii Hargeysa ee 1997, Hirgelintii Aftidii dalka ka dhacday, Aasaaskii asxaabta badan ee aanu Dimoqraadiyada dhibada ugu aasney, Xil wareejintii Dastuuriga ahaa ee Daahir Riyaale hogaanka dalka loogu wareejiyay ka dib geeridii marxuun Cigaal, Hirgelintii Doorashooyinkii Degaanada taasoo xisbiyadii badnaa ay isku kala reebeen kuna soo hadheen saddexda xisbi ee maanta dalka ka jira sida dastuurka ku cad, Doorashooyinkii Madaxweynaha iyo M/Ku-xigeenka, iyo dhamaan dhisida iyo hirgelinta hawlaha kala duwan ee uu qaranka Somaliland fuliyo kuwaaso guul iyo gobanimo iyo horumar laga wada gaadhey. Hase yeeshee, Digaagii Somalia iyo xulufadoodu khaas ahaan BBC-da iyo Yuusuf Garaad, warbaahiinta runta ka fog ee IRIN, Dhamaan Wanlaweynta Somalia iyo xulufadooda dhoohan sida cagadheerta ONLF wey habaartamayeen oo waxay mudadaas dhan 22-ka sannadood (1982 - 2004) ee aanu marba arin xasaasi ah xasilinaynay ama soo dafaynay sidi habkii Mujaahid Harag Waafi, Alle ha u naxariistee, ayey intay indho xun xun inagu soo eegaan ayey qu-qu-qa-qaaaqdaas lahaayeen oo marba kabash kabash lahaayeen iyagoo shabakadahooda ku soo bandhigaya been abuur iyo qabyaalada sumeysan ee ay adeegsadaan; marna waxay isku qaadaan oo e-mail-lo iyo warbixiino diciif ahi ku faafiyaan dacalada aduunka sida xafiisyada UN-ta, EU-da, AU-da, Jaamicada Carabta, IGAD, Ururka Dalalka Islaamka, State Department-ka Mareekanka, Hay’adaha Caalamiga, Mudahaaraadyo fool xun, iwm., kuwaasoo ay ku wada guul dareeysteen waxna inaga qaadi kari waayeen waayo habaarka digaagu kuma dhaco dhuuryada; Somalilandna xaq bey ku taagan tahay guushana iyadaa leh guul darona waxaa leh Somalia iyo Wanlaweynta dhaqanka xun waayo xaasid weligii ma aflaxo. Ugu dambeyn, waxaan ku boorinayaa shacbiga Somaliland inay nabadgelyadooda iyo dalkooda ilaashadaan daacadna isu noqdaan waxna wada qabsadaan cadowga gudaha iyo ka debedana meel uga soo wada jeestaan geedigana halkaa ka sii wadaan. Waxa hubaal ah in Wanlaweynta digaaga ahi aaney waxba inaga qaadi karin dalkana la aqoonsan doono ee yaanu inagu cadowga isu jebin waana inaanu isku duubnaano sidaasna beelaheena, dowladeena, iyo dalkeena ku badbaadino horeyna ugu socono ilaa iyo inta laga gaadhayo halka aanu hiigsanayno. Guul iyo Gobanimo, Reported By: Faarax Cali Jaamac, Email: fjama022@uottawa.ca

Originally posted by Sophist: Pure propoganda! the Somaliland camp can never cease to amaze me. Denial is a river in Egypt. You'll only believe it when a new minister is appointed, I hope Allpuntland.com and Radiolascaanod will have the balls to report that for you. I doubt even that would be enough for a person who believes Riyaale is not a Somalilander. Originally by Mopp Deep I got some pictures of Dhiilood and some other Puntland ministers. I wonder who will be next in your list bro All genuine asylum seekers are welcome to Somaliland. The operative word is GENUINE.

Xasan Maxamuud Dhiilood Quits

Car bomb kills Islamic rebel chief By Paul Colquhoun in Doha 14 February 2004 A former president of the rebel republic of Chechnya, one of Russia's most-wanted Islamic militants, was assassinated in Qatar yesterday. Zemlikhan Yandarbiyev, 51, was fatally injured and two bodyguards were killed when their vehicle exploded near a mosque where they had just been praying in a deserted part of Dafna, a quiet residential district in the Qatari capital, Doha. Mr Yandarbiyev's 13-year-old son suffered severe burns and was said to be critically ill. Although the authorities quickly removed the wreckage and washed down the road, charring from the blast was visible over a wide area. One bystander claimed a grenade was thrown into the car, a four-wheel-drive, but others suggested a bomb had been detonated by remote control from a vehicle trailing the Chechens' car. The explosion happened in an open area, suggesting that it was timed to avoid harming anyone else. Moscow has repeatedly requested Mr Yandarbiyev's extradition from the Gulf state over the past 16 months, accusing him of organising Chechen guerrilla operations, including the Moscow theatre hostage-taking in October 2002, and of acting as a important fund-raiser for Muslim militants in the rebellious republic. The attack was the first political assassination in Qatar, a rich natural gas and oil producer, which prides itself on having one of the world's lowest crime rates. It came just weeks after unidentified European non-Muslims caused outrage by entering a mosque during Friday prayers and videotaping the worshippers, who included the Chechens. Police were called and reportedly took suspects for questioning. No official statement was made. The Chechen leader's presence in Doha, where he took refuge three years ago, has caused friction between the Qatari authorities and the Russians, diplomats said. The Qataris, who have no extradition treaty with Russia, have repeatedly ignored Moscow's appeals. Last May, Amnesty International issued a special alert urging supporters to petition Qatar against granting Russia's extradition request, saying Mr Yandarbiyev could be tortured if he was handed over. The Russians claim to have intercepted a telephone conversation between Mr Yandarbiyev and the leader of the Chechen hostage-takers during the Nord-Ost theatre siege, which ended in the death of 129 people, most of them from the effects of sleeping gas used by Russian special forces when they stormed the building. But the tape they produced only demonstrated that Mr Yandarbiyev was seeking information about events, it did not prove he was directing them. Mr Yandarbiyev has also been accused of complicity in Chechen raids into neighbouring Dagestan in 1999, which led to renewed Russian military intervention in Chechnya and the continuing Chechen war. In October last year, Moscow persuaded the EU to include him on its list of terrorists. Mr Yandarbiyev took over as acting president of Chechnya in April 1996, after his predecessor Dzhokar Dudayev was assassinated with a missile that homed on his mobile phone. He quickly negotiated a peace deal with Russia's President, Boris Yeltsin, which gave the republic broad autonomy. He organised elections which were held the following year, and stepped down after being defeated at the polls by Aslan Maskhadov. Qatar is where the US Central Command has its Gulf headquarters, but the country has also provided haven for several leading Muslim militants, including Palestinian radicals exiled from Jordan and an Islamist leader from Algeria. The policy of offering refuge to radical Islamists may be intended, at least in part, to deflect criticism of the government's policy of strengthening military and academic links with the West. Militants are generally not allowed to engage in political activities if they have been given asylum by Qatar. ................................. Putin gets blame for Qatar hit Nick Paton Walsh in Moscow Sunday February 15, 2004 The Observer Russia's intelligence services were yesterday drawn into a growing scandal over the assassination of Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, a leading Chechen separatist and alleged terrorism financier, as it emerged that his Toyota Landcruiser was torn to shreds in Qatar by a sophisticated booby trap operated by remote control. Local media in Doha, the capital, reported that Yandarbiyev's jeep had been booby-trapped before it drove him, his two bodyguards and 13-year-old son, Daud, home after Friday prayers. The bomb was detonated 300 metres away from the mosque. Yandarbiyev died from his wounds in hospital last Friday. Russia's security services, the FSB, have long sought the extradition of Yandarbiyev from Qatar, where they claim he was being sheltered in a diplomatic compound under police protection. Qatar has denied all links to terrorism. The FSB accused him of helping to finance terrorist acts, including the Nord Ost theatre siege in which 40 Chechen gunmen held 800 Muscovites hostage. 'During the siege Yandarbiyev called the gunmen's leader, Mosvar Barayev, directly,' a senior FSB source said. 'Yandarbiyev cannot afford to finance anything himself, but some of the money from al-Qaeda sponsors came to [accounts in] his name and he gave it out.' The assassination came a week after a suicide bomber killed 41 Moscow commuters on a Metro train. As the bomb went off, Kremlin hardliner Viktor Ivanov, a former KGB officer, was giving a rare public speech to police chiefs demanding tougher action against those who finance terrorism. Chechen rebel websites have blamed Russian special services for the blast, as did much of the Russian media yesterday, despite repeated denials. The SVR, Russia's equivalent of MI6, said that it had not killed anybody abroad since 1959, while the FSB said the blast was probably the result of an internal Chechen dispute over money. None the less, the blast sent a clear signal to those in the Gulf who are believed to be sponsoring Chechen extremists. If Moscow did have a hand in the bomb, it would mark an escalation in Russia's war on terrorism. The newspaper Kommersant drew parallels between the Doha blast and the way Israel's Mossad operates, yet concluded that the Russian secret services had the strongest motive. Israel and Russia have a history of co-operation in security operations. 'A targeted hit such as that sounds like an Israeli job,' said one security analyst who is familiar with foreign intelligence operations. 'But there is no reason why it would not be the Russians. They are more likely to use proxies than do the job on the ground themselves. It is a pretty hardcore operation.' He added that such an operation would probably not have been performed in the tranquil US-backed state - where the Pentagon has a long-established military presence - without some level of consent from Washington. President Vladimir Putin and President George Bush spoke hours after the Metro blast and agreed to intensify their mutual fight against terrorism, according to the Kremlin press service.

''I would call it pathetic, but then i fear it will be worn as a badge of honour'' Here is piece which explains the famous '4.5 formula'. It is Now Or Never for Somalia