BUMP

My new copy and paste philosophy

Administration officials and lawmakers at odds in Puntland GAROWE, Somalia May 26 (Garowe Online) - A group of legislators met with the Puntland vice president on Saturday in the capital, Garowe, after President Mohamud "Adde" Muse failed to show, sources said. Ahmed Ali Hashi, Speaker of the Puntland Parliament, led the lawmakers who met privately with Vice President Hassan Dahir Afqura. Sources close to the meeting told Garowe Online that the lawmakers expressed their issues with President Muse, whom they said failed to present himself in front of parliament despite the lawmakers' request. But Vice President Afqura defended the President's decision, saying that only the "complete parliament" can request the president to show in front of parliament. A parliamentary sub-committee originally requested President Muse to present himself in front of parliament to answer questions, including a recent livestock export agreement the president signed with a Saudi Arabian company. President Muse has been in the port city of Bossaso since returning from overseas. On Saturday, he welcomed representatives of the Saudi Arabian company, al-Jabberi, in Bossaso under heavy security, sources said. Puntland was created in 1998 as a self-governing region within federal Somalia. The region's parliament is not known for challenging administration policy, but observers said increasing public opposition to the al-Jabberi deal has placed much pressure on the lawmakers. Source: Garowe Online

Explosion in Mogadishu targets Ethiopian military base MOGADISHU, Somalia May 26 (Garowe Online) - A series of loud explosions and subsequent gunfire was heard across the Somali capital, Mogadishu, Saturday evening, our correspondent reported. The explosion targeted an Ethiopian military base near the old pasta factory, officials said. There were no immediate reports of casualties, but residents said hundreds of heavily-armed Ethiopian soldiers left their barracks and entered nearby neighborhoods searching for the perpetrators. The soldiers opened fire in all directions immediately after the explosion. It's not clear if anyone was hurt in the subsequent gunfire. This explosion that targeted an Ethiopian base is the fourth blast in Mogadishu since Friday night. Earlier Saturday, Mogadishu's deputy mayor survived a roadside bomb, but a 10-year old boy was killed, according to Reuters. [ Full story] Such attacks have increased in Mogadishu since April 26 when Somalia's transitional government announced it had defeated rebels and clan fighters opposed to the presence of Ethiopian troops. Source: Garowe Online

Somalia: Tension in Bossaso between administration, business community BOSSASO, Somalia May 26 (Garowe Online) - Political tensions were high in Bossaso on Saturday after representatives of a Saudi Arabian company arrived in town, sources said. The representatives of al-Jabberi company were welcomed at the Bossaso airport by Puntland President Mohamud "Adde" Muse under tight security, witnesses reported. Inside sources said the delegation, which also included officials from Raysul Khaymah (UAE), did not include any high-ranking company officials. There were confirmed reports that a letter was sent from Bossaso to al-Jabberi headquarters yesterday warning the company about investing in Puntland. According to our sources, the letter was sent by a new group that calls itself "Puntland Hope," which includes unnamed business interests based in the port city of Bossaso. This group is opposed to the al-Jabberi deal, which President Muse signed last month giving the Arabian company the exclusive right to export Puntland livestock to the Middle East and beyond for the next 15 years. There are ongoing meetings in Bossaso where businesspeople are increasingly voicing their rejection of the al-Jabberi deal, which they say gives a foreign company monopoly over the most important sector of the Somali economy. An elder in Bossaso who did not wish to be named told Garowe Online that the dispute between the Puntland administration and the business community might soon turn violent if something is not done about it immediately. Since his election in 2005, Puntland's business-friendly President Muse has signed onto controversial foreign deals, including an exploration deal that led to violent clashes between security forces and armed villagers in March 2006. Source: Garowe Online

Insecurity rages in southern Somalia Aweys Osman Yusuf Mogadishu 26, May.07 ( Sh.M.Network) Insecurity has become a widespread problem in the coastal town of Merca, about 100 KM south of the capital Mogadishu. Local armed militiamen embarked on random killing and robbery. Shabelle correspondent in Merca, Yusuf Keynan, reported Saturday that one person was killed and two others were wounded after unknown gunmen opened fire at a busy shopping area in the town. Keynan said the coastal town is in the control of local tribesmen and militias. “The militias are also known to ambush commuting buses from the capital to southern provinces. Also at least three bomb blasts occurred in Mogadishu Friday and Saturday. So far one person was killed and two were wounded. Shabelle Media Network Somalia E-mail us: info@shabelle.net

Somali government rebuffs Amnesty report on Somalia Aweys Osman Yusuf Mogadishu 25, May.07 ( Sh.M.Network) The Somali transitional government rebuffed Amnesty International report on human rights violations by several countries in the Horn and Eastern Africa. Somali government spokesman, Abdi Haji Goobdoon, said Friday that the international human rights agency was exaggerating its report on human rights abuses in Somalia. He said Somali interim government has only recently been able to seize control of the country. “Local human rights agencies are yet novices in their work because the whole country is recovering from the civil war and hardships that have not yet entirely evaded, so I believe Amnesty was quick to criticize Somalia on rights violations,” he said. Amnesty International annual report on May 23rd, shows abuses, including random detention of government critics, religious persecution, disappearances, murder and torture. In Somalia, civilians maintain to suffer from factional violence as rival groups compete for political power. Drought ravaged many areas and humanitarian access was obstructed by insecurity. Amnesty says 400,000 Somali IDPs who fled the ongoing turmoil in the capita, Mogadishu, remain poor while violence and discrimination against minority was common with little protection from government or justice institutions. Goobdoon says his government was determined to safeguard the rights of the Somali people in general. The UN backed government based on tribes, 4 major clans and so called minority groups, seems to be coping with restoration of peace and security in anarchic country, while it utterly hinges on EU and US financial aid to take steps towards gaining firm control of the country, the capital in particular. The European Union have so far pledged more financial aid to the Somali government, depending how it establishes political dialog with its opponents including the routed Union of Islamic Courts, which the country’s two top leaders repulsed inviting Islamists in attending the national reconciliation conference due to take place in Mogadishu next month. Shabelle Media Network Somalia E-mail us: info@shabelle.net

Somalia: An explosion kills one in Kismayu Aweys Osman Yusuf Mogadishu 24, May.07 ( Sh.M.Network) One person was killed and two others were wounded after a giant explosion occurred in Bulo Gadud settlement on the outskirt of the port town of Kismayu, 500 km south of the capital Mogadishu Thursday. Witnesses said the blast was sparked by a rocket propelled grenade that accidentally exploded in the area where local heavily armed militias are based. Residents voiced concerns over the insecurity in their neighborhood following the clash of two rival clan militias in the port town. Meanwhile a huge bomb blast killed two civilians and seriously wounded five in the Somali capital Mogadishu last night. The bomb explosion was carried on a police station closer to Mogadishu’s largest marketplace. A police officer who witnessed the incident told Shabelle, on the condition of anonymity, that unidentified gunmen targeted the police station with a bomb. “The police had to flee and fire shots in defence,” he said. 20 people have so far been arrested as suspects after the police embarked on house to house search in the area. Shabelle Media Network Somalia E-mail us: info@shabelle.net

They are now killing each other! Somalia: Gun battle within Somali troops kills one as a murderer put to death Aweys Osman Yusuf Mogadishu 23, May.07 ( Sh.M.Network) A government soldier was killed after Somali military troops and the police forces stationed at Kilometer 4 intersection, at the center of the capital, clashed Wednesday. It is not yet clear what sparked the gun battle. Witnesses told Shabelle that the exchange gun fire lasted in 20 minutes, halting the cars and buses in that road. Contacts made by Shabelle with the police commander in the area went impracticable. This was not the first time that Somalia government troops clashed within them in the capital. Earlier this week, government soldiers fought in Mogadishu’s largest open-air market, Bakara, where one soldier died in the gun battle. Meanwhile the local administrators in Baled Hawa, the main town of Gedo province, southern Somalia, have pubically executed a murderer today. Abdi Hassan Gurhan, 40 year old man, was executed in a public scene Wednesday morning after the he pled guilty of killing two people in the province near the Kenya border. Several public executions have been carried out in Somalia when the routed Union of Islamic Courts was in control of most parts of the country for nearly six months. Shabelle Media Network Somalia E-mail us: info@shabelle.net

Somalia: Bomb blast kills two in Mogadishu overnight Aweys Osman Yusuf Mogadishu 24, May.07 ( Sh.M.Network) At least one person was killed and five were wounded after a huge bomb blast tore apart Heliwaa police station north east of Somali Capital. Residents said the Somali police opened random gunfire following the blast. Witnesses told Shabelle Thursday that the bodies of two civilians baring gunshots were found near the area where the explosion occurred while three of the five wounded has been reported in critical condition. A police officer who witnessed the incident told Shabelle, on the condition of anonymity, that unidentified gunmen targeted the police station with a bomb. “The police had to flee and fired shots in defence,” he said. 20 people have so far been arrested as suspects after the police embarked on house to house search in the area. Since the Ethiopian backed interim government seized control of Islamic insurgents’ strongholds in north of the capital, series of bomb explosions on Somali officials and soldiers have been carried out by what the government called remnants of Islamists. Shabelle Media Network Somalia E-mail us: info@shabelle.net

Egyptian envoy freed from Somalia Egypt's ambassador to Somalia Saeed Mosry has been freed by the authorities in Somali's Puntland region after being held captive for five days. Ahmed al-Azahary, from Egypt's embassy in Nairobi said the envoy was released after the intervention of Puntland leader Ade Mosse. Mr Mosry was negotiating the release of three Egyptian vessels and their crew arrested for illegal fishing. Piracy has increased in Somalia after the removal of Islamists last December. They had clamped down on the activities of pirates, who had made the Somali coast one of the most dangerous in the world. In total seven cargo ships, including one chartered by the World Food Programme (WFP) to deliver relief supplies have been hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia since the beginning of the year. "The ambassador successfully negotiated the release of three our fishing boats and the 60 crew who had been arrested but was detained after funds wired to settle the fine delayed," Mr al-Azahry said. Reports say the authorities in Puntland - a semi-autonomous republic - had fined the vessel owners $300,000 but it is not clear how much has been paid. 'Safe haven' Meanwhile, an Indian dhow, Msv Caqid, was hijacked on Wednesday night just after delivering cargo to the Somali capital, Mogadishu. Andrew Mwangura, co-ordinator of the Kenya-based Seafarers Assistance Programme said little information is available about the boat and the size of the crew on board. Maritime officials claim investigations have revealed that the pirates are enjoying a safe haven in Puntland and demanding that the leaders of the regional administration give explanation of the rising piracy incidents. Most of the ships hijacked by pirates in Somalia were released following the intervention by Puntland elders. bbc

^^You havent answered anything saxib. You danced to the Amxari tune. ps what is Ethiopias current number one single? pps backs cant be broken, spines can. Farax Brown - tis all good saxib. The suffering is not that bad

Sophist Aha, now you are beginning to come around. Wadanku inuu mid ahaado is good when its honest but its only half and doesn’t equal unity. Unity in the Somali context is obviously going to involve everyone’s participation. They need someone who is just and can trust as leaders. Those leaders are not in place today. Instead we have warlordism in full swing yet people are still shouting ‘unity’ under a warlords arm and on top of an Ethiopian tank. This is where we have a problem. Put unity on the back burner until things are sorted (honest leaders and no Ethio interference) then we may agree on a few things. Until then, the unity grandioso master plan is only a riyo. The sooner aad waxan laidinku akhriyey analysgareesaan oo indahana kalafurtaan ayaa wax laislakeenikara!

^^Any news on how the name came about if its not a city or village? Eritrea

I had to contend with a wisdom tooth growth during the game. I'm getting wiser If 2005 didnt happen then i would be more gutted but the pain killers did help. Couldnt sleep, got up and made breakfast for the family :cool:

They contain some of the earliest known art in the Horn of Africa and the African continent in general, dating back to somewhere between 3,000 and 8,000–9,000 BCE. :eek: The Laas Geel site contains granite caves sheltering about ten rock alcoves decorated with Neolithic cave paintings. The caves are located outside Hargeisa, in an area encompassing a nomadic village, the Naasa Hablood hills. The site overlooks a wide district of countryside, where nomads graze their livestock and wild antelopes roam the vast landscape. The local nomads used the caves as a shelter when it rained and never paid much attention to the paintings. Recently, a troop of monkeys were based there, but have since been chased away. The site is now guarded by the local villagers and the Ministry of Tourism.[2] During November and December 2002, an archaeological survey was carried out by a French team in Somaliland. The reason for this was to search for rock shelters and caves containing stratified archaeological infills capable of documenting the period when production economy appeared in this part of the Horn of Africa (circa 5,000 and 2,000 BCE). During the course of the survey, the French archaeological team discovered the Laas Geel cave paintings, encompassing an area of ten rock alcoves (caves). The paintings, in an excellent state of preservation, show ancient humans of the area raising their hands and worshipping humpless cows with large lyre-shaped horns wiki

Looks like NG is no genius :rolleyes:

^^nice one, a fellow LFC fan. A uniting factor

^^Its near Hargaisa somewhere (where is JB when you need him?) and i plan to see this summer IA

Border Crossings

I was just going through the Lonely Planet forum pages and came across a few threads on Somalia/Somaliland discussing travel tips. Somaliland Somalia Have to give it up to the tourists for wanting to travel to east africa.

I can see NG wearing it to the maqaaxi on a Sat evening waiting for the Somali BBC drinking shaah saying 'waar hee dhe'. The three little holes will cool is head after a heated debate or two,,,,,

^^Is it me or you just dont get the questions posed? I asked what the TFG is doing/going to do about the displaced people and the lack of aid getting through and you start an avalanche of irrelevance! Can you answer the questions? Yes or No?

Duke Dont worry saxib. I didnt expect you (or anyone else) to give me any answers. Just wanted to highlight the short comings of the whole TFG project and those who support it. Again, i have achieved that goal (an open goal it was). I'm not interested in tit for tat remarks (not today anyway) just your analysis.