Al-Shabab Militants Suicide Bombers Target African Union Troops In Somalia

UPI: Al-Shabab kills 13 with car bombs outside U.N. office in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia, July 26 (UPI) -- Twin car bombs were detonated Tuesday outside the United Nations office at a Somali army checkpoint near the Mogadishu airport, killing 13 people and wounding five, police officials said.

The dead included nine security officials with the United Nations.

Abdulaziz Abu Musab, a spokesman for the militant group al-Shabab, told Al Jazeera the U.N. offices and African Union Mission in Somalia compound were the targets.

"Our Mujahideen targeted Halane which is base to the foreign forces occupying our Muslim country. We have killed dozens of them," Muscab, a spokesman for the group, said.

Read more ....

More News On Today's Al-Shabab Attack Targeting African Union Troops In Somalia

Suicide bombers hit peacekeeping base in Somali capital, 13 dead: police -- Reuters
Somali police say 13 killed in two suicide car bombings in Mogadishu -- The Guardian/AP
Mogadishu Peacekeeping Bases Rocked by Suicide Bombs: Somali Police -- NBC
Suicide Bombing In Somalia's Capital Kills 13 Near Peacekeeping Base -- NPR
Dual Suicide Bomb Blasts Kill 13 in Somalia -- VOA
Al Shabab bombers kill 13 near Mogadishu airport -- The National
Somalia: UN condemns terrorist attack near Mogadishu airport -- UN News Centre

The Conflict In Somalia Continues

Somali Army Captures Key Town From Al-Shabaab Rebels -- CNN

MOGADISHU, Somalia (CNN) -- The Somali National Army, along with African Union troops, on Sunday launched a long-awaited offensive against al Qaeda-linked Somali rebels and captured the town of Jowhar, the AU and residents said.

The joint forces faced little resistance, the African Union Mission for Somalia said in a press release, adding that Jowhar had been a major base for Al-Shabaab in southern Somalia.

Abdi Isac, a local resident, said by phone from Jowhar that the allied troops peacefully entered the city after the Islamist militants pulled out without a fight or firing a single shot.

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More News On Somalia's War Against Al-Shabaab

Somalia: 'Al-Shabab' militants forced out of Jowhar -- BBC
In Somalia, African Union and gov’t troops take town from Islamist extremists of al-Shabab -- Washington Post/AP
Somalia: Somali and AU Forces Capture Jowhar From Al Shabaab -- AllAfrica.com
Somali security forces 'evict' Al Shabaab from biggest town -- Examiner
African Union, Somali troops capture Shebab stronghold -- The Nation

The Battle For al-Shabab's Stronghold In Somalia Is Over

Government Forces Move Into al-Shabab Stronghold -- Voice of America

NAIROBI — Witnesses in Kismayo confirm to VOA that Somali government forces have entered the city on Monday and are taking control of former al-Shabab bases.

But Johnnie Carson, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, warned that al-Shabab has been "effectively degraded" but not entirely defeated.

African Union and Somali troops have entered the Somali port city, two days after the militant group al-Shabab announced it had deserted the city for tactical reasons. But a Somali army commander in Kismayo says the militants still have a presence in the city and pose a serious threat to incoming forces.

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More News On The Battle For The Al-Shabab Stronghold Of Kismayo

Somali troops roll into once rebel bastion of Kismayu -- Reuters
Somali troops enter former militant port city -- Bloomberg Businessweek/AP
Somali troops enter former militant-held port city of Kismayo; Kenyan troop position unclear -- Washington Post/AP
Somali troops enter port city Kismayo -- The Australian
Somali and African Union troops enter Kismayo -- BBC
Terrorism fears as Islamists lose bastion in Somalia -- UPI
Islamists are being kicked out of Somalia. The West can learn from this -- David Blair, The Telegraph

Kenyan And Somali Forces Launch A Midnight Amphibious Assault To Capture al-Shabab's Last Stronghold

Kenya Says It Has Captured Last Islamist Bastion In Somalia -- New York Times

NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenyan forces claimed on Friday to have captured Kismayu, the last major stronghold of the Shabab militant group in Somalia, which, if confirmed, could spell an end to the Shabab’s ability to control large tracts of territory and mark the beginning of an underground, and possibly just as dangerous, guerrilla phase. Kenyan officials said their troops had staged a daring, midnight amphibious assault to storm the beaches of Kismayu, a vital port for the Shabab, with Somali allies in the boats alongside them.

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More News On The Conflict In Somalia

Kenyan forces attack last remaining stronghold of al-Qaida-linked militants in Somalia -- Washington Post/AP
Kenya Attacks Last Stronghold of Somali Militants -- Wall Street Journal
D-Day for al-Qaida in Somalia? Troops storm beaches at last stronghold -- NBC
Kismayo Falls To Amphibious Assault -- Strategy Page
Kenya troops fight on beaches in assault on Somali rebel city -- Reuters
African Forces Enter Somali City Held by al-Qaeda Militants -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Somali militants hold Kismayo under Kenyan force attack -- BBC
Troops lay siege to Somali rebel stronghold -- Al Jazeera
Somalia overpowering al-Shabaab but old rivalries pose new threat -- The Guardian
Somalia, allies batter al Shabaab, but gains may be fragile -- Reuters
When Al Shabab's last stronghold falls, will a guerrilla war follow? -- Mike Pflanz, Christian Science Monitor

Al Shabab Suicide Attack Kills Somali Lawmakers

Al Shabab Strikes Somali Lawmakers -- Christian Science Monitor

A suicide bombing in a Somali town more than 300 miles from Mogadishu killed at least two lawmakers who were engaged in trying to set up a lasting government.

Al Shabab has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in a Somali province yesterday that killed at least two lawmakers visiting from the capital. They were meeting several other lawmakers to discuss establishing a local administration as part of a larger effort to end Somalia's series of transitional governments.

Most reports indicate there were civilian deaths as well.

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More News On Al Shabab's Attack Against Somali Lawmakers

Suicide bomber kills MPs in central Somalia -- Reuters
Bombs rock Somalia, as brokers warn fragile progress at risk -- AFP
Somalia: Suicide Bomber Kills Eight in Country -- AllAfrica
Somalia MPs killed in al-Shabab suicide attack -- BBC
Al Shabaab bombings in Somalia kill 9, including MPs -- Global Post
MPs killed in central Somalia suicide attack -- Al Jazeera
Bombing in remote Somali city as peace efforts intensify -- Deutsche Welle
Coming face to face with Somalia's al-Shabab -- BBC

Somalia's Civil War Continues

Kenyan Airstrikes Drive al-Shabab Terrorists From Somalia Strongholds -- Washington Times

KAMPALA, Uganda — After months of delay often bogged down in muddy fields, Kenyan troops are finding their footing to become a valuable asset in the fight against al-Shabab terrorists in Somalia.

About 1,500 Kenyan soldiers crossed Somalia’s eastern border in October without approval from African Union peacekeepers, who were there to support a shaky transitional government in a lawless nation gripped in turmoil for more than 20 years.

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More News On Somalia's Civil War

Somalia: Thousands Flee to Mogadishu After Afgoye Fighting -- AllAfrica.com
Blast kills 3 at Mogadishu football match -- News24
Nervously, world powers eye greater Somalia action -- Defense Web/Reuters
Somalia’s Shabab occupy beloved “Mama Hawa” camp -- Toronto Star
Somali PM hopes to see Shebab fighters gone soon -- AFP
UN team out to verify needs of Kenya forces -- Daily Nation
Analysis - Somali reform rush may be militant lifeline -- Reuters
Somalia’s President: Still the ‘best hope,’ or leader of a failed state? -- Michelle Shephard, Toronto Star

French Military Forces Have Now Joined The Fight Against Militants In Somalia

French Forces Join Fight Against Militants In Somalia; Thousands Flee Camp, Fearing Clash -- Washington Post

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Kenya on Sunday said that France’s navy bombed a town in Somalia near a stronghold of al-Shabab, the first confirmation that a Western military force is involved in the latest push against the Islamist militia.

Thousands of people, meanwhile, fled a camp for the displaced near Somalia’s capital on Sunday, fearing an imminent clash between African Union peacekeepers and the al-Qaida-linked militants who are trying to demonstrate their strength amid an assault on two fronts.

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Update: Kenya Says Western Nations Join Fight in Somalia, as U.S. Denies Role -- New York Times

My Comment: The French are denying that their military has become involved in the conflict in Somalia .... and the Americans are saying that their forces are not involved .... but someone's advanced military jets and drones are doing the bombing .... and no one in eastern Africa has that capability.

What is my take .... the French have air assets in the region .... my money is on them for doing this bombing campaign.

Somalia Civil War News Updates -- June 14, 2011

Opportunity In Somalia After Killing Of Qaeda Militant -- New York Times

NAIROBI, Kenya — Once again, the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia has been handed a golden opportunity.

Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, Al Qaeda’s top operative in Somalia and one of the most wanted men in Africa, drove into a government checkpoint by mistake last week and was killed in a blaze of gunfire. At the same time, the Islamist militant group he helped lead — the Shabab — has been steadily losing ground as African Union peacekeepers and government troops go on the offensive.

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More News On Somalia's Civil War

Somalia PM Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo vows to stay -- BBC
Somali Prime Minister Rejects Deal Calling for Resignation -- Bloomberg
Somali PM Mohamed defies politicians' ouster bid -- Reuters
Somali PM Defies Deal, Refuses to Resign -- Voice of America
Somali premier refuses to step down, rejects deal -- Africasia
Somali soldier describes killing al-Qaida operative, FBI most-wanted -- Washington Post/AP
Fazul man was freed by Kenyan court -- Daily Nation
Slain terrorist was freed by Kenyan court -- Capital FM Kenya
Fazul Abdullah Mohammed’s Death: An Overdue Counterterror Victory in Somalia -- Council On Foreign Affairs
Somali Terror Victory -- Wall Street Journal editorial
ANALYSIS-West cheers Qaeda loss, but Somali chaos endures -- Reuters
Somalia: Deadly, Even For al Qaeda -- Time

Somalia Civil War News Updates -- May 23, 2011

Peacekeepers from the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) park their tanks near the main Bakara market during fighting between Somalia government soldiers and Islamist insurgents in the capital Mogadishu, on May 23. Feisal Omar/Reuters

African Union Lays Siege To Al Shabab-Controlled Market In Somalia's Capital -- Christian Science Monitor

African Union troops aim to deny the militant Islamist group Al Shabab funds it receives from taxing shopkeepers and traders. An apparent surge of AU peacekeepers is challenging Al Shabab's tacit control of Somalia.

Even in Somalia, the best way to shut down a terrorist group is to go after the money.

This morning, an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia is hemming in Somalia’s powerful Al Shabab militia – a group that has paid allegiance to Al Qaeda – inside Somalia’s largest marketplace, the Bakara Market in Mogadishu. Al Shabab taxes the shopkeepers and traders of Bakara Market, using those proceeds to fund their operations. Al Shabab also controls the busy port city of Kismayo and derives income by taxing exports and imports that come through that port.

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More News On Somalia's Civil War

Somalia's AU soldiers close in on key market -- AP
Somali and African Union Forces Advance in Mogadishu -- New York Times
Somali troops, peacekeepers advance on Bakara market -- Reuters
AU, Somali forces advance onto rebel stronghold -- AFP
Al Shabaab beaten back to Bakara -- Global Post
Somalia: Government forces kick out Al-Shabaab Militia -- Suna Times
Somalia: Govt - Most of Bakaara Market Fell Into the TFG Hands -- AllAfrica

Africans question UN go-slow on Somalia action -- Reuters
UN chews over Somali air and sea blockade -- Daily Nation

Kept in chains: Few facilities for the 1 in 3 Somalis who suffer mental illness -- Washington Post
Somalia’s al-Shabaab Militia Warns Djibouti Against Deployment of Troops -- Bloomberg
North Africa revolts could weaken Al Shabaab -- Global Post
Protection fees, stolen ammo extend Somalia's war -- AP
Security Council voices concern over high-level discord in Somalia -- UN News Centre
UN Security Council Urges Somalis to Resolve Political Crisis -- Voice of America

Somalia Civil War News Updates -- November 22, 2010

Guided By Memories, Mayor Of War-Torn Mogadishu Sets Out To Rebuild The City -- Washington Post

IN MOGADISHU, SOMALIA On the night before Mohamed Ahmed Noor left his London home, he gathered his family together. He was leaving a comfortable life, his six children, seven grandchildren and his wife, who made their home into what he calls "a garden in heaven."

He was leaving it all to run one of the most dangerous capitals on Earth. That night, more than four months ago, Noor told his family he might never return.

"I may be killed any time. You have to accept this," Noor recalled telling them.

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More News On Somalia

23 people killed in Somalia weekend fighting -- AP
Somalia clashes kill 17: witnesses -- AFP
Fighting Kills At Least 13 in Central Somalia -- Voice of America
13 killed in clashes in central Somalia -- MSNBC
Ahlu Sunna, Al-shabab fighters claim victories over heavy fighting in central Somalia -- All Voices

Uproar as Somali government confidence vote delayed -- AFP
Parliament Meeting To Approve Somalia’s New Cabinet Ends In Scuffles -- All Headline news
Special Representative for Somalia calls on the Parliament to exercise the spirit of compromise in their deliberations on the Cabinet -- Relief Web
Somalia: UN Calls to Halt Recruiting Young Children for Soldiers -- allAfrica.com
Somalis fleeing to haven in north -- Press TV
International community seeks to support Somalia -- Deutsche Welle
Why Somalia is one of the most dangerous countries in the world -- The Telegraph
Q&A: Somalia's conflict -- BBC

Heavy Fighting Continues In Mogadishu, Somalia

Somali government soldiers run to take positions during fighting against Islamic rebel groups north of the capital Mogadishu, March 11, 2010. REUTERS/Feisal Omar

Somalia: Heavy Fighting Continues Third Consecutive Day in Mogadishu -- AllAfrica.com

Heavy fighting between the transitional government troops backing by AMISOM and the Islamist fighters is continuing in parts of the Somali capital Mogadishu, witnesses told Shabelle radio on Friday.

At least 40 people were killed and more than 100 others wounded in a bitter clashes and shelling between the two warring sides in the north of the capital Mogadishu on Thursday.

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More News On the Fighting In Mogadishu, Somalia

Somali rebels attack in capital for third day -- Reuters
Somali official to residents: Flee battle zones -- AP
Death toll from Somalia clashes nears 80 -- Press TV
More Than 50 People Killed in Somalia Fighting -- Newstime Africa
Somalia: Government troops advance rival wards in Mogadishu -- Somaliweyn
100 000 displaced in Somali unrest, says UN -- IOL
Disengaging From Somalia -- Council Of Foreign Relations

Somalia War News Updates -- February 8, 2010

Armed militants from Somalia's Hizbul Islam rebel group walk in a formation as they patrol southern Mogadishu, Thursday. Feisal Omar / Reuters

Somali Capital Braces For All-Out War -- Voice of America

Remaining residents within Somalia's battle-torn capital are fleeing as rebel and government forces prepare for new clashes. The Western-backed Mogadishu government has announced its intention of launching an offensive against the Islamist opposition.

For weeks, the Transitional Federal Government has been promising to drive back the rebel forces who control much of Mogadishu and most of southern Somalia. The threat was reiterated by the the nation's foreign affairs minister during a visit to Japan. He said the offensive would begin "very very soon."

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More News On Somalia

New Somalia government offensive against Al Shabab -- Christian Science Monitor
Delays plague Somali offensive against Islamists -- Washington Post/AP
Terror Attacks Continue to Traumatize Somalis -- Voice of America
At least 9 die in Somalia clashes, group says -- CNN
Police Forces Conduct Operations, Detain More People in Mogadishu -- AllAfrica
Somalia: Al-Shabaab declares jihad on Kenya -- Garowe Online
Al Qaeda Linked Al Shabaab Declares Jihad On Kenya Then Retreats From Their Strongholds -- Jawa Report
Somalia accuse Eritrea for arming rebels -- Garowe Online
Thousands flee south every year from Somalia, Ethiopia -- Reuters
Somalia: Malnutrition rampant in young -- New Kerala

UN Warns Somali Crisis Could Rival '92-93 Famine

From Reuters:

NAIROBI, July 15 (Reuters) - The killing and kidnapping of aid workers in Somalia threatens to wreck all attempts to resolve a humanitarian disaster that could soon rival its famine in the early 1990s, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

Most aid agencies are discussing suspending their operations in areas hit by mounting insecurity and a wave of assassinations that has targeted senior local humanitarian workers.

Relief is still getting through, but the U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) said the surge in violence was threatening the entire humanitarian response to the emergency.

"If we or our partners cannot operate on the ground because they are being shot or kidnapped then assistance will not be distributed," WFP spokesman Peter Smerdon told Reuters.

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More News On Somalia

Somalia: Attacks on aid workers “intolerable” - top UN official -- Relief Web
UN in fresh protest as aid workers' killing mounts -- AFP
Top Humanitarian Official Gravely Concerned About Somalia -- Voice Of America
Somalia: Insurgents launch six mortars at Ethiopia army base -- Garowe Online
3 Somalia soldiers, 1 insurgent killed in Mogadishu attacks -- Garowe Online
Somalia: Minister, Ethiopian Officers Confer On Current Security - Report -- All Africa
After talks in Yemen, Somalia's opposition alliance mends differences -- Garowe Online
Drought grips a large part of Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda -- Canadian Press

My Comment: There has never been a concerted effort by the international community to bring security and peace to the region. Somalia is a text-book example of why safety, security, and the willingness to use military force has to be the first doctrine applied to any area before aid and development agencies can get involved. If the security is not there, aid agencies will just then be pawns for extremist groups and their allies to be used and exploited.

Unfortunately .... since Black Hawk down ..... the international community has given up on Somalia and the possibility of peace in the region for the next few generations.

Somalis Flee Terror, Pour Into Kenya Refugee Camp

A Somalian militant talks on his mobile phone in 2006
at a food distribution centre for the UN in Rabdure.

From Yahoo News:

DADAAB, Kenya - Ayan Ali Hassan decided to leave Mogadishu when militiamen boarded her school bus and kidnapped two screaming boys. For Abdi Gadir Osman, the moment came when a mortar slammed into his mother's home, killing her while she slept on a hot afternoon.

They are among some 20,000 Somalis who decided to flee their homeland this year, heading to the Dadaab refugee camp in eastern Kenya where they recalled a life of terror in Mogadishu.

For the refugees, this dusty, sweltering expanse is still a better home than their wretched capital. Just 50 miles from the Somali border, many see the camp as a last resort.

Read more ....

News On Somalia From Other Sources:
Somalia fighting kills 17 despite peace pact -- Reuters
Somali president targeted in bomb -- BBC News
Presidential spokesman: Continuing fighting in Somalia not to affect peace deal -- China View
Somalia: Dire Situation for Internally Displaced -- AllAfrica

My Comment: Another African basket case that will not be solved for the next 100 years . One can pour a trillion U.S. dollars into this country, and it will still be a mess. Best stay away or else their problems will then become ours.

Somali Factions Sign Peace Deal

From Reuters:

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Somalia's interim government signed a peace deal on Monday with some opposition figures at U.N.-led talks in Djibouti that had looked on the brink of failure, a U.N. official said.

Hopes had dimmed after both delegations refused for days to meet face-to-face to discuss ways of ending 18 years of conflict that have racked the Horn of Africa nation.

"We have a peace deal," an aide to the U.N. envoy for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, told Reuters by telephone.

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My Comment: The other wire services are not reporting this story. Updates on Somalia will be made later.

Another Iraq In The Horn Of Africa?

From Newsweek -- Somalia: Dilemmas Of The Horn

The jihadist leads a double life. By day he's a government functionary in the Somali capital of Mogadishu. Standing in the shade of a crumbling, Mussolini-era balcony, a phone headset clipped to his ear, he affects a casual, corporate air. But then he pulls his blue oxford shirt aside to reveal a fresh bullet scar. He spies on his co-workers, he admits, and feeds information about them to the Islamist rebels who are laying siege to Mogadishu. "God willing, we'll take over the country soon," he tells a NEWSWEEK reporter, one of the few Western journalists who have ventured into Somalia in months. The State Department recently added al-Shabaab (meaning "youth") to its list of terrorist organizations, making the group a target for attacks by U.S. forces operating in the Horn of Africa. The jihadist is unconcerned. "We're like a centipede," he says. "You cut off one of our legs, we just keep going."

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Update: Dozen Killed In Fierce Fighting In Somalia -- MSNBC

Update #2: Deadly Clashes Erupt In Mogadishu -- BBC News

My Comment: Like the previous civil war in Angola, this is a conflict that is going to last for decades.

Somalia Is 'The Forgotten Crisis'

From The BBC:

The lives of up to 15,000 children are at risk in Somalia unless emergency aid arrives in the next two weeks, the UN children's agency, Unicef, has warned.

"It is the forgotten crisis," Unicef's Christian Balslev-Olesen told the BBC, saying Somalia was the world's worst place for children.

Without extra funding, emergency feeding programmes could be closed down next month, he warned.

He said fighting had created "a time-bomb" of people living in camps.

Read more ....

My Comment: The last time Western forces were in Somalia we had the "Blackhawk Down" episode. After Afghanistan and Iraq, there is little if any will in the West to be actively involved in this conflict. Will Africa become involved .... using half measures they will publicly talk about their commitment, but on the ground this participation will be very limited. Africa has enough problems that have the potential to make Somalia just a minor family dispute.