Suicide bomber kills two near Somali presidential palace

map by Evan Centanni (www.polgeonow.com)

(Reuters) - A suicide bomber blew himself up near the Somali presidential palace on Tuesday, killing at least two soldiers in a strike apparently aimed at the country's leaders, a palace guard at the scene said.

Officials working in the palace and guards said Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was abroad at the time of the blast and Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon Saaid, whose house was near the site of the explosion, was safe.

The blast was the first this year in Mogadishu, where security has improved greatly since Al Shabaab - Islamist rebels allied to al Qaeda - were driven from the capital by African peacekeepers in late 2011.

The group - which wants to impose its strict version of Sharia or Islamic law - is fighting to topple Mohamud, whose election last year was the first such vote since warlords ousted military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.

"The man blew up himself near a wall between the Ethiopian embassy and the Somali PM's residence," Ahmed Ali, a Somali soldier at the presidential palace told Reuters.

The two buildings are inside a sprawling compound that also houses the presidential palace.

"One guard died there and then. Another died of his wounds. They were all the guards of the PM," said Ali. "The man was an al Shabaab defector. He had a gate pass, an identity card of the national security."

Guards at the palace who declined to be named said the blast partially damaged a small room made of iron sheets where the prime minister's guards are stationed, but little else was damaged. Buildings and cars within the compound were untouched.

OUSTED FROM URBAN CENTRES

The guards said the bomber was known to them, and frequently visited the palace. When he came by on Tuesday morning, the guards took the suicide bomber through a routine inspection and found he was clad in an explosive jacket.

The guards tried to prevent him from detonating his device, but it went off - killing one instantly and wounding two others.

Al Shabaab was not immediately available for comment on the attack.

The group fled to southern Somalia after quitting Mogadishu but in late September Kenyan troops forced it to withdraw from the port of Kismayu, its last major urban stronghold in the Horn of Africa nation.

That appears to have ended it as a quasi-conventional military force, though Al Shabaab remains a threat and has vowed to step up suicide bombings and hit-and-run attacks.

On January 17 the group said it had executed a captive French agent after a French commando mission to rescue him failed.

from REUTERS
By Abdi Sheikh
MOGADISHU | Tue Jan 29, 2013 10:17am GMT
(Writing by James Macharia; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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Bomb explosion kills 2 suspected terrorists in Kenya

GARISSA, Kenya, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- At least two suspected terrorists died early Thursday when bombs they were carrying exploded in a refugee camp in northern Kenya.
Charlton Mureithi, a regional police commander, confirmed the incident at the Hagdera refugee camp in Dadaab by telephone, saying the suspects were believed to be suicide bombers.

"We have not established what their mission was at the camp. Their bodies were badly damaged and we suspect they were carrying IEDs (improvised explosive devices), which went off and exploded on them," Mureithi said.

He said he had ordered an investigation into the attack, which came as political parties held their primaries Thursday to nominate candidates for the March 4 general elections.

Residents told Xinhua on Thursday they thought the suspected suicide bombers might have been targeting passersby and security officers who normally patrol the areas.

The latest incident comes amid rising fears among communities along the porous border with Somalia. Islamist groups fleeing a military assault in the south of the Horn of Africa nation have been looking to carry out revenge attacks on civilians across the border in Kenya.

Kenya blames Al-Shabaab for the wave of recent bomb and grenade attacks particularly in northern Kenya.

The East African nation has been involved in efforts to bring stability and peace to Somalia, its northern neighbor, with Kenyan troops serving in the UN-backed African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

Along with government and allied forces, AMISOM has been liberating large parts of Somalia from the control of Al-Shabaab militants, as well as supporting progress on its political front.

from XINHUA
2013-01-17 16:15:18

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Somali, AU forces secure more southern towns from rebels

The retreat of the Al Shabaab Islamist
militant group in Somalia since 2011.
Original map by Evan Centanni.
www.polgeonow.com

MOGADISHU, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Somali government forces backed by African Union (AU) peacekeeping forces are spreading their control over territory run by Al-Shabaab rebels in the south of the Horn of Africa country.

The allied forces this week consolidated their control over the Wanla Weyn town, 93 km south of the Somali capital Mogadishu, as well as a former Somali air force base, 15 km away from the Wanla Wein.

The newly taken areas are strategically located along the main corridor linking Mogadishu to the southern town of Baidao, which is also under the control of AU and Somali government forces.

Wanla Weyn falls at a strategic junction linking the two Shabelle regions to Baidoa in the south and Beletweyne in the north of Somalia.

Officials say the capture of Wanla Weyn facilitates the aim of connecting Mogadishu to Baidoa.

Somali Defense Minister Hussein Arab Isse was among officials who paid a visit to the regained military base near Wanla Weyn. He said the capture of the town was a victory for Somalia and called on Al-Shabaab fighters to join the government troops.

"To Al-Shabaab fighters I call upon them to lay down their arms and join the ranks of their brothers. This is your country, these are your brothers welcome to open arms. There is no other door open for you. Somalia is sovereign nation so come and join in building the future of your country," the Somali defense chief said in the newly taken area.

AU and Somali government officials say the advance would to deny fleeing Al-Shabaab insurgents from seeking refuge and destabilizing other regions of Somalia.

The officials believe that the capture of this town denies Al- Shabaab another source of illegal income after a string of defeats and the loss of other major sources of revenue in a number of seaports along the coastal towns.

Al-Shabaab has lost a number of key towns in central and southern regions, in particular, the port city of Kismayo, the stronghold of the rebels.

from XINHUA
2012-10-14 17:34:17
Editor: Tang Danlu

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A.U., Somali troops seize port of Marka from Islamists

African Union and Somali troops captured the key port of Marka from al-Qaeda-linked Shebab insurgents on Monday, the latest in a string of bases to be wrested from the extremists, officials said.

“We have taken Marka, we entered alongside the Somali government forces this morning,” said Colonel Ali Houmed, the spokesman for the African Union mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

“There was some fighting, but not so heavy, most of the Shebab had fled.”

The loss of Marka, some 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of the capital Mogadishu, is another major blow for the insurgents, who have been on the back foot for several months.

A.U. and Somali troops have made significant gains in recent months against the Shebab, although the Islamists remain a major security threat. Ethiopian troops are also battling the militants from the south and west.

The loss of Marka leaves the Shebab with two major ports in southern Somalia -- Barawe and the key rebel bastion of Kismayo -- although an international naval blockade has already greatly squeezed maritime access there.

The Shebab abandoned their last fixed bases in Mogadishu a year ago, where they have since reverted to guerrilla tactics, claiming a series of suicide attacks and roadside bombs.

The latest defeat for the Shebab comes as candidates for Somalia’s powerful position of parliamentary speaker campaign a day ahead of the expected vote, a key step in setting up a new government for the war-torn nation.

Somalia has not had a stable central government since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre, which sparked rounds of bloody civil war.

The United Nations-backed process, which has already selected the majority of a new parliament and will culminate in a vote for president, is the latest bid to end two decades of instability in the Horn of Africa nation.

“We are facilitating the timely implementation of this important political step,” the U.N. political office for Somalia (UNPOS) said Monday, adding it was hopeful the already-delayed vote would go ahead on Tuesday as planned.

Secret ballots in parliament for the posts of speaker and two deputy speakers have been delayed several times.

Bitter arguments have begun between challengers for the top jobs, divided along Somalia’s notoriously fractious clan lines.

Six candidates are running for the post of speaker, including two former prime ministers, Hassan Abshir Farah and Ali Khalif Galayr, both from the Darod clan and the northern semi-autonomous Puntland region.

Mohamed Osman Jawari, a former minister under the regime of Siad Barre, from the Rahanweyn clan from the southern Baidoa region, is also running for the post.

The selection of speaker will impact the subsequent parliamentary vote for president, as Somali politics have traditionally tried to share out the seats between rival clans.

Around 260 of the new parliament’s 275 members have been selected by a group of 135 traditional elders under the U.N.-backed process. Most were sworn into office last week on the tarmac of the capital’s airport, protected by A.U. troops.


from AL ARABIYA
Last Updated: Mon Aug 27, 2012 19:16 pm (KSA) 16:16 pm (GMT)

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73 Shabaab Killed, KDF Suffers Two Fatalities in Somalia (+video)

Kenyan Defence Forces (KDF) have killed 73 Al Shabaab militants in an attack at a remote region of Fafadun in Somalia, a military source said on Thursday.

"There was an attack in Somalia at a place called Fafadun. Seventy three Al Shabaab were killed and there are two KDF casualties," the source said.

Three other KDF soldiers were wounded in Thursday afternoon's attack.

The KDF headquarters in Nairobi referred our queries to AMISOM which is the umbrella body for all the troops fighting Al Shabaab in Somalia.

The wounded soldiers were expected in Nairobi later on Thursday after being airlifted from the battleground.

"It was a very violent confrontation because the Al Shabaab militants were heavily armed and ready for war. Forty AK-47 rifles were seized from the slain militants," a source told Capital FM News from Somalia.

The KDF soldiers who are part of the AMISOM force are preparing for a major assault in the coming days when they will liberate Kismayu, a key stronghold for the militant group.

On Tuesday, the United Nations warned of an impending assault on the southern Somali port of Kismayu, the largest remaining stronghold of the country's Al-Qaeda linked Al Shabaab insurgents.

"Fighting for control of the town appears imminent," said Mark Bowden, the top UN humanitarian aid official for the war-torn nation, noting reports of recent naval artillery bombardment as well as air strikes.

African Union troops, Ethiopian forces and various Somali militia forces have wrested a string of towns from the hardline Al Shabaab, with the capture of Kismayu - a crucial revenue source for the fighters - seen as a key target.

Last week, Al Shabaab officials and residents said three civilians were killed by missile strikes on the port, reportedly by a naval barrage from an unidentified ship.

Several foreign navies operate anti-piracy patrols off the coast of the Horn of Africa nation, including European, US, Russian and Chinese forces.

Neighbouring Kenya has smaller vessels operating offshore from Kismayu, supporting its ground troops, who invaded southern Somalia last year, before joining the 17,000-strong AU force.

"I am deeply concerned by recent reports of civilian casualties in Kismayu caused by naval gunfire and air strikes," Bowden said.

"I reiterate my call for all parties to the conflict to make every effort to minimise the impact of conflict on civilians, and to allow full humanitarian access to all people in need," Bowden added in a statement.

The reports of the long-awaited assault come as the corruption-riddled government wraps up eight years of infighting, with a UN-backed selection process for new leaders due to be completed by an August 20 deadline.

Three Ugandan army helicopters en-route to Somalia to support the AU force crashed in Kenya on Sunday leaving seven soldiers dead.

from allAfrica / Capital FM (Nairobi)
By Bernard Momanyi, 16 August 2012

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Kenyan Jets Bomb Al Shabaab Base in Southern Somalia

Mogadishu — Kenyan military Jets bombed a base run by Islamist al Shabaab rebels north of Somalia's Kismayu port on Wednesday, local residents and officials said, but it was not immediately clear whether there were civilian casualties.

Local resident in Birta-Dheer village near Kismayu town confirmed to Shabelle Media by phone the bombardment and said the jets hit the militants' base near the village early hours on Wednesday. No militant casualty was also reported in the attack.

Also in the news Kenyan military forces carrying tanks and artillery have been massing around Biibi village, a town just 85-Km away from north of Kismayu, the nerve centre of Al Shabaab operations in the Horn of Africa country.

Kenyasent troops into anarchic Somalia in last October after cross-border raids and kidnappings that it blamed on Al Shabaab, which has allied itself with Al Qaeda, but regional security has not improved.

AMISOM eyes the rebel-held port town of Kismayu, some 500 kilometers south of Mogadishu and one of the main towns remained in Al shabab control.

from SHABELLE

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Somalia: Senior Al Shabab Commander Killed in Bay Region

Map of Somalia Bay Region of Somalia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

BAIDOA (Sh.M.Network)-Unidentified Armed groups are reportedly shot and killed a senior Al shabab commander in Ufurow area of Bay region, southern horn of Africa Somalia.

Witnesses said two masked men armed with pistols have carried out the assignation against the Al shabab agent as he went out from a mosque in Ufurow village after performing the dawn prayer at about 5:00 p.m. local time on Saturday.

Sources indicated that the victim, whose name has only been released as Abu Salim was one the top militant leaders in Bay region of southern Somalia and his death is a big blow to the Al shabab insurgents-affiliated with Al Qaeda.

The exact motive of the assignation is unclear and the assailants were reported to have escaped from scene of the shooting.

In separate incident, a building engineer was killed by gunmen dressed in military uniform at government controlled Lafole area, located on the outskirts of Mogadishu on Saturday, locals reported.


Shabelle Media Network
July 28, 2012

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Somalia: Mortars Hit Presidential Palace

Mogadishu — Nearly 10 mortars slammed at Somalia's presidential palace on Friday night as explosions and gunfire rocked Mogadishu in the latest outbreak of violence in chaotic Somalia, witnesses said.

"I can confirm two mortars have hit near VillaSomalia," a source told Shabelle Media of the building where President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed stays. "We do not have word yet if there were casualties or not."

More than a dozen explosions boomed across Mogadishu and gunfire rattled out to break a lull in the violence of several days in the coastal capital of the Horn of Africa nation.

"I have heard more than a dozen explosions ... now there is no gunfire," said a resident

Also in the news, unknown gunmen have overnight attacked on government bases in Mogadishu, triggering face-to-face gun-battle that lasted two hours.

At least four government soldiers were killed last night in Mogadishu. Al shabab group has so said it was behind the killing.


from allAfrica

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Most wanted 'Carlos the Jackal' Somali pirate seized

The war on piracy in the Horn of Africa has received a major boost following the capture of one of the world’s most wanted Somali pirate leaders, Mohamed Garad.

Garad, a former British soldier, is said to have been arrested together with 12 other suspected pirates on April 4 by Iranian commandos after they hijacked a Chinese cargo ship.

The co-ordinator of the East African Seafarers Association, Mr Andrew Mwangura, said Garad was captured after the seizure of the Chinese vessel, Xianghuamen, last week.

Xianghuamen is a Panama-flagged general cargo vessel owned by Nanjing Ocean Shipping Company of China.

“Garad had been on the run for many decades. He was elusive and sly and had slipped out of all the security dragnets before. His capture is the greatest good news in the war against piracy and terrorism,” Mr Mwangura said yesterday.

'Old hand'

The coordinator described Garad as “an old, experienced hand and a role model in the piracy world”, who has been linked to hundreds of ship hijack cases in the Horn of Africa.

“To experts and those who knew Garad, he was like Carlos the Jackal in the crime world and Dedan Kimathi to the British colonialists, mysterious and never easy to capture,” Mr Mwangura said.

The arrest of the pirate leader, Mr Mwangura said, was confirmed by one of his cousins in Mogadishu.

Rescued Chinese crew aboard cargo ship Xianghuamen wave to a welcoming Chinese delegation near Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 7, 2012. One of Somalia's most wanted pirates was captured after Iranian commandos rescued the hijacked ship. PHOTO | XINHUA |

from africareview

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Jets bomb al Shabaab base in southern Somalia

MOGADISHU (Reuters) – Jets bombed a base run by Islamist al Shabaab rebels north of Somalia’s Kismayu port on Saturday, local residents and officials said, but it was not clear who carried out the raid or whether there were casualties.

Kenya sent troops into anarchic Somalia in October after cross-border raids and kidnappings that it blamed on al Shabaab, which has allied itself with al Qaeda, but regional security has not improved. Somali militants killed nine people in an attack in Kenya’s capital Nairobi last week.

A regional Somali military official said the jets were Kenyan. A Kenyan military spokesman in Nairobi could not confirm this, and neither could U.N. peacekeepers in Somalia.

Al Shabaab confirmed the bombardment and said none of its insurgents had been killed or wounded. But a Somali government official in the area where the attack took place said some militants had been killed in the bombing.

The jets hit the militants’ base near the village of Daytubako, 135 km (84 miles) north of Kismayu, the nerve centre of al Shabaab operations in the Horn of Africa country.

Residents in Jilib, a town 15 km from the scene, described what they saw and heard with respect to the bombing.

“First we saw two jets flying towards Daytubako, and after (some) minutes we heard the thunder of the bombs. The jets bombed, flew past, returned to the same spot and dropped several other bombs,” said Kasim Olow, a Jilib inhabitant.

Al Shabaab said its fighters escaped the bombing.

“The jets bombed Daytubako village, but they killed animals and injured four civilians. No Al Shabaab casualties,” said Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab’s military spokesman.

“One jet targeted a well where civilians were watering their animals. It dropped several bombs on this well.”

Read more at euronews/reuters

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Danish Navy rescues 16 hostages from pirates, 2 more captives killed

Danish navy Absalon (L16) with a Westland Lynx. - Image via Wikipedia

The Danish Navy said on Tuesday it had freed 16 hostages held by pirates off the Somali coast the previous day, but that two more captives were killed in the rescue operation.

During a rescue operation by the Danish navy, two people that were being held hostage by alleged Somali pirates were killed. The mission did, however, successfully free 16 other prisoners off the Horn of Africa. Seventeen pirates were arrested.
Danish warship, the Absalon, fired shots onto the suspicious boat after it ignored orders to stop. The ship is a part of NATO’s counter-piracy mission Ocean Shield.
They had the boat under surveillance for some time, and stopped it when they attempted to sneak into open waters away from the coast.

After locating the severely wounded hostages, the ship’s doctor provided immediate aid, but was unable to save their lives. The other hostages have not reported any injuries, and there were also no killed or wounded pirates.
---
The warship Absalon fired on and intercepted a pirate mother ship as it tried to sneak away from the Somali coast Monday, according to a Danish Navy statement.

It says Absalon crew members boarded the ship and found 17 suspected pirates along with 18 hostages from the ship's original crew.  It says two of the hostages were found badly injured and died, despite medical attention.
---
The Absalon follow proper protocols when engaging with the pirate boat; direct fire to parts of the vessel was a last resort in the attempt to halt the pirates. The Navy will still conduct a thorough investigation into this situation nonetheless.
Reuters reports that the captured pirates would be held aboard the Absalon until Denmark could determine if it could hand them over to a country in the region to be prosecuted.

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• Danish navy piracy raid leaves two dead (telegraph.co.uk)

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