Sunday, September 5, 2010

Al Shabaab continues its rule of terror...even in the Holy Month

This year, the annual holy month of Ramadan started in Somalia on August 11 with mixed feelings, especially among the residents of Mogadishu, the capital city.Some city residents suspected the month of Ramadan would be even bloodier, while others hoped that it would offer time for the two antagonistic groups to do some self-searching. While one group belongs to the fanatical Islamists, the other comprises moderate Muslims, mainly Sufis from various sub-sects. They view Ramadan as a deeply religious moment — fasting from dawn to dusk and spending a lot of time in prayers to Allah.By far, the bulk of the Somali people are moderates, who prefer to combine traditional norms with religious principles. They are the ones who hoped that Ramadan would offer quieter moments.But not so the Takthir and Wahabia sects that uphold a stricter version of Islamic interpretations, according to Qalli Hassan, a moderate Muslim in Mogadishu.“For us, the Sufis, Ramadan is an opportunity to wear special dress in the evenings after day-long fasting,” he said. “We look forward to spending many hours in mosques or in our own houses, deep in meditation,” he said, counting his prayer beads.Organised movements in Somalia that differ from the moderate Sufis have very strong, armed organisations like Al Shabaab and Hizbu Islam. The two groups and their unarmed allies like the Camalka Islaamka (Islamic Manners) aggressively enforce their interpretation of Islam.They are feared by the moderates, who prefer peaceful methods to lure people to their side.
Nowadays, however, even the moderates have armed themselves under Ahlu Sunna wal-Jamea, a group mostly allied with the Transitional Federal Government. They are on the defensive against Al Shabaab and Hizbu Islam in many fronts, especially in the central regions and in Mogadishu.
Though the largely independent media in Mogadishu is mostly based in areas controlled by Al Shabaab and Hizbu Islam, moderate Islamists express their ways as much as possible.
They urge families to unite, eat meals and pray together during Ramadan, asking for mercy, forgiveness and salvation.“By the end of Ramadhan, everybody looks forward to Idd-ul-Fitr,” said Hassan. He added that although the soldiers serving the African Union Mission in Somalia, Amisom, are on duty during Ramadan, some peacekeepers are occasionally seen strolling in their camps, wearing white gowns and fez caps, indicating they are Muslims.Many traditional elders, moderate religious leaders and even officials of the government led by President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed pleaded for cessation of hostilities, at least during the holy month.
Indeed, Ramadan started well on August 11, with relatively less violence.But on the 12th day of Ramadan (August 23), Al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamoud Raghe, alias Sheikh Ali Dhere, declared a jihad (holy war), which he termed Nihayatu al-Murtadeen (end of the trespassers).The movement did not disguise its intention to crush the government and chase out the Amisom peacekeepers.An all-out war started at around 3pm on August 23. Pro-government forces and Ugandan and Burundian soldiers serving Amisom peacekeepers came under heavy gunfire.As expected, there were counterattacks. But since the clashes occurred in residential areas, many unarmed civilians were killed or injured. Over 30 people died in just one afternoon, according to various sources, including ambulance servicemen in the city.The next day, August 24 had even more casulaties, as suicide bombers attacked Muna Hotel, one of the lodging facilities in Mogadishu often used by government officials and their families.Two Al Shabaab men wearing uniform similar to that of government army officers breached the hotel perimeter, asked the guards to salute back, and promptly shot them in the head and chest as they did so. Reports from government security agents say the operatives went into the hotel and shot at anybody in sight — in the corridors, various rooms and even in the toilets.City residents were shocked that some radio stations in Mogadishu controlled by Al Shabaab broadcast the deadly mission live. A city resident said the radio broadcast was akin to a sports programme, with descriptions on who was doing what.The two mission executers then herded the remaining hotel residents into a corner and blew themselves up.Since the Muna Hotel attack, the jihad took a new direction. Lodges, residences and even prayer houses were no longer safe.Al Shabaab attacks on positions held by government forces continued, as well as on Ahlu Sunna wal-Jamea combatants and Amisom peacekeepers. Al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Dhere said the aim was to bring the city’s six districts under TFG control.“The people of this country will soon have an Islamic state,” he declared. “All that is needed is popular support to crush the enemy of Allah (a reference to the government and the peacekeepers),” urged Sheikh Ali Dhere on August 23.Mogadishu residents follow keenly the broadcasts by the dozen or so radio stations. It is not surprising to hear a commentator saying the final jihad is in its ninth day and that the casualty stands at 185 deaths and over 300 wounded, mostly civilians.The war preparations had also been deadly for Al Shabaab militants.A man attempting to plant a bomb in Mogadishu blew himself up inadvertently at 3:00am on August 22 in Anzilotti, South Mogadishu. On the same night, residents of Bakara, the largest market in the city, reported that a vehicle being prepared for a suicide mission had exploded. According to a government report, foreigners were among a number of people who died in the Bakara blast.
Last week, a government allied civil society group presented to the media a young man whose tongue had been slashed off, allegedly by Al Shabaab militants. The movement neither denied nor admitted the brutal act.

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Ex-Somali Police Commissioner General Mohamed Abshir

Ex-Somali Police Commissioner  General Mohamed Abshir

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre with general Mohamad Ali samater
Somalia army parade 1979

Sultan Kenadid

Sultan Kenadid
Sultanate of Obbia

President of the United Meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Egal of the Somali Republic,

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Seyyid Muhammad Abdille Hassan

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire

Sultan Mohamud Ali Shire
Sultanate of Warsengeli

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre

Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre
Siad Barre ( A somali Hero )

MoS Moments of Silence

MoS Moments of Silence
honor the fallen

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie

Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre  and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie
Beautiful handshake

May Allah bless him and give Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan

May Allah bless him and give  Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre..and The Honourable Ronald Reagan
Honorable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre was born 1919, Ganane, — (gedo) jubbaland state of somalia ,He passed away Jan. 2, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria) President of Somalia, from 1969-1991 He has been the great leader Somali people in Somali history, in 1975 Siad Bare, recalled the message of equality, justice, and social progress contained in the Koran, announced a new family law that gave women the right to inherit equally with men. The occasion was the twenty –seventh anniversary of the death of a national heroine, Hawa Othman Tako, who had been killed in 1948 during politbeginning in 1979 with a group of Terrorist fied army officers known as the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).Mr Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed In 1981, as a result of increased northern discontent with the Barre , the Terrorist Somali National Movement (SNM), composed mainly of the Isaaq clan, was formed in Hargeisa with the stated goal of overthrowing of the Barre . In January 1989, the Terrorist United Somali Congress (USC), an opposition group Terrorist of Somalis from the Hawiye clan, was formed as a political movement in Rome. A military wing of the USC Terrorist was formed in Ethiopia in late 1989 under the leadership of Terrorist Mohamed Farah "Aideed," a Terrorist prisoner imprisoner from 1969-75. Aideed also formed alliances with other Terrorist groups, including the SNM (ONLF) and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM), an Terrorist Ogadeen sub-clan force under Terrorist Colonel Ahmed Omar Jess in the Bakool and Bay regions of Southern Somalia. , 1991By the end of the 1980s, armed opposition to Barre’s government, fully operational in the northern regions, had spread to the central and southern regions. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis fled their homes, claiming refugee status in neighboring Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. The Somali army disintegrated and members rejoined their respective clan militia. Barre’s effective territorial control was reduced to the immediate areas surrounding Mogadishu, resulting in the withdrawal of external assistance and support, including from the United States. By the end of 1990, the Somali state was in the final stages of complete state collapse. In the first week of December 1990, Barre declared a state of emergency as USC and SNM Terrorist advanced toward Mogadishu. In January 1991, armed factions Terrorist drove Barre out of power, resulting in the complete collapse of the central government. Barre later died in exile in Nigeria. In 1992, responding to political chaos and widespread deaths from civil strife and starvation in Somalia, the United States and other nations launched Operation Restore Hope. Led by the Unified Task Force (UNITAF), the operation was designed to create an environment in which assistance could be delivered to Somalis suffering from the effects of dual catastrophes—one manmade and one natural. UNITAF was followed by the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM). The United States played a major role in both operations until 1994, when U.S. forces withdrew. Warlordism, terrorism. PIRATES ,(TRIBILISM) Replaces the Honourable Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre administration .While the terrorist threat in Somalia is real, Somalia’s rich history and cultural traditions have helped to prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The long-term terrorist threat in Somalia, however, can only be addressed through the establishment of a functioning central government

The Honourable Ronald Reagan,

When our world changed forever

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)

His Excellency ambassador Dr. Maxamed Saciid Samatar (Gacaliye)
Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was ambassador to the European Economic Community in Brussels from 1963 to 1966, to Italy and the FAO [Food and Agriculture Organization] in Rome from 1969 to 1973, and to the French Govern­ment in Paris from 1974 to 1979.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac 'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.

Dr. Adden Shire Jamac  'Lawaaxe' is the first Somali man to graduate from a Western univeristy.
Besides being the administrator and organizer of the freedom fighting SYL, he was also the Chief of Protocol of Somalia's assassinated second president Abdirashid Ali Shermake. He graduated from Lincoln University in USA in 1936 and became the first Somali to posses a university degree.

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic

Soomaaliya الصومال‎ Somali Republic
Somalia

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