Category Archives: Somalia

War crimes: former minister reveals why Canada disbanded its special forces after scandal

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The drastic step was judged the best way to fix systemic problems after an affair similar to allegations against Australian forces in Afghanistan

A former Canadian defence minister who disbanded his nation’s special forces regiment in the wake of a war crimes scandal similar to that now facing Australia says the drastic step was the only way to fix systemic cultural problems and repair reputational damage.

The parallels between Canada’s so-called Somalia affair and the allegations against Australian troops in Afghanistan are striking.

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A Girl from Mogadishu review – tragedy and joy in a daring escape

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This based-on-fact story of a teenager who flees war in Somalia to become a crusading activist against FGM is earnest but effective drama

Inspired by real events, this earnest but effective drama depicts how Ifrah Ahmed (played as a teenager by Malaika Herrador, and as an adult by Aja Naomi King) escaped Somalia during a war in 2006, made it to Ireland where she was eventually granted asylum, and then went on to become a crusading activist against female genital mutilation. It’s certainly a remarkable story, one full of tragedy, adventure, suspense and even moments of joy, especially in the latter half when Ahmed finds a community of friends and allies willing to help her quest.

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If Ethiopia descends into chaos, it could take the Horn of Africa with it

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As conflicts rapidly unfold in Ethiopia, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen, the US, UK and European states are being sidelined

The Ethiopian army’s assault on Tigray province marks a serious backwards step by the country’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, who has been feted internationally as a moderniser and Nobel peace prize winner. Abiy calls it a “law enforcement operation” – but he risks being blamed for an expanding refugee emergency and a burgeoning region-wide crisis.

An even bigger fear is the break-up of Ethiopia itself in a Libyan or Yugoslav-type implosion. The country comprises more than 80 ethnic groups, of which Abiy’s Oromo is the largest, followed by the Amhara. Ethnic Somalis and Tigrayans represent about 6% each in a population of about 110 million. Ethiopia’s federal governance structure was already under strain before this latest explosion.

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‘Confounding’: Covid may have already peaked in many African countries

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One explanation for virus not behaving as expected could be previous exposure to other infections, experts tell MPs

The coronavirus pandemic has peaked earlier than expected in many African countries, confounding early predictions, experts have told MPs.

Scientists do not yet know why, but one hypothesis is the possibility of people having pre-existing immunity to Covid-19, caused by exposure to other infections.

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‘A race against time’: the new law putting Somalia’s children at risk of marriage

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Child marriage in the country has increased during coronavirus – and now a newly-tabled bill would allow children as young as 10 to marry

Fardowsa Salat Mohamed was 15 when her cousin asked her parents for her hand in marriage. Her father did not hesitate to say yes. When Mohamed objected, her father asked her to choose between “a curse and a blessing”.

“That was not a choice for me, I was basically forced,” she says. “No girl would ever choose to be cursed by her parents so I had to accept the marriage,”

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Inside Somalia: how Covid-19 created a perfect storm in a humanitarian crisis

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Covid could be ‘the straw that breaks the camel’s back’ health workers warn. Photographers Fardosa Hussein and Ismail Taxta captured a country battling seemingly insurmountable odds

Considering the country was in the middle of a pandemic, the silence at the entrance to Mogadishu’s De Martini hospital felt almost numbing, the expected noise replaced by stillness in its deserted, sanitised halls.

It sent a chill through me as I arrived in May to capture the work being done at what was, until recently, the Somali capital’s only hospital taking coronavirus patients. It felt like a prison.

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If you felt cooped up in lockdown, think of refugees confined in camps | Moulid Hujale

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From panic buying to lack of freedom, the pandemic is an opportunity to understand the lives of those forced to flee

Covid-19 has transformed the world beyond imagination, affecting almost everyone in some way.

Yet for me the changes have felt familiar – from movement restrictions to quarantines, every measure taken to prevent the spread of the virus reminds me of what it means to live as a refugee in a camp.

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Mogadishu car bomb kills eight soldiers at military base

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Somalia-based al-Shabaab group claims blast that leaves 14 wounded

A car bomb has exploded at the gates of a military base in Mogadishu, killing at least eight soldiers and wounding 14.

The extremist group al-Shabaab, linked with al-Qaida, claimed responsibility via its radio arm, Andalus. The group often targets military sites in Mogadishu and controls large parts of southern and central Somalia, with little sign of being hampered by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Somalia removes prime minister in no-confidence vote

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170 of 178 MPs back motion against Hassan Ali Khaire for failing to move towards democratic elections

Somalia’s parliament removed the prime minister, Hassan Ali Khaire, from his post in a vote of no confidence on Saturday for failing to pave the way towards fully democratic elections, the speaker said.

A whopping 170 of parliament’s 178 MPs backed the no-confidence motion, and Khaire’s ouster was immediately endorsed by the president, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, who had appointed him as prime minister in February 2017.

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‘You think that’s racist?’: the generational tension in Melbourne’s high-rise migrant families

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There is a schism between older African migrants – who think Australia is ‘the greatest country in the world’ – and those who came here young or grew up here

This is the fourth in a six-part series on life inside Melbourne’s high-rise public housing. Read the third part here.

Nor Shanino would get into big debates with his father, Idris, an Eritrean refugee, about the police and the country.

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Why coronavirus has placed millions more girls at risk of FGM

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As lockdowns linger and economies falter, girls who are out of school are at increased risk of being cut

Covid-19 has exposed just how much work remains to be done to wipe out female genital mutilation (FGM) around the world. Two million girls who would otherwise be safe from the practice are believed to be at risk over the next decade as a direct result of the virus.

As lockdowns linger and economies tumble, many families have been spurred into action over the fate of their daughters, using school closures to cut them and marry them off, campaigners say.

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‘Rolling emergency’ of locust swarms decimating Africa, Asia and Middle East

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Unseasonal rains have allowed desert pests to breed rapidly and spread across vast distances leaving devastation in their wake

Locust swarms threaten a “rolling emergency” that could endanger harvests and food security across parts of Africa and Asia for the rest of the year, experts warn.

An initial infestation of locusts in December was expected to die out during the current dry season. But unseasonal rains have allowed several generations of locust to breed, resulting in new swarms forming.

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‘Men don’t trust we’re strong enough’: Somali women push into fish industry

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Selling fish has enabled some to quadruple their usual earnings but sexist attitudes are harder to overcome

Every morning before sunrise, when most residents in the southern coastal city of Kismayo are asleep, Fardowsa Mohamed Ahmed, 32, goes to the beach to purchase fresh fish, which she will sell in the market.

Like most women in this business, she depends on men to catch the fish. Men dominate the fishing sector. It is considered “men’s work” in Somali society. But Ahmed is determined to push her way in.

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‘Finally, at last’: vulnerable migrants to leave Greece for UK

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Group including teenagers Walid and Mustafa will be reunited with relatives after grim odyssey

Until last week, Walid and Mustafa had never met. Owing to their disparate backgrounds, they might not have had anything in common, bar their age: both turned 18 this year.

But the fresh-faced, bright-eyed teenagers have been brought together by a common desire to escape danger in their respective homelands – Syria and Somalia – and rebuild lives shattered by war.

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Coronavirus could ‘smoulder’ in Africa for several years, WHO warns

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190,000 people could die on the continent in the coming 12 months, agency says

The Covid-19 pandemic could “smoulder” in Africa for several years after killing as many as 190,000 people in the coming 12 months, the World Health Organization has said.

The WHO warned last month that there could be 10m infections on the continent within six months, though experts said the pandemic’s impact would depend on governments’ actions.

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Somali medics report rapid rise in deaths as Covid-19 fears grow

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Concerns that official mortality counts in African countries are a big understatement

Medics, funeral workers and gravediggers in Somalia have reported an unprecedented surge of deaths in recent days amid growing fears that official counts of Covid-19 deaths reflect only a fraction of the virus’s toll in Africa .

So far Somalia, one of the poorest and most vulnerable countries on the continent, has announced an official total of 601 confirmed cases and 28 deaths.

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Ramadan in Somalia: fears coronavirus cases will climb as gatherings continue

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Government rejects claim by militant groups that the virus does not harm Muslims and imposes night-time curfew

Somalia has recorded a rise in coronavirus cases in the past week, with the majority of those affected reportedly young people.

So far there have been 237 confirmed cases and eight deaths in the country. A member of parliament and a state minister are among those who have died.

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‘Most of the men are your enemies’: one woman’s crusade in Somalia

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Ibado Mohammed Abdulle is a counsellor, friend and campaigner for women who have been made refugees in their own country by the impact of the climate crisis

The long, black hem of Ibado Mohammed Abdulle’s diya drags in the sand, creating mini tornadoes of dust under her sandals. At a circular fence of waist-high thorny bushes, she knocks on the metal sheet serving as a makeshift door. A woman’s face, partially hidden by a bright green hijab, appears. “Salaam Alaikum,” Abdulle says, “peace be upon you.”

Holding up a hand to the armed guards tasked with accompanying the visiting charity staff following her around the displacement camp, she instructs them to stay outside.

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‘Zero accountability’: US accused of failure to report civilian deaths in Africa

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US military vows to be more open about activities after allegations that teenager and farmer were killed in Somalia airstrikes

Faced with new allegations of killing civilians with drone strikes in Somalia, the US military has announced plans to make its operations across Africa more transparent.

Amnesty International accused the US military on Wednesday of providing “zero accountability” for civilian victims of airstrikes by its Africa command, Africom.

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Debt relief allows Somalia to rejoin global economy after 30-year exile

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IMF and World Bank sign off $5bn in assistance with help of bridge financing from Norway, Italy, the UK and the EU

Somalia’s debt will be slashed to a fraction of its current levels after almost $5bn (£4.1bn) of assistance was approved by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

A joint statement from the global financial institutions praised Somalia’s efforts at economic reform, allowing it to qualify for a debt relief programme and reintegrate into the global economy after 30 years.

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