Top U.N. official moves to Somalia as violence rages
Tue Jan 24, 2012 12:15pm GMT
* Attack in town recently freed from insurgents
* Al Shabaab hit compound housing Ethiopian, Somali troops (Recasts with
U.N. office moving to Somalia)
By Abdi Sheikh and Feisal Omar
MOGADISHU, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The U.N. special envoy to Somalia moved to
Mogadishu on Tuesday for the first time in 17 years, signalling
international support for a government fight against Islamist rebels and
preparations for elections this year.
High-level officials from the United Nations have been based in Kenya's
capital Nairobi since 1995 because of security concerns, although its
Political Office for Somalia had a few political officers in the capital
Mogadishu.
Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab militants withdrew from most of their bases in
Mogadishu last August after sustained pressure from Somali and African Union
troops, but violence still grips many parts of the country.
In Mogadishu, U.N. Special Representative for Somalia, Ambassador Augustine
Mahiga arrived at the airport where the U.N. flag was raised. Mahiga was due
to meet President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and African Union force officials.
The U.N. said the move signals its commitment to support Somali leaders who
adopted a political roadmap in September that is meant to lead to
parliamentary and presidential elections in August, ending a series of
fragile transition governments.
"It is historic to bring the U.N. back to Somalia. The secretary general
told me I should go and join you to make the roadmap a reality," Mahiga said
as he handed a letter from U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon to the Somali president.
Speaking in the presidency later, where Somali men performed a traditional
dance, Mahiga called on U.N. agencies and other countries to send their
representatives to be based in Somalia.
BALADWAYNE ATTACK
Somalia descended into chaos in 1991 after dictator Siad Barre was ousted.
The first internationally backed transitional governmen was established in
2004 only to lose control to rebels and semi-autonomous administrations.
Al Shabaab, who control many parts of southern and central Somalia, have
been able to launch guerrilla-style attacks in the capital despite a Kenyan,
Ethiopian and Somali offensive.
On Tuesday, an al Shabaab fighter rammed a minibus loaded with explosives
into a government building in Baladwayne, a town in central Somalia about 45
km (28 miles) from Ethiopia.
"A minibus carrying explosives entered Baladwayne administration
headquarters compound. Government soldiers tried to stop it by firing but
all in vain," Hussein Aden, a senior military official, told Reuters by
phone.
Aden said there was no immediate report of casualties and the area
surrounding the compound had been sealed off.
Aden Abdulle, head of a militia fighting alongside Somali and Ethiopian
soldiers against al Shabaab, said the building housed Transitional Federal
Government lawmakers and Ethiopian and Somali government soldiers.
Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.
"We carried the car bomb successfully into the Ethiopian and Somali base in
Baladwayne this morning. Our brave driver is martyred. There we killed many
Ethiopian and Somali troops on a parade," said al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh
Abdiasis Abu Musab.
Al Shabaab said in a statement it had killed 33 Ethiopian soldiers and
wounded at least 72.
There was no immediate comment from Addis Ababa.
Ethiopian soldiers previously went into Somalia in late 2006 and pushed the
Islamist organisation, Islamic Courts Union, out of Mogadishu. The Ethiopian
presence helped fuel the rise of al Shabaab and the foreign troops left in
early 2009.
Al Shabaab, which wants to impose a harsh interpretation of sharia on the
Horn of Africa nation, has waged a five-year campaign to drive the largely
impotent government from power. (Additional reporting by Ismail Taxta;
Writing by Yara Bayoumy and George Obulutsa; Editing by David Clarke and
Elizabeth Piper)
Somalia suicide bomber attacks govt office near border
Tue Jan 24, 2012 7:19am GMT
* Attack in town recently freed from insurgents
* Al Shabaab hit compound housing Ethiopian, Somali troops
By Abdi Sheikh and Feisal Omar
MOGADISHU, Jan 24 (Reuters) - An al Shabaab fighter rammed a minibus loaded
with explosives into a government building in central Somalia used by troops
and politicians on Tuesday, a military official and an al Shabaab spokesman
said.
The attack occurred in Baladweyne, a town near the Ethiopian border which
was captured by Ethiopian troops about three weeks ago. Both Ethiopia and
Kenya have sent troops into Somalia to fight al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab
following a wave of cross-border attacks and kidnappings that Nairobi blamed
on the rebels.
The militia, which left most of its bases in the capital Mogadishu last
August, has launched guerrilla-style attacks despite losing ground in some
key southern strongholds since the incursion by Ethiopian and Kenyan troops.
"A minibus carrying explosives entered Baladweyne administration
headquarters compound. Government soldiers tried to stop it by firing but
all in vain," Hussein Aden, a senior military official, told Reuters by
phone.
Aden said there was no immediate report of casualties and the area
surrounding the compound had been sealed off.
Aden Abdulle, head of a pro-government militia group fighting alongside
Somali and Ethiopian soldiers against al Shabaab, told Reuters the building
attacked by the rebels housed Transitional Federal Government lawmakers and
Ethiopian and Somali government soldiers.
Abdulle said the number of casualties was unknown.
Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack and said it had inflicted
many casualties.
"We carried the car bomb successfully into the Ethiopian and Somali base in
Baladweyne this morning. Our brave driver is martyred. There we killed many
Ethiopian and Somali troops on a parade," al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh
Abdiasis Abu Musab told Reuters by phone.
Ethiopian soldiers previously went into Somalia in 2006, and left in early
2009 after pushing the Islamist organization, Islamic Courts Union, out of
the capital Mogadishu.
Al Shabaab, which wants to impose a harsh interpretation of sharia, Islamic
law, on the Horn of Africa nation, has waged a bloody five-year campaign to
drive the largely impotent government from power.
The Western-backed government is supported by an African Union military
force. (Additional reporting by Ismail Taxta; Writing by George Obulutsa;
Editing by Tim Pearce)
C Thomson Reuters 2012 All rights reserved
------------[ Sent via the dehai-wn mailing list by dehai.org]--------------
Received on Tue Jan 24 2012 - 09:30:03 EST
