Security downturn in Mogadishu
MOGADISHU,11 April 2014 (IRIN) - Three years after Al-Shabab insurgents
withdrew from the city, security in Mogadishu remains a serious problem for
residents and aid workers, with threats from Al-Shabab incursions, criminals
and militia.
Often-deadly attacks attributed to Al Shabab or its sympathizers involving
mortar rounds, rocket propelled grenades and improvised explosive devices
occur with great frequency in the capital.
Some 624 weapons-related casualties were treated in four hospitals in
Mogadishu in January and February, according to the UN Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) February Humanitarian Bulletin,
a
<
http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/OCHA%20Somalia%20H
umanitarian%20Bulletin%20February%202014.pdf> 20 percent increase on the
previous two months.
Recent months have also seen a flurry of terror attacks against key
government and international organizations in the city. On
<
http://www.somalicurrent.com/2014/02/21/top-government-officials-killed-in-
al-shababs-villa-somalia-raid/> 21 February the presidential palace was
attacked and senior government officials killed. A week earlier a UN convoy
was
<
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp/story.asp?NewsID=46777&Cr=somalia&Cr1
=#.UyGKJyd_ZI0> targeted, leaving six dead.
"In Mogadishu, the security situation has deteriorated since. December,"
Nicholas Kay, the Secretary-General's special representative to Somalia,
<
http://webtv.un.org/search/somalia-security-council-7132nd-meeting/33268096
80001?term=Somalia> told the UN Security Council on 11 March. "Times are
tough, and in the short term they may get tougher. Insecurity in Mogadishu
poses challenges for Somalis, for the UN and the international community."
"The risk of further attacks against Somali government and international
targets remains high," he added.
Fear
For many Mogadishu residents, fear of attack and crime prevents them from
leading normal lives. Neighbourhoods such as Heliwaa, Yaqshiid and Dayniile
have been particularly hard-hit, forcing people to flee to more peaceful
districts within the city.
"The latest face-to-face clashes between Somali government troops and
Al-Shabab have badly affected our way of life and many people lost their
lives. In this place nobody rules, so residents live under constant fear,"
one resident of Heliwaa who preferred anonymity told IRIN. "I never thought
that this sort of thing could be happening three years after Al-Shabab was
defeated militarily."
Security fears are forcing businesses to close at 4pm, and also affecting
rents.
"Here [in Heliwaa] the cost of rent of [a] five-room villa is US$35-70
depending on the condition of the house. However, in more peaceful areas the
rent is expensive. For example, a five-room home in Waberi is $300-400," he
said. "Some of my neighbours fled but we are just staying behind for
financial reasons."
But across the city, people don't feel safe. "Rarely a night passes without
a phone being robbed at gunpoint," English teacher Ahmed Aden Ibrahim, who
lives in the Hamarjadid neighbourhood, told IRIN.
Inept government, security forces
Abdullahi Adan Hussein, a security analyst and former colonel in the Somali
army, told IRIN
<
http://www.irinnews.org/report/99461/political-infighting-threatens-somalia
-s-government> political infighting within the administration was to blame
for the deterioration in security.
"The predecessors of the current administration had enough time to
understand the psychology of their enemies and respond accordingly, but they
were replaced by the current government," he said. "The new guys needed more
time to adapt to the new situation. However, the Council of Ministers lost
confidence and a security gap was created."
"There is a real continuity problem. Al-Shabab exploited the status quo and
launched these daring attacks," he added.
Amnesty International also blamed the security forces. "Lack of discipline
and command control within Somalia's armed forces and allied armed groups
means that they not only fail to provide civilian protection, but are
actually contributing to the overall insecurity," it noted in a
<
http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/un-security-council-urge
d-tighten-arms-embargo-somalia-2014-03-04> press release. "State security
forces continue to be infiltrated by criminal, radical or insurgent
elements," it said.
Many of the capital's 17 districts have their own armed militia under the
authority of that district's commissioner. In many cases these groups
operate as private armies whose loyalty to the central government varies.
Abdinasir Hashi Jimale, a Mogadishu-based political analyst, believes the
attack on Villa Somalia (theoretically the country's most protected
building) was aimed at demonstrating just how vulnerable the government
remains.
"The presidential palace is the country's symbol and it seems Al Shabab
wants to send a loud message: `We are still here and we can strike you any
time,'" he said.
Al Shabab has already targeted UN installations and personnel - most notably
in July 2013, when the UN compound in Mogadishu was
<
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp/www.iaea.org/html/www.fao.org/story.a
sp?NewsID=45216&Cr=Somalia&Cr1=#.U0Kkeid_ZI0> attacked and has recently
declared some NGOs as enemies, although none have been attacked by the
insurgent group.
"To bring a degree of confidence and stability, the government has to
undertake a number of important measures such as adopting more inclusive
politics that bring all clans on board, because shift of clan loyalty has
the potential to reverse government gains; it should also nominate competent
officials for the top security posts, provide good pay for the soldiers and
build a working justice system," Jimale added.
The humanitarian community is particularly affected by the insecurity, which
besides Al Shabab attacks includes various crimes - muggings, extortion at
checkpoints, kidnapping, and the diversion of aid.
Foreign UN personnel are largely confined to a base at the airport and
international aid workers generally require protection when travelling
around the capital.
"The fact that we have to go around with armed escorts undermines the
principles of `do no harm' and 'neutrality'," one foreign aid worker who
asked not to be named told IRIN.
All this reduces access to people in need and greatly increases the cost of
humanitarian operations, notably for the
<
http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/January_2014_RMMS_
Monthly_Map.pdf> 370,000 internally displaced people in Mogadishu.
Received on Thu Apr 10 2014 - 18:32:39 EDT