Tag: GreatLakesNews

{{The AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) fighting the Al-shabaab extremists has become a victim of its own success.}}

The Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Katumba Wamala has raised an alarm saying that capturing more territory from the Al-shabaab has widened AMISOM’s area of operation, which has over stretched the troops.

Gen. Katumba said that there is need to raise the troop numbers from current 17,731 up to between 20,000 and 25,000 troops, equipped with force multipliers and enablers in form of helicopters for aerial combat and evacuation.

“We have been stretched and we cannot get more with the present force level. We have reached the limit and cannot expand anymore. We can only consolidate and clean up areas,” Gen. Katumba said.

He was on Tuesday addressing journalists during a press conference at the Ministry of Defence headquarters in Mbuya. He said that with the current troop numbers, AMISOM cannot cover more ground without becoming more vulnerable to the enemy Al-shabaab.

“It’s not a good development as far as defeating Al-shabaab,” he told journalists and added that the African Union should sooner than later intervene to address this issue.

The African Union troops from Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Sierra Leone and Djibouti are serving in Somalia with authorization from the UN Security Council.

Uganda and Burundi were the first countries to deploy troops in Somalia in March 2007. Presently, Uganda has close to 7,000 troops under AMISOM to fight the Al-qaeda affiliated Al-shabaab insurgents.

“As a commander, I would rather do something short, sharp and finish; than do something which is endless as it has been happening. It’s like giving a patient a dose which keeps him alive but does not cure,” said Gen. Katumba.

Katumba said the other option would be training the Somalis to fill the existing troop gap and overtime, take charge of their country’s security. However, currently, there is no training of sufficient troop numbers for the Somali National Army.

He said that following an Al-shabaab linked terror attack in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Uganda is prepared to counter any terrorism attack, with national security agencies of Police, the army and JATT working closely to respond to any threat.

He advised and called for public vigilance at worship places such as churches, shopping malls as well as places beyond urban centres.

NV

{{A British woman nicknamed the “white widow” has emerged as a possible suspect in Saturday’s deadly terrorist attack carried out by al Shabaab Islamic militants on the Westgate mall in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.}}

Speculation over the involvement of Samantha Lewthwaite, the wife of one of the suicide bombers who carried out the London 7/7 attacks, was fuelled by comments made by Kenya’s Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed on Monday, in which she said that a British woman was one of the attackers.

“From the information that we have, two or three Americans [were involved] and I think, so far, I have heard of one Brit… a woman … and I think she has done this many times before,” she told the PBS NewsHour programme.

Should the minister’s comments prove accurate, Lewthwaite, who has been previously linked to terrorist activity and is wanted by Kenyan police over an alleged plot to bomb the country’s coast, would appear a likely suspect.

The daughter of a British soldier, Lewthwaite, 29, appears to have enjoyed an ordinary upbringing in the English market town of Aylesbury, around 45 miles northwest of London.

She first came to the attention of the British media in the wake of the July 7 bombings in London in 2005, which killed 52 people. Her husband, Germaine Lindsay, was one of four suicide bombers involved in the attack.

She met Jamaican-born Lindsay in an internet chatroom at the age of 17, two years after she converted to Islam.

Pregnant with the couple’s second child at the time, Lewthwaite initially seemed appalled by her husband’s actions.

“I totally condemn and am horrified by the atrocities which occurred in London,” she said, describing Lindsay as “a good and loving husband and a brilliant father, who showed absolutely no sign of doing this atrocious crime”.

The ‘myth’ of Samantha Lewthwaite

However, in the years following 7/7, media reports have linked Lewthwaite with a number of attacks across the Horn of Africa and named her as a prominent member of al Shabaab, earning her the nickname “white widow” in the press.

In February 2012 it was reported that Kenyan police were hunting for Lewthwaite after finding a fake passport containing her picture during a raid on a house linked to terrorist activity, while in August 2013 she was accused of orchestrating a grenade attack on a bar in Mombasa.

But while she is “undoubtedly involved in some way” with al Shabaab, “there is not a great deal of information” on Lewthwaite’s exact activities in recent years, Shiraz Meher said.

“She pops up periodically from time to time across the Horn of Africa. But there’s very little in the way of concrete facts,” he said.

But whether or not she has been directly involved in any terrorist acts, her importance to al Shabaab and the wider Jihadist movement is more symbolic, says Meher.

“The first thing is that she’s a convert to Islam, she’s white, English. She has great propaganda value.

“And her husband was a July 7 bomber, which gives her a kind of pedigree as a jihadist. It feeds into the ‘myth of Samantha’.”

Confusion remains over Lewthwaite’s role

Despite the rife press speculation, whether Lewthwaite, or any women for that matter, were involved in the Nairobi attack, remains unclear with conflicting reports coming from witnesses, security forces and the Kenyan government.

Early reports at the time of the attack, which began Saturday and led to a hostage standoff between the Islamists and police that was still in progress on Tuesday, cited witnesses who said at least one of the attackers was a woman.

However, Kenyan Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said earlier on Monday that all of the terrorists were male, though some had dressed as women, before being contradicted by Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed’s comments.

Meanwhile, a British security source told media that it was possible that Lewthwaite was involved in the Nairobi siege. “It is a possibility. But nothing definitive or conclusive yet” the source said.

Meher believes it is “impossible to speculate” at this stage over Lewthwaite’s possible involvement.

“There’s so much conflicting information even from government officials in Kenya,” he said. “It would be unusual though for a woman to be involved in this kind of attack.”

The British Foreign Office, meanwhile, has refused to comment on whether one of its citizens may have taken part in the attack.

France24

{{After a harrowing four-day siege in a Nairobi mall, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said security forces had defeated the terrorists and the assault was finally over in an address to the nation on Tuesday night.}}

“We have ashamed and defeated our attackers, that part of our task is completed,” said Kenyatta.

“We have been badly hurt, but we have been brave, united and strong. Kenya has stared down evil and triumphed. We have defeated our enemies and showed the whole world what we can accomplish.”

Kenyatta said 61 civilians and six members of the security forces died in the siege. He said five attackers had been killed and that there were 11 suspects in custody.

The Kenyan president also revealed that towards the end of the security operation, three floors of the Westgate mall had collapsed and there were several bodies buried in the rubble.

Kenyatta’s televised address to the nation came a day after the Kenyan Interior Ministry said security forces had taken control of the mall. But on Tuesday, sporadic gunfire and explosions were heard from the sealed-off site, prompting questions over whether the siege had finally ended and the site had been secured.

Kenyatta declared a three-day period of national mourning starting Wednesday.

The Somali militant group al Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the Nairobi mall attack, which began on Saturday afternoon as the popular, upscale mall was packed with shoppers and families dining in the food court section.

{{Somalia’s prime minister appealed on Tuesday for international support to combat al Shabaab militants but said a military solution to their insurgency alone was not enough.}}

Addressing the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva , Abdi Farah Shirdon denounced what he called the “cowardly attack” by al Shabaab militants on a shopping mall in the Kenyan capital Nairobi and said those responsible must be held accountable.

He praised the 17,000-strong African peacekeeping force deployed in Somalia for improving security and fighting al Shabaab, who he said were now weakened.

But Somalia, emerging from two decades of civil war, still faced many challenges, he said.

“We still have a difficult journey ahead of us. A military solution alone is not enough, promotion of rule of law, greater regional cooperation and economic stability and provision of public services are all key factors that complement the military effort,” Shirdon said in his speech.

A government priority was to cut youth unemployment.

“This provided al Shabaab a building ground to recruit and spread their destructive ideology. It is therefore essential to create educational and economic opportunities for youth,” he said.

Al Shabaab said on Tuesday its fighters were still holed up in the mall they attacked at the weekend. The known death toll stands at 62.

wirestory

Kenyan security forces are close to ending a Nairobi shopping mall siege, Interior Minister Joseph ole Lenku said on Monday, with Islamist attackers still fighting but left with no way out of the complex.

“We think the operation will come to an end soon,” Lenku told a press conference.

“We are in control of all the floors, the terrorists are running and hiding in some stores… there is no room for escape.”

At least two of the gunmen were killed in the assault Monday morning and “several injured,” Lenku added.

Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab insurgents have claimed the attack, which began on Saturday, but Kenyan army chief Julius Karangi said the gunmen had different nationalities, without giving further details.

“They are from different countries. We have sufficient intelligence this is global terrorism,” Karangi said.

Several foreign fighters, including Somalis with dual nationalities, are members of the Shabaab force.

Contrary to some earlier rumours, Lenku denied that any of the insurgents were women.

“There are no women, all the terrorists are men. Some of them had dressed like women,” he said.

capitalFM

{{Former Kenya President Mwai Kibaki appeared in a Nyeri High court on Monday in connection with a civil suit over a property involving a company he originally co-owned with eight others.}}

The retired President could however not testify as the suit was adjourned to give the parties involved more time to prepare.

The former President appeared before Justice Anthony Ombwayo of the Land and Environment court ready to give evidence after he was named as one of the defendants in the suit filed by Mathingira Wholesalers, owner of a commercial property in Nyeri town.

The retired President had applied through senior counsel Gibson Kamau Kuria to be allowed to testify before the court due to his nature of engagement but the judge declined over lack of documentation to support the application.

The senior counsel had asked the court to allow the former President to give his evidence on priority basis although there were still pleadings pending to be filed by both parties.

However, the directors of Mathingira who are the plaintiff in the suit through their lawyer Lucy Mwai objected to the application before all papers are filed.

The case was adjourned until October 14 this year when it will be heard.

It is the first time that the former President is appearing in court over a civil matter since he retired early this year.

{capitalFM}

{{The streets of Khartoum on Sunday witnessed heightened security presence as gas stations updated their fuel prices to reflect today’s directives issued by the oil ministry by which all grades of gasoline saw a price increase.}}

While the measure was largely anticipated for months due to statements made by government officials on their intentions to cut fuel subsidies on the grounds that it is burdening the country’s finances, some gas stations asked for police assistance to restrain irate customers.

Security officers have also rounded up several opposition youth figures which included Sideeg Youssef (Sudan Communist Party); Mohamed Abdel-Moniem and Munzir Abul-Meaali (Arab Nasserite Unionist Party); Mohamed Hassan Boushi (Baath Party); Omer Dafalla (National Umma Party).

Furthermore, vehicles belonging to the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) were reportedly seen near the residence of National Consensus Forces (NCF) chairman Farouk Abu Essa while social media sites claimed that security agents stormed the home of Baath party leading figure Mohamed Diaa al-Deen.

Last year certain subsidies on food and fuel were partially lifted drawing rare but small anti-government demonstrations.

In Khartoum, the Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir held a two-hour press conference which he devoted primarily to defending the move to cut subsidies and reiterated his earlier arguments that most of these subsidies goes into the pockets of the wealthy population at the expense of the poor ones.

Bashir further asserted that some neighboring countries benefit from the subsidies as a result of smuggling adding that it is hard to control the borders to prevent that due to its length. He further said that some government officers allow the smuggling in return for bribes.

The Sudanese leader emphasized that the decision was made collectively by the government and rejected criticism directed at the Finance and National Economy Minister Ali Mahmood Abdel-Rasool on the assumption that he is behind this economic package.

He dismissed fears that this move will lead to an ‘Arab Spring’ in Sudan and noted that some people rushed to the market to buy goods and stock it at home fearing a big price increase.

But Bashir said that this is only temporary and that those who stocked goods at their home would seek to get rid of it later “at a loss”.

wirestory

{{The United States was stuck on the horns of a dilemma Thursday, mulling whether to grant a visa to indicted war crimes suspect Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir amid growing pressure to bar him from a UN summit.}}

“There are a variety of considerations in play with respect to President Bashir’s visa request, including the outstanding warrant for his arrest,” State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said.

But she refused to discuss all the considerations publicly, with Mr Bashir sought by the International Criminal Court to face charges of genocide in the war-torn Darfur region.

Mr Bashir’s request for a visa to travel to New York for next week’s UN General Assembly has embarrassed the US government and the United Nations.

Washington opposes Mr Bashir attending the annual meeting, but it has refused to say whether it can or will block the Sudanese leader.

Under its obligations as the host nation of the United Nations, Washington is generally obliged to grant visas for heads of state wishing to visit the US on UN business.

But the International Criminal Court on Wednesday urged US authorities to arrest Mr Bashir should he land in New York.

The court has asked “the competent US authorities to arrest Omar al-Bashir and surrender him to the court, in the event he enters their territory,” the ICC said.

Speaking about Mr Bashir’s case, Harf said “we clearly strongly supported the ICC’s efforts to hold accountable those responsible for the kind of war crimes he’s been accused of.”

But she refused to specify whether Washington would grant him the visa or not.

Activists, including Hollywood stars George Clooney, Mia Farrow and Don Cheadle, have meanwhile urged President Barack Obama to “do everything possible” to dissuade president Bashir from making the trip.

“Our immigration laws prohibit admitting perpetrators of genocide and extrajudicial killings into our country and it is unprecedented for someone wanted by the International Criminal Court for the crime of genocide to travel to the United States,” some 25 activists said in a letter.

{{African women MPs and leaders want parents to allow their teenage daughters to access family planning and reproductive health services with a view of bringing down the increasing cases of early and unwanted pregnancies, risky abortions and maternal deaths.}}

The women leaders on a two-day capacity building meeting that opened on Sunday at Speke Resort Munyonyo discussed ways on how they can reposition family planning and reproductive health on the development agenda of their respective government budgets.

The meeting was organized by Partners in Population and Development Africa Regional Office (PPDARO) in collaboration with the Health Policy Project and drew participants from Ethiopia, Malawi, Ghana and Uganda the host.