There has been anger in some quarters over alleged abuses by security forces.
The United Nations (UN), together with international humanitarian organisations and other partners, on April 23rd unveiled The Somalia Covid‐19 Country Preparedness and Response Plan to deal with the impact of coronavirus in the fragile country.
The plan aims to provide a six‐to‐nine‐month framework for the humanitarian, development and political aid from the international community to Somalia, according to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The country relies on humanitarian and financial support from its friends in the world, as the pandemic wrecks its main sources of income. Complicating matters further is the political wrangling between the central government and a number of federal member states, who do not see eye‐to‐eye with the Mogadishu administration (see p.22690B). The Puntland regional state has said it is yet to receive US$1m the federal government had ordered dispatched to states to help battle the pandemic. The Jubbaland regional state has also expressed frustration with the delay in the financial support it was expecting from the federal government to battle the disease. (Mareeg 23/4)
Hundreds of residents staged a rally in the capital on April 25th to protest the shooting of two unarmed civilians by a policeman during a curfew imposed to curb the spread of Covid‐19. They also called for lifting of the curfew.
The commander of the police force, Abdi Hassan Mohamed, sacked Bondhere district police commissioner Najib Arab following the shooting on April 24th. The police also announced the arrest of a police officer suspected of shooting the two civilians. The government announced it had revised the hours of the curfew, saying it would begin at 8 pm instead of 7 pm.
There has been growing anger among some residents over alleged abuses by security forces, including beatings while enforcing virus‐related restrictions.
Somalia has one of the world's weakest healthcare systems and coronavirus cases have been rising quickly. (Radio Shabelle, Radio Kulmiye 25/4; aljazeera.com 25/4)
Al‐Shabaab has blamed the disease on “the crusader forces who have invaded the country and the disbelieving countries that support them”.
“Coronavirus has uncovered the weakness of those who claimed to be superpowers such US, France, Italy, Germany and Britain,” Fu'ad Mohamed Khalaf told a congregation in a mosque in an al‐Shabaab‐controlled area of southern Somalia, according to the group's news channels. A spokesman for the group said it was too soon to comment on whether the group would heed a UN plea for a ceasefire or whether it would allow health workers to access areas it controlled. (Agencies 16/4)
Clan Fighting
At least 70 people have been killed in fierce battles involving rival clans since December 2019, reports indicate, in yet another puzzle that could derail concerted efforts to restore peace in Somalia.
At least 20 people had been killed in southern Somalia in clashes between militia from rival clans fighting over land, officials and witnesses said on April 2nd. Tensions between fighters from the Owrmale and Majerten clans some 30 kilometres (17 miles) outside Kismayo, have been rising in recent weeks. President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo called on both sides to show restraint and end the bloodshed.
Some clan militias have been unleashing violence against civilians in Lower Shabelle, Lower Jubba and in the vicinity of Dinsor town within the Bay region, reports indicate. But the commercial town of Wanlewayn is the worst hit. There has been a collective effort by government bureaucrats to quell the tensions, which are occasioned by traditional political grudges, economic marginalisation, and the vicious land use, officials said.
Inter‐clan conflicts in Somalia have long been the source of instability; the fighting triggered the ouster of dictator Siad Barre in 1991. Since then, the country has lost thousands of people to inter‐clan conflicts. To date, certain clans claim to have absolute rights to lead the country, a move that has caused rifts even among the elites. The recent number of casualties is the worst in the history of modern Somalia, which is keen to establish a functional state with the aid of international partners. (Garoweonline website 7/4; © AFP 2/4 2020)
Recently talks spearheaded by Galmudug regional ministers and ministers from the Somali region of Ethiopia were held in the area. The talks ended with an agreement and the fighting militias were asked to withdraw from the area. Joint forces from the Somali National Army (SNA) and Ethiopian troops arrived in Galguduud region (centre) after the agreement to prevent a recurrence of the violence. (Radio Kulmiye 17/4)
Civilian Casualties in Air Strikes: The US Africom Commander Gen Stephen Townsend has admitted its operations killed two civilians and injured three others in an airstrike on February 23rd, 2019. The admission in Africom's inaugural quarterly report on casualties of its airstrikes affirmed earlier claims by Amnesty International.
“This first regular public report acknowledging Africom's role in civilian casualties is a welcome glimmer of transparency in more than a decade of deadly military operations that until now have been shrouded in secrecy,” Seif Magango, Amnesty International's deputy regional director for eastern Africa said. (Hiiraan 28/4)
Meanwhile 11 al‐Shabaab militants were reportedly killed in self‐defence air strikes on April 10th in southern Somalia, Africom reported on Twitter.
On April 2nd Africom said that it killed a senior Shabaab official identified as Yusuf Jiis in an air strike conducted in the Bay Region (southwest). (Twitter 10/4)
Kenyan Probe: Kenya is investigating suspected links between Somalia's National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) and al‐Shabaab. A confidential report seen by The Standard suggests al‐Shabaab and NISA have been jointly working to defeat the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) operations.
According to the report, top Shabaab and NISA officials have been in constant contact in operations both in Somalia and in Kenya, targeting Kenyan security personnel in the front‐line in the battle against the militant group. The report indicates that some top NISA officials who have been trained by Kenyan security agencies have been providing highly confidential information to al‐Shabaab to facilitate the militant group's operations. (The Standard 17/4) Civilian casualties p.22667C; Clan clashes p.22668B