Tag: Latest News in English

Assad ready to quit power ?

On July 20, 2012 · In News

1:27 pm
..
0

Paris- Russia’s ambassador to France Alexandre Orlov, said on Friday he believed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had accepted he would have to leave power although only in an orderly fashion.

But the Syrian government swiftly denied this.

Orlov said that Assad, facing a surging uprising against his rule, signalled readiness to step down when he accepted a recent international declaration which foresaw a transition towards a more democratic Syria.

“At the Geneva conference, there was a final communique that foresees a transition towards a more democratic system,’’ Orlov said.

“This final communique was accepted by Assad. Assad nominated his representative to lead the negotiations with the opposition for this transition. That means he accepted to leave, but in an orderly way.’’

Syria’s Information Ministry quickly denied this, saying Orlov’s remarks were “completely devoid of truth’’.

Orlov further said his personal opinion Assad would not be able to remain in power.

“I think it will be difficult for him to stay after everything that has happened. But essentially, he has accepted that he will have to leave.’’

Russia on Thursday blocked a Western-backed UN Security Council resolution that would have contained a threat to impose sanctions if Syria did not comply with UN-Arab League Special Envoy Kofi Annan’s peace plan.

Moscow has repeatedly said any deal must follow the principles outlined at talks in Geneva on June 30 between Annan and veto-holding members of the Security Council, which Russia until now had said did not specifically require Assad’s exit.

“What Russia is defending is not Bashar al-Assad’s regime, but international order that was created in 1945 around the UN,’’ Orlov said.

“For us it is a matter of principle that goes beyond what is happening in Syria.’’

A senior Western diplomat recommended caution with respect to Orlov’s comments. “We have not heard Assad say he is willing to step down before,’’ the diplomat said.

“But what does he mean? Does he mean now or in two years time. We have to be cautious.’’ (Reuters/NAN)

AU Special Representative reaffirms AMISOM’s continued support to the Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA)

adminJanuary 7, 201302 mins

Mogadishu‐January 7th, 2013; The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Mahamat Annadif has congratulated President Hassan Sheikh Mahamoud, his government and the people of Somalia on the occasion of the 41st anniversary of the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) and the re‐opening of its headquarters. Ambassador…

Somalia: Rape flourishes in Mogadishu’s IDP camps

adminJanuary 7, 2013January 7, 2013012 mins

Mogadishu, Somalia – After a protracted conflict that has lasted more than two decades, there’s now a sense of relative calm and security in Somalia. The unidentifiable gunmen that patrolled the streets have been replaced by men in smart uniforms. Road blocks that once divided the city between government and al-Shabab controlled areas have been…

Somalia steps up bid to recover assets stashed in foreign states

adminJanuary 4, 2013January 4, 201304 mins

Nairobi Jan 04 2013 (SDN)- The Somalia Government is working on a plan to recover assets running into millions of dollars frozen by foreign governments and organisations since the collapse of the central government in 1991. Somalia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Fowsiyo Yusuf Haji Aadan began her tour of several countries this week to document Somalia’s…

AU Commission Chairperson Sets Focus For 2013

adminJanuary 4, 2013January 4, 201306 mins

PRETORIA, Jan 4 (SDN) — African Union (AU) Commission chairperson Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma has hit the ground running in 2013, outlining the commission’s major points of focus as the new year begins. “The commission is aware of the challenges that lie ahead of us, as well as of the need to consolidate the gains…

MSF: More refugees to worsen state of Kenya camp

adminJanuary 4, 2013January 4, 201301 mins

Nairobi Jan 04 2013 (SDN)— An international aid organization says the health thousands of Somali refugees will be threatened if they are moved from the urban areas into a camp near the Kenyan-Somali border. Earlier this month the Kenyan government decided that all refugees and asylum seekers must return to refugee camps. The decision is…

Uganda: Rebels Recruiting in Country – UN Report

adminJanuary 4, 2013January 4, 201303 mins

Kampala Jan 04 2013 (SDN)- The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels have a wide network spreading across the East African region, a UN report has revealed. The ADF rebels, according to the report, are closely working with Somalia’s al-Shabaab militia linked to the al-Qaeda terror network. Al-Shabaab is a radical Islamist militant group that has…

Police launch manhunt for ‘terror suspect’ who went missing on Boxing Day… while under close surveillance

adminJanuary 1, 201307 mins

London Jan 01 2013 (SDN)- Police last night launched a nationwide manhunt after an Al Qaeda-linked terror suspect went on the run. Somali-born Ibrahim Magag, 28, was being held under security measures because of the threat he poses to the public. He has not been seen since Boxing Day. Counter-terrorism detectives made the unusual decision…

26 Somali and Eritrean migrants die in the Libyan Desert

WebmasterDecember 29, 201203 mins

Reports from Libya confirmed Friday that 23 Somalis and three Eritreans being smuggled through the north African country died when a vehicle they were in overturned. The dead included youths and women heading to Tripoli with the ultimate goal of reaching Europe by means of usually treacherous sea voyages. According to the Somali Ambassador to…

Construction expert evaluates Somalia’s National soccer facility damages

adminDecember 29, 201206 mins

Mogadishu Dec 29 2012 (SDN)- With Somali Football Federation (SFF) weighting on the African Union peace keepers to vacate the country’s national facility ‘Stadium Mogadishu’ the SFF secretary General Abdi Qani Said Arab, executive committee member Ali Abdi Mohamed and construction expert Lex Vander visited the facility where the Dutch expert inspected all parts of…

One Year Later, MSF Remembers Two Colleagues Killed in Somalia

adminDecember 29, 201202 mins

December 29, 2012 – It is with great sadness that Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) remembers that one year has passed since our two colleagues, Philippe Havet and Andrias Karel Keiluhu (“Kace”), were brutally murdered in Mogadishu. Philippe, a 53-year-old emergency coordinator from Belgium, and Kace, a 44-year-old medical doctor from Indonesia, were…

MSF warns Kenya not to send more refugees to stricken camp

adminDecember 29, 201202 mins

LONDON (Reuters) – Conditions in a camp for Somali refugees in Kenya are deplorable and a government plan to send in thousands more would pose a major risk to health, medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Friday. Kenya has more than half a million refugees from Somalia, which has lacked an effective central…

Nigeria to Deploy 140 Police Officers to Somalia

adminDecember 28, 201202 mins

Addis Ababa Dec 28 2012 (SDN)— The Federal Government of Nigeria has signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with the African Union, AU, for the contribution of one Formed Police Unit, FPU, of 140 police officers and other resources to the organization’s peace Mission in Somalia, AMISOM. Disclosing this information, director of Peacekeeping of the…

Pirates arrested off Somalia

adminDecember 28, 2012December 28, 201201 mins

Brussels Dec 28 2012 (SDN)— Three suspected pirates have been arrested off the coast of Somalia by the Belgian navy frigate Louise-Marie, participating in the European operation Atalanta against piracy in Somalia. The boarding team of the Louise-Marie was deployed to arrest the suspected pirates. The skiff, which was taken on board the frigate, carried…

Uganda: AU Forces Kill More Al Shabaab, Seize Weapons

adminDecember 27, 2012December 27, 201203 mins

Muqdisho Dec 27 2012 (SDN)- AMISOM forces from the Uganda Contingent have killed several Al shabaab insurgents and seized military equipments along Marka-Afgooye road. Nine of the insurgents were shot dead on spot when AMISOM convoy overrun an al Shabaab road ambush sending the terrorists into dismay and seizing 5 submachine guns, two high frequency…

Somali pirates threaten to kill hostages

WebmasterDecember 27, 201202 mins

Somali pirates stationed in parts of Mudug region are threatening to kill hostages they have been holding since January 2011, reports indicate. The pirates picked up the hostages from a ship they attacked and hijacked. Reports reaching Mogadishu from Central Somalia indicated that the pirates had failed to secure ransom payment for the release of…

Reverse brain drain: Heading home to Somalia

WebmasterDecember 26, 201209 mins

HARGEISA, Somalia — The Kulan Art Café is a bright airy place with murals and framed paintings by local artists, potted plants, fresh coffee and ice cream, homemade cakes and a menu featuring Western staples like pizza and hamburgers. In Hargeisa, the capital of the breakaway state of Somaliland, there is nothing else like it….

Somali pirates release longest-held hostages after 33 months

WebmasterDecember 24, 2012December 24, 201204 mins

BOSASSO, Somalia (Reuters) – A ship and its crew of 22 sailors held by Somali pirates for almost three years have been freed after a two-week-long siege by maritime police, the government of the breakaway region of Puntland said on Sunday. The sailors aboard Panama-flagged MV Iceberg 1, from the Philippines, India, Yemen, Sudan, Ghana…

Men accused of training with Somali terror group face charges in NYC

WebmasterDecember 23, 201201 mins

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Three men who were arrested months ago in Africa have been charged in New York City with training with a terrorist group in Somalia. The New York Times reports that Ali Yasin Ahmen, Mahdi Hashi and Mohamed Yusuf appeared in a federal court in Brooklyn on Friday to face charges that…

Somalis in Kenya hounded by security forces, refugee policy

WebmasterDecember 22, 2012011 mins

Exiled Somali journalists living in Nairobi were struck with disbelief this week when daily newspapers published a statement by the Department of Refugee Affairs ordering all Somali refugees to move to refugee camps. “The refugees, particularly those living in urban centers, are contributing to insecurity in the country,” the statement read. The acting commissioner for…

British-Somali man’s family fear US is secretly holding him

adminDecember 21, 2012December 21, 2012013 mins

The family of a young Somali-British man who disappeared from Mogadishu believes he is being secretly held by US agencies, his father has told the Bureau. Mahdi Hashi, 23, was informed in June that he was to lose his British citizenship because he ‘present[ed] a risk to national security’. Weeks later he disappeared from the…