Horn afric I discovered a better article you didnt give me a time

The Great Game in Somalia By Abid Mustafa The recent upsurge in fighting between the various factions in Somalia is a typical example of wars being fought throughout the African continent where the real benefactor is neither the people nor local governments, but major powers. Somalia is another country that has been caught up in a vicious struggle between great powers competing against each other to control the Horn of Africa. The reason for this interference in Somalia’s internal affairs is simple. Somalia is replete with abundance of natural resources. Uranium deposits, oil and natural gas can be found in Somalia. Oil seeps were discovered in the colonial era by both British and Italian geologists. Later, French and American oil companies competed with British and Italian oil companies for concession rights to the exploration of oil. In the years to follow Somalia became a battle ground between Europe and America for the right to control Somalia’s oil wealth. Europe led by Britain fought America through supporting local militias and surrogate countries like Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti, while America supported her militiamen through countries like Ethiopia and Sudan. The power struggle between Europe and America contributed to decades of civil war, secessionist movements and break away states. In the late 80s, under the leadership of Somalia’s pro-U.S. President Mohamed Siad Barre nearly two-thirds of Somalia was allocated to the American oil giants Conoco, Amoco, Chevron and Phillips. Siad Barre was inconveniently deposed just as Conoco reportedly hit black gold with nine exploratory wells, confirmed by World Bank geologists at the time. During the coup, US envoy to Somalia, Robert Oakley took refuge at Conco headquarters. The removal of Baree prompted Bush senior to dispatch 20,000 US troops in 1992 to restore US rule and thereby secure valuable oil concessions granted to US oil companies. The military intervention was touted as a humanitarian intervention designed to save the starving Somalian souls from famine. The military action resulted in defeat for the US as she was unable to accomplish her mission and pulled out. Nonetheless, America made sure that her retreat would not encourage the Europeans to exert control, and a bitter struggle ensued between these powers via their agents in Somalia and the neighbouring countries. These powers did not allow any stable government to form and encouraged a number of secessionist states such as Puntland, Somaliland and Jubaland to cede from Somalia or at least demand greater autonomy. Despite the civil war, foreign countries were able to oil sign treaties with the transitional Somalia government. Oil companies from France, the UK, the UAE, and China attained exploration rights granted by the Transitional National Government, the Somaliland government, and the Puntland government respectively. TotalFinaElf, which has been operating in the port of Berbera throughout the civil war, signed an exploration deal with the TNG in early 2001 off the Somali coast during which the government would provide security for TotalFinalElf employees. Rovagold of the UK, Dubai-based Zarara, and two Chinese firms signed exploration deals with the Somaliland government. Chinese firms are reportedly conducting exploration activities in Puntland. It was not until the events of September 11 that America began take a renewed interest in Somalia. This time America used the pretext of fighting terrorism to pursue her oil interests in the country. Somalia, like other energy rich countries features heavily as part of America’s grand plan to control the energy reserves of the world for the next fifty years. However, due to her awful occupation of Iraq, America was unable to give due attention to Somalia until now. But this time America is supporting both the warlords and the Islamists to manufacture a pretext to invade the country. A top US diplomat in Africa, Jendayi Frazer, acknowledged that the White House would work with those who can help “prevent Somalia becoming a safe haven for terroristsâ€. The statement was in reference to assisting the warlords against the Islamists. America has been equipping the warlords with weapons. These are the very same warlords who have been accommodated in Yusuf’s government as part of a power sharing agreement. These warlords include those who hold the portfolios of security, trade, religion, disarmament and reconstruction. Furthermore the US has also subverted any attempt to interrupt the supply of weapons to both sides. A United Nations report called for a tighter arms embargo on Somalia but this was rejected by the Security Council. The report stated that an unnamed country had been flouting the weapons ban to help local groups fight the Islamic militants. It said that Ethiopia was supplying weapons to Mr Yusuf’s interim government, while Eritrea was arming the Islamists The American plan is to fragment the country into regions and then encourage the energy laden areas to cede and fall in line with US interests. This bears strong resemblance to America’s plan to divide Sudan. The chances of US success depend upon how she is able to counter threats from other powers. In Sudan countries like France, Britain, China and Russia have made it complicated for America to realise her goal and in Somalia this too may prove to be difficult. June 3 2006 Abid Mustafa is a political commentator who specialises in Muslim affairs

US covert operations underway in Somalia; resource conflict escalates over Horn of Africa By Larry Chin May 27, 2006 Online Journal According to a May 16 report in the Washington Post, US analysts of Africa policy and officials of Somalia’s interim government say that the Bush administration is secretly supporting secular Somali warlords, whose groups are battling Islamic groups for control of Mogadishu. While the Bush administration has continued to dodge questions about what appear to be “classic†covert operations (similar to those taking place in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Colombia, etc.), Somali government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari has unequivocally declared “the US government funded the warlords in the recent battle in Mogadishu, there is no doubt about that. This cooperation . . . only fuels further civil war.†Somalia is considered a "terrorist haven," as well as a potential “hotbed of al Qaeda activity.†It is no surprise that in recent press conferences, new White House spokesman and propaganda mouthpiece (former Fox News pundit) Tony Snow repeatedly referred to “al Qaeda terrorists.†A senior US intelligence official quoted in the Washington Post article (who asked not to be named) says that Somalia presents “a classic ‘enemy of our enemy’ situation†(but “not an al Qaeda safe haven yetâ€), while former Clinton administration Africa specialist John Prendergast (now a senior advisor for the George Soros-funded International Crisis Group think tank) notes that “the US relies on buying intelligence from warlords and other participants in the Somali conflict, and hoping that the strongest of the warlords can snatch a live suspect or two" [for interrogation or rendition-LC].†Competing Geostrategic and Energy Interests in Somalia Somalia is of geostrategic interest to the Bush administration, and the focus of operations and policy since 2001. This focus is a continuation of long-term policies of both the Clinton administration and the George H.W. Bush administrations. Somalia’s resources have been eyed by Western powers since the days of the British Empire. According to the US Energy Information Administration, Somalia currently has no proven oil reserves, and only 200 billion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves, and no hydrocarbon production. But this has not dimmed continuing interest in Somalia’s untapped and unexplored potential, and the possibility of an energy bonanza following any resolution of the country’s “internal security problems.†The Somalian regime currently welcomes oil interests. Conoco, Agip, Amoco, Chevron, and Phillips held concessions in the area. Of more immediate logistical and military interest, Somalia is situated on a key corridor between the Middle East and Africa, strategically located on the coast of the Arabian Sea, a short distance from Yemen. As laid bare in the January 1993 report by Mark Fineman of the Los Angeles Times, "The Oil Factor in Somalia," US oil companies, including Conoco, Amoco, Chevron and Phillips were positioned to exploit Somalia’s rich oil reserves during the reign of pro-US President Mohammed Siad Barre. These companies had secured billion-dollar concessions to explore and drill in large portions of the Somali countryside prior to the coup led by warlord Mohammed Farah Aidid that toppled Barre. The US Somalia envoy at the time was CIA operative Robert Oakley, a chief “counter-terrorism†officer during the George H.W. Bush presidency, and veteran of the Afghanistan and Iran-Contra operations of the 1980s. Conoco’s Mogadishu office housed the US embassy and military headquarters. The infamous Somalia military operation of 1993, popularly depicted in the Philadelphia Inquirer series (and subsequent Hollywood film) "Blackhawk Down," was not a humanitarian mission, but an undeclared UN/US war launched by the George H.W. Bush adminstration, and inherited by the Clinton presidency. The operation was spearheaded by Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Howe (who remained in charge of the UN operation after Clinton took office), and approved by Colin Powell, then head of the Joint Chiefs. The current Bush administration’s escalation in Somalia is a trip “back to the future.†As noted by William Engdahl, “Yemen fits nicely as an ‘emerging target’ with the other target nearby, Somalia,†both of which are important geostrategic “choke pointsâ€: “Washington’s choice of Somalia and Yemen is a matched pair, as a look at a Middle East/Horn of Africa map will confirm. Yemen sits at the oil transit chokepoint of Bab el-Mandap, the narrow point controlling oil flow connecting the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean. Yemen also has oil, although no one yet knows just how much. It could be huge. A US firm, Hunt Oil Co. is pumping 200, 000 barrels a day from there but that is likely only the tip of the find. “A new US cleansing of Somalian ‘tyranny’ would open the door for these US oil companies to map and develop the possibly huge oil potential in Somalia. Yemen and Somalia are two flanks of the same geological configuration, which holds large potential petroleum deposits, as well as being the flanks of the oil chokepoint from the Red Sea.†The US, and US-affiliated oil interests, must, at the very least, find ways to head off the aggressive oil and gas-related operations on the part of China and its oil companies throughout the Horn of Africa region, Kenya, and Ethiopia, and West Africa. The intense uproar over genocide in Darfur, and shrill calls for military intervention, masks intense geostrategic resource conflict being waged between competing superpowers. As Engdahl notes, “Sudan, as noted, has become a major oil supplier to China whose national oil company has invested more than $3 billion since 1999, building oil pipelines from the south to the Red Sea port. The coincidence of this fact with the escalating concern in Washington about genocide and humanitarian disaster in oil-rich Darfur in southern Sudan, is not lost on Beijing. China threatened a UN veto against any intervention against Sudan. The first act of a re-elected [sic] Dick Cheney late last year was to fill his vice presidential jet with UN Security Council members to fly to Nairobi to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, an eerie reminder of Defense Secretary Cheney’s ‘humanitarian’ concern over Somalia in 1991.†Recently, exploration teams from Australia have been hunting for oil in Somalia’s Puntland. Canadian lawyer Jay Park, “one of the world’s top oil and gas lawyers,†is working with the Somalian government to create a "credible petroleum regime". According to Park, "(Somalia) is one of the poorest countries in the world, but it may be sitting on some of the greatest oil and gas treasures.†With the world facing Peak Oil and Gas, the world’s superpowers are racing to secure every last drop of oil and natural gas from every remaining inch of the planet, with the African continent quickly becoming the stage for new violence and warfare. It is no surprise that Anglo-American oil interests, and the Bush administration’s covert operatives, are working Somalia, and the region, for all it is worth. ------------------------------------------------- The Centre for Research on Globalization.

In the name of the so-called Somali Nationalism, whose unity are we concerned with and whom will nationalism benefit most? The very creation of Puntland and Somaliland are very much necessitating the use of the clan in more ulgy and detrimental ways than before and the sooner other regions of the country taste the bitterness of separating themselves as clan fiefdoms, the better I am one of the many transcendentalists who want change, who have detached themselves from the clan and opted out of it forever. I support secessions not because I think they are clannish or not, but I strongly support their universal right to pursue their autonomy or independence. I am in support of Puntland, Riverland or Jubaland for that reason and that reason alone. So Xiin, I will leave you to tow the line of the veiled D—rood sold as nationalism. Paragon, you seem really confused and self-defeating because your statements are contradictory, you arguing that you are against nation-state of Somalia because it’s allegedly a D-rod agenda, although the charge is unfounded and in fact it is insult to majority of somali people, the 13 somali youth who established the SYL, Somalia first president and father of modern somali nationalism honorable Osman Aden Adde, Abwaan Abdurahman Timacadde, and Abwaan Abdulaahi Qarshe “Qolaba Calankeedu Waa Caynee Inagaa Keenu Waa Cirka oo Kala e Aan Caadna Lahayn Een Caashaqayee Xidigyahay Cadi waad noo Ciidamisee†You can accuse regime tribalism, but it’s unheard to accuse nation tribalism While you support tribal-states like Awdalland, Somaliland, Puntland, Jubaland, and Riverland, is it because you support the use of the clan in more ulgy and detrimental ways as you noted If we implement a policy to divide Somalia into mini-states as Paragon suggests, we will confront a more complicated problem than unity vs secession dispute; this more dangerous crisis is How do we divide Somalia???, the mini-states will fight over territories and Somali peninsula might experience endless wars between newly formed mini-states, Somaliland-Puntland dispute is already the first such wars. In the future it’s very possible to witness a endless wars in Somali peninsula and Horn Africa, between awdal vs northwest, northwest vs north central (SSC), northest vs hiiraan, bay/bakol vs shabelle, upper jubba vs lower Jubba, etc I believe the division of Somalia into mini sub clan-states will only makes situation worse, if we say Somalia will only be dominated by sub-clan, well the same will be true for mini clan-states like Somaliland and Puntland, we can say Somaliland and Puntland is dominated by x and y sub-sub-sub clan and its really in some degree true. What going on Mogadisho for the last 17 years the war is still raging between diffrent sub sub sub clans How you see the future of Somali peninsula in general?

Islamic revival spreads in Syria despite rule of secular Baath DAMASCUS/ALEPPO: The three Mohammads are all sure of one thing. "I want to be the imam of a mosque," says 10-year-old Mohammad, on his way home from a lesson in Aleppo's Islamic school. "I want to be a preacher too," chimes his friend, also named after the Prophet, dressed in his finest black gelab. "We like to study the Koran," explains the third Mohammad, also a resident of Syria's second city, "because it's our religion." Syria is witnessing a revival of Islam in public and private life two decades after the secular government fought a bloody campaign to suppress an armed uprising against the state by Islamic extremists. "The relationship between the government and the direction of Islam is now suitable," said Mohammad Habbash, the country's leading Islamist MP and head of the Islamic Studies Center in Damascus. "We can now speak about what role Islam can play in people's lives." Habbash's recent invitation to lecture army cadets on religious morals - the first time the Syrian military has officially cooperated with Islamist figures since the Baath Party came to power in 1963 - is just one of a series of recent moves to allow Islam into public life. In 1982, following a three-year armed campaign against the state by the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood, security officers ordered the shelling of the central city of Hama, which the Islamist group had declared an Islamic emirate. The offensive resulted in the deaths of an estimated 20,000 people. Hamed Haji, 73, the muezzin whose call to prayer draws students - like the three young Mohammads - to Aleppo's Islamic school, remembers the violence. "In the 1980s, bullets hit the minaret," he recalls, pointing up to the pock-marked circles of stone. "And beards were not allowed; but we have more freedoms now." Indeed, the past few months have seen a number of moves aimed at institutionalizing Islam into Syria's old secular state. Mosques have been reopened between prayer times, the president has begun ending public speeches with invocations to God, and state auditoriums have been used for the country's first Koran reading competition. In February, Syrian protesters burned and looted the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus in a display of anger against the publication of cartoons negatively depicting the Prophet Mohammad. At the time, security officials did little to quell the demonstrations, which were organized by Islamic study centers in the capital. Among citizens, overt signs of religious devotion are becoming more frequent. An increasing number of young women are wearing headscarves, while green flags - representing Islam - adorned private shops on the Prophet's birthday in April. Though three quarters of Syria's population are Sunni, the ruling party has long drawn its leaders from the minority Alawi sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, which - along with Druze and other Muslim sects - makes up just 16 percent of the national population. Pan-Arab and secular, the Baath Party has historically ruled on a domestic platform of protecting the rights of Syria's minorities. For Habbash, the state's changing approach to Islam comes against a backdrop of regional upheaval since the launch of the US-led "war on terrorism," which has seen Islamist parties winning elections in Egypt, Iraq and the Palestinian territories and an increasingly influential role for long-time Syrian ally and theocratic republic Iran. "The Syrian regime realized it has the same agenda as conservative Islamists," says Habbash. "They've formed an alliance to resist the current US administration's plan to change the region." However, Aleppo's mufti, Ibrahim Salkeeni, warns that US intervention in the Middle East has also served to radicalize many young Syrians. "American practices in Iraq and Palestine are pushing some young people in Aleppo to become like time bombs - and we don't know when these will explode," he says. "The more the pressure increases, the more explosions there will be." Syria, however, still considers the Muslim Brotherhood to be an outlawed group. The Brotherhood's exiled leader, Ali Sadreddine Bayanouni, has united with former Syrian Vice President Abdel-Halim Khaddam to lead an opposition group calling for regime change in Damascus. Association with the group is punishable by death. For Mohammad Akam, professor of Arabic-language studies at Aleppo University, the state's increasing acceptance of Islam's role in society is a welcome development. But, he adds, the new strategy is no substitute for the reform of an outdated political system. "The conflict between the state and the Muslim Brotherhood was actually a conflict of ideologies," he says. "We need a party without ideology. Between secularism and freedom, I prefer freedom. Secularism is a kind of ideology, but democracy is a way of including all." This article is reprinted in The Daily Star with permission from the UN Integrated Regional

Islam on the rise in Syria 25 years after revolt crushed Syria witnesses religious awakening Growing number of young Syrians attending weekly Muslim prayers, more women are wearing veil. DAMASCUS - Nearly 25 years after a Muslim Brotherhood uprising was crushed, Syria is witnessing the return of Islam inspired by political triumphs such as that of Hamas by Islamists in several Arab states. A growing number of young Syrians have been attending weekly Muslim prayers in mosques, and more and more women are taking private lessons to study the Koran and wearing the veil on the streets. "Almost 30 percent of Syrian men are taking part in Friday prayers in the 9,000 mosques of Syria," said Islamist MP Mohammed Habash who heads the Islamic Studies Centre in Damascus. "We are witnessing a religious awakening which will bring back Islamic values," he said. Another sign of the moves toward Islam is that some restaurants on the banks of the Barada river, a leisure spot near the Syrian capital, have stopped serving alcohol. And space has been reserved for families, in keeping with Islamic tradition to keep singles segregated. The same trend is being seen at Ain-el-Figeh, another popular resort. Bookshops specialising in works on Islamic sharia law are growing in number, as are Islamic cultural or charity shows in conservative towns such as Aleppo, Idleb and Hama. Tens of thousands of people were killed when the security forces put down an Islamist revolt in the northern city of Hama in 1982, but analysts say the political and social situation in the country is contributing to Islam's newfound popularity. "The worsening economic and social situation, corruption and dictatorship all feed the Islamist trend and give it a wide audience," said a former communist activist. Akram al-Bunni, a Marxist writer and political scientist, said that by blocking political reforms in a bid to impede religious movements, the state was "throwing young people into the arms" of Islamists. "Since their defeat in Hama, the Islamists have adopted a strategy of infiltrating society from below, thanks to Saudi financial aid," said Rami, a student at the faculty of journalism in Damascus. "Saudi Arabia has financed the construction of hundreds of mosques, especially in Christian and Druze regions," he said. A moderate Islamic trend led by Salah Kaftaro and Mohammed Habash has also come to the fore, pressing for an "official Islam" which would counter fundamentalist tendencies. Along the same lines, the state has authorised some 300 theological institutes to open their doors and give lessons in mainstream and conventional Islam while keeping watch for extremist elements. Since 1980, active Muslim Brotherhood members can face the death penalty although hundreds of detained Islamists including its former leaders have been set free under amnesties. Most of the movement's exiled members returned to Syria during the 1990s. After having failed to overthrow the Baathist secular regime with the Hama revolt, the Muslim Brotherhood is looking to the ballot box as the path of power like in the Palestinian territories, Egypt, Iraq and Jordan.

Very sad, may Allah help somali people

Islam in Namibia…Making an Impact By Rodrick Mukumbira, IOL Correspondent There are now seven mosques in the country. The first one was built in Katutura, said imam Ali. (IOL picture) There are now seven mosques in the country. The first one was built in Katutura, said imam Ali. (IOL picture) WINDHOEK - It is a Friday afternoon at the Windhoek Islamic Center in Namibia’s capital. The center’s grounds are buzzing with activity. Over 50 men stand in front of the entrance, some normally dressed in pants and shirts, others more formal in the traditional Islamic wardrobe, the thowb; a white robe that almost reaches the ground. What is interesting to note is that most of them are from the Nama tribe, one of Namibia 13 indigenous tribes, and they chat away in the language that is full of clicks and is difficult to comprehend for a foreigner. This is no traditional mosque with its white bearded imam, but the other side of predominantly Christian Namibia. The Adhan (call to prayer) is now the common call in most neighbors in this country of about 1.8 million people. "We are like apples hanging in a tree crowded with pears," youthful Imam Ali tells IslamOnline.net. "But Islam has made a major impact here and our numbers are growing." Government statistics put the number of Muslims in the country at around 70,000, but Ali disagrees. "Islam is quite new here, but the figure might be around 20,000." Winning Hearts On why the religion has such a major following from the Nama, a tribe considered a minority, Imam Ali tells the story of Jacobs Salmaan Dhameer, the country’s incumbent Electoral Commissioner. "Jacobs attended an Islamic Conference in Maseru (Lesotho) in 1980 and converted to Islam. He is the country’s first black Muslim," he recalls. "When he returned from the conference he spread the word to his own people, the Nama. That is why many of them are practicing Muslims." Until the early 80s, Islam was not known to the majority of the people, despite the existence of small enclaves of Muslims from the country’s southern neighbor South Africa who had settled in such coastal towns as Walvis Bay, Lüderitz and Swakopmund. To date a core group of indigenous Muslims has started to grow in the country and individual Muslims area scattered all over Namibia, says Imam Ali. "There are now seven mosques in the country. The first one was built in Katutura," he said. Katutura is Windhoek’s oldest black township, which was demarcated by South Africa, Namibia’s former colonial master, along the country’s 13 tribes. A weekly session, which serves as a forum for development of attitudes and behavioral patterns and the ideological upward mobility of local Muslims, is one of the main activities held at the Windhoek Islamic Center. Twenty-four Namibians are currently studying in Saudi Arabia. Others have been sent for long term Islamic training in institutions in South Africa. Appealing Imam Ali said the Muslim faith attracts followers from all walks of life. "Islam is based on logic, mentality, mathematics. Two plus two gives the same answer: four. Everywhere in the world, and it does not matter if we are friends or fed up with each other. This religion is based on wisdom; it is very simple to accept." Azi Kazombiaze, a 22-year-old practicing Muslim who reverted in 2000 after speaking to a friend who was already a Muslims, chips in. "I asked him questions and read literature. At the time I was studying Christianity as well as Islam and it came to me to embrace Islam," he said. Kazombiaze says it was the clarity of the texts that attracted him, the beauty of the content and the style of writing. When asked why so many Namibians choose Islam, he cites the unity and brotherhood of Muslims all over the world. Wherever, whenever, across the world the same holy book, the Noble Qur'an, is used and the same language spoken during prayer. "It is a perfect way of life. Islam is Islam. Although my parents had to get used to it, they now respect my choice," said a happy Kazombiaze. "But it came as a bit of a shock. Never did they imagine that Islam could change a person so much. Young Muslims are not like other teenagers that go out partying. We don't smoke, nor drink alcohol and don't get into trouble." He said that even some people who embraced Islam in prison "are now on the good path." Right Choice Abdullah Aziz Sayman, a 24-year-old fellow Muslim, adds, "I wanted the right religion." Sayman reverted after meeting a person from Cape Town, South Africa, who told him about Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and Islam. "At first I just listened while he told me that Muslims eat halal food. What he told me and what I saw made me happy in my heart. It was all so nice." Muslims should only eat meat from livestock slaughtered by a sharp knife from their necks, and the name of Allah, the Arabic word for God, must be mentioned. Now other goods and services can also be certified as halal, including cosmetics, clothing, pharmaceuticals and financial services. Like Kazombiaze’s parents, Abdullah's stood in awe of their son's choice. They had no knowledge at all about Islam. Their opinion has changed over the years as their son explained the religion to them. "Islam has made an impact," says Abdullah. But major challenges remain. Muslim voices are hardly heard while Christians have airtime on state radio, television and columns in newspapers. While the religion calls for going out and spreading the word of God, in Namibia this only happens in the mosques. Why then does not the Muslim community, if it wants to be heard, establish its own mouthpiece? "A good question," answers Imam Ali. He said starting a magazine or a newspaper costs money and for that the help of Muslim businessmen is much needed. "That will take a long time."

UN Security Council condemns renewed fighting in Somalia 31 May 2006 – The United Nations Security Council today strongly condemned the renewed clashes in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, and called for an immediate ceasefire in the Horn of Africa country for the second time this month. In a press statement read out by Ambassador Pascal Gayama of the Republic of Congo, whose country holds the Council presidency for May, the 15 members “strongly condemned the resumption of fighting in Mogadishu†and “expressed their deep concern over the loss of life, the suffering and the renewed violence against the civilian populations.†The Security Council “called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire and urged both sides to find solutions to the problems in Mogadishu within the framework of the Transitional Federal Charter,†he said. The Council underlined the urgent need for the rapid finalization of an agreed national security and stabilization plan as set out in an earlier presidential statement. The Transitional Federal Institutions have been working with East Africa’s Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU) and the international community in an effort to develop the National Security and Stabilization Plan to bring peace to the impoverished country. Before the latest outbreak of fighting, it appeared that Somali leaders were moving fast towards reconciliation. They had agreed on a transitional charter and members of the parliament were engaged in efforts to frame a constitution, giving the first signs of centralized governance in more than 15 years of civil strife. Security Council members urged all the parties to respect international law, ensure humanitarian access to needy populations and protect humanitarian workers. Mogadishu is the only capital in the world where the UN does not have access for international humanitarian staff due to insecurity – this despite an estimated 250,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) living in the city. The current fighting in and around the area has displaced thousands of people, many of whom have fled to more stable regions of the country or crossed the border into Kenya. Saying they would continue to monitor the situation, the members of the Security Council also reminded all 191 UN Member States of their obligation to implement and enforce the arms embargo imposed by the Council in 1992 and they expressed the need to continue efforts to achieve that end through the sanctions committee for Somalia. Earlier this month, the Council re-established for six months the mandate of the Monitoring Group on Somalia, set up to investigate any embargo violations. A report to the Council from the Monitoring Group said then, in part: “Arms, military materiel and financial support continue to flow like a river to various actors.â€

The whole problem of Sool Crisis, and the conflict between Somaliland and Puntland is caused by traitors like Askar who have cheated their own people for not representing their constituencies but favored their pocket. Shame on them Askar is another irrational, because he doesn't seem he knows what he is talking about? He seems confused!! Somaalidu waxey ku maahmaahdaa “Banaankiisa mare maradiisa geed ma qabsado†I would to suggest to Somali regions, that if they want peace they must give peace to their fellow and neighboring Somali regions. The sayid said 102 years ago “All you can get from me is war, nothing else. If you want peace I also content. But if you want peace, go from my country to your own,†Sayid Mohamed Abdulla, 1904 Peace will not come by sticking to colonial borders as if we are still in colonial era, however, Somali people can only enjoy peace when they give peace to fellow Somali people. Alternative to war is to give peace and respect the wishes of the people of northwest, north central, and northeast.

VIDEO: Daraawiish Oogsatey AUDEO: Diyaaradii Daraawiish Weerartay The Anglo-Somali War 1901-1920 SOMALILAND 1898-1920 Second Jihad of the "Mad Mullah" 1907-1920 Campaigns Against Mohammed Abdullah 1900-1920 British delivered the decisive blow with a devastating aerial bombardment of the dervish capital at Taleex in northern Somalia.

Jawaaso " waxaan beryaayey ilaahey in uu ii badbaadiyo midka yar xataa, waa ii badbaadiwaayey..." Dadka qalbigooda jilicsan wareysigaan hadhageysan Halkan ka dhageyso

Magacyada Gabdhaha Soomaalida: Hordhac Magacyada loo bixiyo hablahayaga waxay muujiyaan hiddahayaga, deegaan iyo asal ahaan halkaannu ka soo jeedno, kobta juqraafi ahaan dunida kaga noolnahay, ama waxay cabbir muuqda ka bixiyaan muuqaalka inamaha, qaab iyo qeex uu waalidku la jeclaado ama u saadaaliyo. Mararka qaarkood laga yaabee haweeneey jeeska ka tirsan ama ka tirsanaan jirtay in loogu magacdaro oo lagu sammiyo. U walqalidda gabadhaada waajib weyn weeye oo muhim ah. Cilminafsiyahannada (psychologists) waxay sheegaan in haddii habluhu ku faraxsanyihiin magacyadooda, nafsaddooda inta ay ifka joogaan waa u riyaaqsanaanayaan. Waqtiga kaaga baxa ka baaraandegga u raadinta magaca ugu habboon, qurxoon, dhawaaq wanaagsan carruurtaada dheddigga ah, kayd weeye aad mustaqbalka u aydo. Waxay magacyadu nisbeeyaan joog, qurux, midab, ama habsamaanta inanta sida gaarinnimadeeda, geesinnimadeeda iyo naxariisteeda. Tusaale, inantii ugu horreysey ee Dhiimo loo baxshay, laga yaabee in looga jeeday in ay lahayd midab aad u casaan ah oo guduud takhti ah. Sidoo kale, Qumman - inan weeye hagaag, hufnaan iyo wanaag badan lahayd. Hablaha qaarkood waxaa loogu magacdaraa dhirta, caleenta, iyo ubaxa, sida Cosob, Magool, Ubax, iwm, xayawaannada sida Qalanjo. Qaar kalena waxaa la siiyaa magacyada xilliyada iyo maalmaha sida Gudhalad, Isniino, iwm. Sidaas darteed, magacu waa aqoonsi ruuxu leeyahay oo muujinaya halkuu qofkaasi *** iyo isir ahaan ka soo jeedo. Waxaa ila habboon in aan la dhayalsannin, laga teginnin oo la sahashannin afka iyo luuqadda, dhaqanka iyo hiddaha magacyadu ku salaysanyihiin oo ay ku qotomaan. A Abshiro, Abyan, Afraxo, Ammaan, Amran, Aragsan, Arraweello, Ardo, Arliyo, Ashkiro, Askaro, Axado. B Baahilo, Baar, Bariido, Barkhado, Barni, Barrey, Barwaaqo, Basro, Baxsan, Bayddan, Beegsan, Beerlula, Biciido, Bilan, Billaddaya, Bishaaro, Bogaad, Bullo, Buney, Butaaco, Buuxo. C Caanood, Cabban, Cadar, Caddey, Cajabo, Calaso, Canab, Canbaro, Carfoon, Carraabo, Carro, Cartamo, Carwo, Casey, Cawilo, Cawo, Cawrala', Caynabo, Ceebla', Cibaado, Ciilla', Ciiltira, Ciribbuuxa, Cosob, Cubtan, Cudbi, Cuddoon, Cugan, Culan, Culimmo, Cureeji, Cutiyo. D Daado, Daaho, Daawad, Dahabo, Dallaayad, Dallaayo, Dallays, Damman, Darmaan, Daruuro, Dawo, Dayaxo, Daynabo, Deeqo, Deggan, Degmo, Dihin, Diiddan, Diimmoon, Diiran, Diraaco, Doonbiro, Duco, Duda, Duddo, Dugsiiyo, Dugsoon, Dulman. Dh Dhaadsan, Dhaayo, Dhalaalo, Dheeho, Dhiimo, Dhiirran, Dhikilo, Dhimman, Dhimbilo, Dhoofo, Dhool, Dhoorweyn, Dhudi, Dhuuban, Dhuubo, Dhuulo, Dhuuxo. F Falis, Falxado, Fanaxley, Farax, Fariido, Farxado, Farxiyo, Faynuus, Feeyig, Fiido, Filad, Filan, Filsan, Foojiga, Foos. G Gaadsan, Gaarri, Gaarriyo, Gacaliso, Gacalo, Gaceedo, Gadiido, Gallado, Gargaaro, Gaylamo, Geeddiyo, Geelo, Geenyo, Gefla', Gobaad, Gobey, Gordan, Guduudo, Guhaado, Gudhalad, Guuleedo. H Habban, Habboon, Habsamaan, Hagarla', Haldhaa, Halgan, Haweeyo, Heego, Hibaaq, Hibo, Hiddo, Hillaac, Hiro, Hodan, Hodman, Hogol, Hoobaan, Hoodo, Hoombarro, Hufan, Huryo. I Idil, Idilo, Idman, Iftiino, Iido, Iimaan, Ilkaag, Ilroon, Ilwaad, Indhadeeq, Indhawroon, Ishaaro, Isir, Ismoog, Isniino, Istaahil. J Jalaqsan, Jamaad, Jawaahir, Jeegaan, Jinnow, Johro, Johorad, Joogdheer. K Kaabo, Kaad, Kaadsoon, Kaafiyo, Kaaho, Karuuro, Kinsi, Koos, Korraad, Kutubey. Kh Khadro, Khaladla', Khayrto. L Laaco, Lacago, Ladan, Leexo, Lisan, Luul. M Maandeeq, Maano, Macay, Magool, Malabo, Markabo, Marwo, Miido, Mullaaxo, Muraayo, Murriyo. N Naadiyo, Naado, Naaleeyo, Nafiso, Nagaado, Nagan, Naqo, Naruuro, Nasteexo, Nuurto. O Ogaal, Oriyo. Q Qaafo, Qaayaweyn, Qaladla', Qalanjo, Qarad, Qoordheer, Qoran, Qorraxo, Qumman. R Raagsan, Raalliyo, Raaqiyo, Raaxo, Rako, Rakuubo, Rashiido, Raydabo, Reemo, Roobo, Roon, Rooxo, Rummaan, Ruun, Ruxan. S Saado, Saafi, Saaqo, Sabaad, Sagal, Sahwiyo, Salaado, Saluugla', Samawado, Sareedo, Sarreeyo, Saxansaxo, Saxarla', Siman, Sitey, Soohan, Subkan, Suleekho, Sulubo, Sureer, Suubban. Sh Shaadiro, Shacni, Shahmaad, Shamado, Shankarroon, Shaqlan, Sheegan, Shifo, Shoobo, Shumey, Shuun. T Tagsan, Taliso, Tanaad, Tawllan, Tigaad, Timiro, Tiriig, Tisqaad, Toolmoon, Toosan, Tooxey, Tusmo. U Ubax, Ubbolacag, Udgoon, Ugaaso, Ulasan, Umal. W Wacan, Wanaag, Warfog, Waris, Warla', Warmoog, Warroon, Warsan, Wiilo. X Xaadsan, Xaali, Xaddiyo, Xalwo, Xamaro, Xareedo, Xiddo, Xiisaan, Xinbilo, Xirsiyo, Xorriyo, Xukun. Y Yusur, Yuusa.

From Qarannews.com A secessionist’s perspective on federalism and recent conflict between Federal Government and Puntland People who are against Somaliland sovereignty always build their case with an argument based o­n the idea of federalism. They also paint a picture in which they portray Somali union as a panacea where individual provinces will decide their faith. They never bother to ask themselves whether federalism will work. Outlandish theories can not be taken as an absolute guarantee, especially when it comes to a nation’s future, we shouldn’t allow ourselves to be deluded by those who present their case for federalism without significant evidence proving that Somali union is the o­nly way to go. It is indeed wrong to put an unnecessary test to a society which has already suffered enough. Somaliland born Unionists argue naively and sometimes forcefully that a central government which would be based in Mogadishu won’t have significant effect for those of us who live far away from Mogadishu the capital of greater Somalia, but at the same time we are witnessing the weakest administration in the history of Somalia trying to muscle the o­nly province in the south that has successfully governed itself for the last 15 years. Compared to Banadir , Puntland is a land of peace and Bossaso authority is very much in control of its territory, they govern themselves far better than the Baidoa based mafia who can’t even figure out how to restrain its cabinet ministers. Puntland administration maintain the rule of law and they are also happy to work under the umbrella of federalism, but the shameless Mafia in Baidao want to over rule Puntland’s authority. As you may have heard recently the Baidao administration want to have a direct control of Puntland’s resources, they want to negotiate with the foreign companies who want to business with Puntland administration regardless of the local authority’s grievances. This is a good example of how federalism will not work in Somalia. So may be those of you who believe in greater Somali are tempted to justify the Baidoa gangs’ behavior, but I doubt if any o­ne of you could explain how this supposed federalism could work. The Somali-American scholar Prof Samatar who o­nce was a supporter of Somalilander could not adequately explain why he is so sure that Somali unity will benefit Somaliland and other regional administrations. The o­nly argument that pro unionists like the esteemed professor rely o­n is the vague notion of SOMALI BROTHERHOOD. Somali brotherhood never existed even at the best of times, people can’t depend o­n emotional bonds with people who do not respect each other. No o­ne is denying that as Somalis we share common values such as religion and culture, however I strongly disagree with people who argue that we have a distinctive traditions and equivalent language. How can this be possible when we (SOMALILANDERS) can hardly communicate with the people of Baidoa who proudly speak what sounds to me an entirely different language (MAI MAI). If that is not enough how about the QORYOLAY city residents in lower SHABELE. GARE TRIBE has its own language (DHOOG). Somali traditions! What traditions? How about AFGOOYE inhabitants who enjoy beating the hell out of each other? I can go o­n and o­n without even mentioning the people of Barawe who altogether look and sound different from the rest of us. In conclusion, I am angry with people like Prof Ahmed Samatar who try to mask the real and obvious differences among Somalis, they need to reconsider the case between Somaliland and Somalia with clear conscious. Cabdale Farah Sigad sigad12345@yahoo.co.uk

Two Tragedies: Hirsi Ali and Somalia But do her shrill criticisms of Islam and much that Islamic culture stands for - criticisms which are given ample, incessant and often uncritical airing in the Western media - make her morally courageous, as her many supporters in Europe and North America claim? Asks Tom Porteous. If Ayaan Hirsi Ali lied to speed up her asylum claim in the Netherlands, then good for her and shame on her former political allies who are now hounding her out of office and country for having done so. Hirsi Ali's home country of Somalia in the early 1990s was (as it remains) one of the most violent places in the world and the source of a vast wave of desperate refugees. Asylum seekers often have to tell lies to get what they want, just as they have to part with hard earned money to get to Europe or North America across heavily guarded borders and coastlines. What makes Hirsi Ali special is that within a few years of getting her Dutch citizenship she had carved out a successful career as a media personality and the world's most famous Dutch politician - and good for her for achieving that too. Hirsi Ali is clearly an enterprising, ambitious and passionate young woman. But do her shrill criticisms of Islam and much that Islamic culture stands for - criticisms which are given ample, incessant and often uncritical airing in the Western media - make her morally courageous, as her many supporters in Europe and North America claim? I think not. This is not to say that Hirsi Ali does not have guts. She would never have achieved her present celebrity (and earning power) had she not gone out on a limb to criticise not just Islamic radicalism but Islam itself. It takes guts, not to mention a certain recklessness, to call the Prophet Mohammed a tyrant and a pervert. But moral courage? Hirsi Ali's controversial film Submission famously led to the brutal murder by a Moroccan immigrant extremist of Theo Van Gogh, the Dutch filmmaker who helped her to produce it. That gruesome event shot her to international fame. She subsequently received numerous death threats which ever since have forced her to live a semi-clandestine life with 24-hour police protection. That is a terrible story and it must be hard for Hirsi Ali to live with it. But the fact that one's political/artistic collaborator has been murdered, that one has received death threats, and that one has to live under constant armed guard does not automatically make one a person of moral integrity and courage. Hirsi Ali does not speak truth to power. She does not stand up for the weak against the powerful. Her main enemies are a minority of extremists among the Muslim immigrant communities in Europe. They may be wrong, bigoted and murderous. But powerful? No. On the contrary, it is Hirsi Ali who has aligned herself with power against the weak -- with those European and American movements and organisations which have lobbied for and supported the bombing, invasion, cooption and domination of weak Muslim nations by the most powerful military machine the world has ever seen, on the dubious grounds that they are spreading an ideology which will overtake the world unless it is checked by brute force. Hirsi Ali has fed that argument. As a black, Muslim woman she has given it a credibility and authenticity that its mostly white, male proponents badly need. Perhaps the poorest and weakest of those beleaguered Muslim nations is the country of Hirsi Ali's birth. Today Somalia is suffering from the worst bout of violence in more than ten years. It has become a new front in the war on terror as a coalition of warlords backed by the United States battle with Islamists for control of the capital, Mogadishu. The fighting -- in which scores have been killed in recent days -- is the culmination of years of failed Western policies and neglect, and deliberate destabilisation on the part of the United States' regional ally, Ethiopia. The battle for Mogadishu signals a new aggressive U.S. approach to Somalia. But, typical of the whole U.S. strategy in the war on terror, this is an approach that will set back even further Somalia's chances of peaceful reconciliation and reconstruction; make Somalia's Islamist movement more influential and more extremist; and, make Africa's poorest nation more, not less, vulnerable to exploitation by local and foreign terrorists. There are men and women of real moral courage in Somalia who are standing up to warlords, religious extremists and external manipulation alike. They are risking and sometimes losing their lives in pursuit of dialogue and reconciliation, and in an effort to explain the Somali situation to a largely indifferent outside world. Ayaan Hirsi Ali (now headed, it is reported, for a job at the influential neo-conservative American Enterprise Institute in Washington D.C) is not one of these people. Like the Islamic extremists she and her supporters condemn, she has framed the clash between Islam and the West in terms which pre-empt compromise and brook no dialogue or reconciliation. In the name of freedom of expression and democracy she serves power, and the perpetuation of conflict and injustice on which that power depends. Tom Porteous is a syndicated columnist and author, formerly with the BBC and the British Foreign Office.

Tan iyo Markii uu dhamaaday caleema saarkii taariikhiga ahaa ee lagu caleema saaray 22 bishan garaad jaamac garaad cali garaad jaamac dooxada geeda qarsay oo dhanka koonfureed kaga taala magaalo madaxda gobolka sool ee laascaanood ,ayaa waxaa soo baxaya hadal haynta dhismo beer wayn oo laga dhisi doono halkii lagu caana shubay garaadka guud ee beesha *********** halkaasoo horay iyana loogu caleema saaray Alla hawnaxariistee garaadkii samaha iyo nabada garaad c/qani garaad jaamac garaad cali ,sidoo kale waxaa isna halkaasi lagu caana shubay garaadkii isna xasuusta mahadhada ah ku reebay quluubta umada somaliyeed oo ah garaadka hada aabiihii alla hawnaxariitee garaad cali garaad jaamac garaad cali ... Las-Anod National Peace Park waaa xarun loogu tala galay inay ku kulmaan dhamaan isimada somaliyeed meelay joogaanba ,waxaana hada ka socda magaalada laascaanood ururinta qarashka lagu dhisayo xaruntaasi oo lagu beeri doono dhir aad u qurxoon soona jiidan doona indhaha qofkasta oo soo booqda hadii alle idmo Las-Anod National Peace Park.. Sidoo kale waxaa iyana dhaqaale ururin ku jira jaaliyada Gobolada Sool,Sanaag, iyo Cayn(buuhoodlle) oo aad iyagu udanaynaya inay hirgasho xaruntaa caalamiga ahi .. Dhismaha xaruntan ayaa sida wararku sheegayaan waxaa uu ka danbeeyey balan qaadkii uu garaadka guud ee beesha dhulbahnate Garaad jaamac garaad cali uu balan qaaday in uu danaynayo inay shir isugu yimaadaan dhamaan madax dhaqameedka umada somaliyeed meelay joogaanba kulankaasoo uu ka dalbaday bulshada Sool,Sanaag iyo cayn inay marti galiyaan iyagu .. ISku soo duuboo dhismaha xaruntan caalamiga ah ayaa noqon doona wax qabad taariikhi ah oo usoo hoyday bulsha waynta SScayn , Mid kamid ah dhalinyarad Sports ka magaalada laascaanood oo wax laga waydiiyey sida uu u arko dhismaha Las-Anod National Peace Park ayaa waxaa uu yidhi(Caleema Saraakii garaad jaamac garaad cali waxaa isu soo dhoweeyey dad ka quluubtoodii ilaahay waxaanu ka baryaynaa in dhismaha xaruntani sidii oo kale isugu kaaya sii dhoweeyo ) ayuu yidhi mid ka mid ah dhalinyarada magaalada laascaanood ..

Losing the Long War In Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, Egypt, Somali and elsewhere, the Bush administration's policies in pursuing its "Long War" on terrorism have proven catastrophic. Tom Porteous argues that this war will not be won militarily but through genuine political accommodation and compromise based on a modicum of justice and fairness. Last week's summit meeting in Washington between George Bush and Tony Blair took place against the background of the escalating failures of their coercive policies in the Long War against Islamist radicalism. In Afghanistan, more than four years after the United States and its allies intervened to oust the Taliban and install a pro-Western regime, NATO forces face more than just another spring offensive by Taliban "remnants." May 2006 has witnessed little short of a countrywide rebellion. Significant masses of Afghan political and military forces are mounting a serious challenge to the status quo. In Iraq, the formation in May of a new government under Nuri al-Maliki may or may not halt, or slow down, the steady collapse into sectarianism that has unfolded since the US invasion of 2003. But the insurgency continues and opposition to the intervention grows even among those Iraqis who once welcomed it. In Muslim communities world wide, the US military intervention fuels anti-Western sentiment among extremists and moderates alike. Furthermore, the failure of the United States to control the situation in Iraq has dispelled the illusion of American military dominance in the world. In Palestine, experts and politicians - few of them apologists for Islamism or admirers of Hamas - have argued to no avail against the US policy of cutting off aid to the Palestinian Authority following the Islamists' election. Such a policy they point out leads to further chaos in Gaza and the West Bank, strengthens the hand of extremists, and sets back even further the prospects of Arab-Israeli peace. Meanwhile Western complicity in Israeli's continuing occupation of Palestinian territory remains a rallying cry for Islamists and anti-Western sentiment throughout the Muslim world. In Iran, the hard line Islamists have rolled back political reform and are thumbing their noses at the United States and Europe, rushing ahead with a nuclear enrichment programme in defiance of US and Israeli threats, safe in the knowledge that the political and military position of the United States in the region is now so precarious as to render the option of US military action against Iran catastrophic for Western interests. In Egypt, long regarded as a pillar of pro-Western stability in the Middle East and the most populous Arab state, the judiciary is now standing against the corruption and political stagnation of the Mubarak regime. There are signs that further repression of the burgeoning Egyptian movement for political reform is leading to a serious political crisis. There is little doubt that the main winners of any genuine political opening will be the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. Even in distant Somalia, the pernicious impact of the Long War is being felt as US backed warlords struggle to suppress Somali Islamist militias whose political and military influence has been steadily filling the power vacuum left by the collapse of the Somali state in 1991, and the failure of the international community to rescue it from feuding warlords and violent intervention by Ethiopia. The ideological appeal of Somalia's Islamists now appears stronger than the clan loyalties that have sustained the murderous squabbling of the warlords for the past decade. If you add up all these (and other) complex events, they point to the comprehensive failure of the West's strategy to tackle radical Islamism. If the Long War really is an existential struggle between the "free world" and "Islamo-fascism" then these should be dark days indeed for the West. The fact is however that we are not living through any crisis remotely comparable to the cold war or WW2 (as goes the rhetoric of the Long War). The "threat" from Islamism remains limited to random acts of political terrorism, horrifying for the victims and entirely reprehensible, but of no major strategic threat to the West. The balance of economic, military and political power remains overwhelmingly on the side of the United States and its allies. All Muslim states except Iran are subservient to America's interests. For the vast majority of Westerners, the Long War impinges hardly at all on their daily lives. The same cannot be said of the impact on Middle Easterners: The occupation of Iraq; the unqualified support for Israel's coercive and expansionist policies; the continuing support for authoritarian regimes; the brutal counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism techniques; and, the deeply worrying doctrine of pre-emptive coercion (detention, torture, economic sanctions and war) have very real and catastrophic consequences for millions of Middle Easterners, and serve to strengthen the political influence of precisely those extremist and anti-Western forces the West is seeking to suppress. Is the West now dropping the rhetoric of confrontation and returning to more realistic and sensible policies towards the Muslim world? Bush, Blair and their ideological supporters are yesterday's men, discredited at home and abroad by the negative consequences of their policies in the Middle East. In two years time they will be out of office. US and European policymakers have looked into the abyss of a potential military strike against Iran and appear to have flinched. Long postponed, direct negotiations between the United States and Iran are now a possibility. There is much that could still occur to maintain the current state of confrontation between Islam and the West. Extremists on both sides have an interest in upping the tension through polarising acts of homicide. Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine remain arenas of acute crisis and violence. There are few signs that any new Western leaders waiting in the wings in the United States or Europe have the ideas, the courage or the will to address the roots of these difficult crises. In their conflict with radical Islam, the West and Israel will not be able to win peace and stability through war and military occupation, but must seek it through genuine political accommodation and compromise based on a modicum of justice and fairness. Tom Porteous is a syndicated columnist and author, formerly with the BBC and the British Foreign Office. He writes on the Middle East and Africa.

Losing the Long War In Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, Egypt, Somali and elsewhere, the Bush administration's policies in pursuing its "Long War" on terrorism have proven catastrophic. Tom Porteous argues that this war will not be won militarily but through genuine political accommodation and compromise based on a modicum of justice and fairness. Last week's summit meeting in Washington between George Bush and Tony Blair took place against the background of the escalating failures of their coercive policies in the Long War against Islamist radicalism. In Afghanistan, more than four years after the United States and its allies intervened to oust the Taliban and install a pro-Western regime, NATO forces face more than just another spring offensive by Taliban "remnants." May 2006 has witnessed little short of a countrywide rebellion. Significant masses of Afghan political and military forces are mounting a serious challenge to the status quo. In Iraq, the formation in May of a new government under Nuri al-Maliki may or may not halt, or slow down, the steady collapse into sectarianism that has unfolded since the US invasion of 2003. But the insurgency continues and opposition to the intervention grows even among those Iraqis who once welcomed it. In Muslim communities world wide, the US military intervention fuels anti-Western sentiment among extremists and moderates alike. Furthermore, the failure of the United States to control the situation in Iraq has dispelled the illusion of American military dominance in the world. In Palestine, experts and politicians - few of them apologists for Islamism or admirers of Hamas - have argued to no avail against the US policy of cutting off aid to the Palestinian Authority following the Islamists' election. Such a policy they point out leads to further chaos in Gaza and the West Bank, strengthens the hand of extremists, and sets back even further the prospects of Arab-Israeli peace. Meanwhile Western complicity in Israeli's continuing occupation of Palestinian territory remains a rallying cry for Islamists and anti-Western sentiment throughout the Muslim world. In Iran, the hard line Islamists have rolled back political reform and are thumbing their noses at the United States and Europe, rushing ahead with a nuclear enrichment programme in defiance of US and Israeli threats, safe in the knowledge that the political and military position of the United States in the region is now so precarious as to render the option of US military action against Iran catastrophic for Western interests. In Egypt, long regarded as a pillar of pro-Western stability in the Middle East and the most populous Arab state, the judiciary is now standing against the corruption and political stagnation of the Mubarak regime. There are signs that further repression of the burgeoning Egyptian movement for political reform is leading to a serious political crisis. There is little doubt that the main winners of any genuine political opening will be the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. Even in distant Somalia, the pernicious impact of the Long War is being felt as US backed warlords struggle to suppress Somali Islamist militias whose political and military influence has been steadily filling the power vacuum left by the collapse of the Somali state in 1991, and the failure of the international community to rescue it from feuding warlords and violent intervention by Ethiopia. The ideological appeal of Somalia's Islamists now appears stronger than the clan loyalties that have sustained the murderous squabbling of the warlords for the past decade. If you add up all these (and other) complex events, they point to the comprehensive failure of the West's strategy to tackle radical Islamism. If the Long War really is an existential struggle between the "free world" and "Islamo-fascism" then these should be dark days indeed for the West. The fact is however that we are not living through any crisis remotely comparable to the cold war or WW2 (as goes the rhetoric of the Long War). The "threat" from Islamism remains limited to random acts of political terrorism, horrifying for the victims and entirely reprehensible, but of no major strategic threat to the West. The balance of economic, military and political power remains overwhelmingly on the side of the United States and its allies. All Muslim states except Iran are subservient to America's interests. For the vast majority of Westerners, the Long War impinges hardly at all on their daily lives. The same cannot be said of the impact on Middle Easterners: The occupation of Iraq; the unqualified support for Israel's coercive and expansionist policies; the continuing support for authoritarian regimes; the brutal counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism techniques; and, the deeply worrying doctrine of pre-emptive coercion (detention, torture, economic sanctions and war) have very real and catastrophic consequences for millions of Middle Easterners, and serve to strengthen the political influence of precisely those extremist and anti-Western forces the West is seeking to suppress. Is the West now dropping the rhetoric of confrontation and returning to more realistic and sensible policies towards the Muslim world? Bush, Blair and their ideological supporters are yesterday's men, discredited at home and abroad by the negative consequences of their policies in the Middle East. In two years time they will be out of office. US and European policymakers have looked into the abyss of a potential military strike against Iran and appear to have flinched. Long postponed, direct negotiations between the United States and Iran are now a possibility. There is much that could still occur to maintain the current state of confrontation between Islam and the West. Extremists on both sides have an interest in upping the tension through polarising acts of homicide. Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine remain arenas of acute crisis and violence. There are few signs that any new Western leaders waiting in the wings in the United States or Europe have the ideas, the courage or the will to address the roots of these difficult crises. In their conflict with radical Islam, the West and Israel will not be able to win peace and stability through war and military occupation, but must seek it through genuine political accommodation and compromise based on a modicum of justice and fairness. Tom Porteous is a syndicated columnist and author, formerly with the BBC and the British Foreign Office. He writes on the Middle East and Africa.

Zooming into the Past

Garaad Jaamac Garaad Cali Oo Shir Guddoomiyey Shir Isimo, Cuqaal Iyo Aqoon Yahanno SSC Ahi Maanta Ay Ku Yeesheen Hotel Xamdi. May 26, 2006 By:C/casiis Salebaan Axmed Laascaanood(Radiossc.net):-Shir Ballaadhan oo ay ka soo qayb galeen Isimo, Cuqaal Aqoon-yahanno iyo wax-garad kale ayaa maanta lagu qabtey Hoolka Shirarka ee Hotel Xamdi, shirkan oo uu shi rguddoominayey Garaad Jaamac Garaad Cali, ayaa waxaa lagaga hadlay xaaladda ku gadaaman Bulshada SSC iyo xurgufaha Beelaha dhextaalla.

NEWSWEEK: United States Giving Somali Warlords Cash, Equipment for Collecting Intel on Al Qaeda Members Sunday May 28, 11:01 am ET Some Fear Program Could Spark Anti-U.S. Backlash, Make Somalia a Jihadist Haven: 'We're Creating a New Mess,' Says Former CIA Official NEW YORK, May 28 /PRNewswire/ -- For several years, Somalia's three major anti-Islamist warlords have received U.S. cash and some equipment to help with intelligence operations, according to several unofficial sources, including John Prendergast of the International Crisis Group. The warlords -- Mohamed Dheere, Bashir Raghe and Mohamed Qanyare -- have been asked to collect information on Muslim extremists tied to Al Qaeda, report Senior Editor Michael Hirsh and Foreign Editor Jeffrey Bartholet in the June 5 issue of Newsweek (on newsstands Monday, May 29). In one 2003 case, Dheere's men snatched an East African Qaeda cell member and turned him over. Philip Giraldi, a former CIA counterterrorism official who stays in touch with his ex-colleagues, says much of the money is funneled through the 1,800-man Joint Combined Task Force, based in Djibouti on the Horn of Africa. Other reports point to the CIA. (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060528/NYSU004 ) Source: Newsweek · The June 5 issue of Newsweek (on newsstands Monday, May 29) · Click Here to Download Image The policy has provoked dissent at both the CIA and State Department, as well as in Europe. Some officials fear that America may be inadvertently creating a new jihadist haven in Somalia by generating an anti-U.S. backlash. Before the U.S. program began, the Islamists were only a small part of the population. "We know neither the rationale nor the scale of U.S. involvement; what we do see are consequences," says Marika Fahlen, Swedish ambassador and special envoy for the Horn of Africa: "The fighting is increasingly complex. Certain [islamist] groups that were not so active in fighting before have become fighters." Giraldi is more blunt. "We're creating a new mess," he says. "Everything is tactical with this administration: catching a guy, catching a guy. I don't see that anyone has thought about the strategic issue of losing support." Publicly, the administration will not admit to any policy of aiding warlords. But officials with the Red Cross and other aid groups in Mogadishu report seeing "many Americans with thick necks and short haircuts moving around, carrying big suitcases," says one aid official. And in recent months a diplomat critical of U.S. policy in Somalia, Michael Zorick, apparently was removed from his post in Nairobi after writing cables complaining about the strategy. Meanwhile, at CIA stations in East Africa, some agency officials believe the U.S. is being "essentially defrauded," says a retired CIA station chief who recently visited there. "They think we should take a deep breath and settle down. We're throwing money at anybody who will say they're fighting terrorism."

Some of the blatant lies the secessionists and their foreign collaborators have been propagating are: That there was an independent sovereign state called ‘The Republic of Somaliland’ recognized by 34 countries and admitted into the United Nations as a member; That the clans in the North of Somalia have agreed on their own free will to ‘reclaim’ the independence of their erstwhile ‘state’ and thereby secede from the rest of Somalia; That the secessionists control and administer the entire territory of what used to be the North or Somaliland Protectorate; That there are democratic institutions set up to include a bicameral legislature and an independent judiciary. Thanks Nayruus Well presented objective essay with good use of many undisputable historical facts

Wiil DuceySNOW, maxaad ii qodqodasaa Me too, I don't know when laascaanood became between somaliland and puntland!! Laascaanood is part of UNITED Somalia under the noble blue flag North-central Somalia (SSC Sool Sanaag and Cayn)- the birthplace of modern Somaliweyn is an integral part of UNITED Somalia that should be sufficient, the political organization within the country is not that significant, because we are from ALL Somalia first In my opinion, north central Somalia is NOT part of either of Somaliland or Puntland Well Somaliland is another story, because it has a different capital, flag, nationality, anthem, constitution, currency, etc I believe north central Somalia is capable to have a direct relations with federal government without going through another party. North central Somalia should have a political voice by establishing a regional administration, but that shouldn’t prevent north-central Somalia any form of alliance or political association with other regions of Somalia, its shared responsibility of all Somali regions to observe the unity and the collaboration of all regions of Somalia. Somali people are one people, the most homogenous world with one language, one history, one culture, one religion, one lifestyle, etc Therefore every Somali person should be more welcome and feel home in any Somali town. Thanks for asking clarification,

Originally posted by wiil_duco: ^^^ Soomaal ina hooyo do u agree with Duk that Lasscaano is part of puntland?? I don't know when laasaano became between somaliland and puntland!! Wiil DuceySNOW, CITY: Laascaanood, PROVINCE: Sool, COUNTRY: United Somalia

Garaadka Guud ee Beelaha Gabooyaha oo lagu Caana Shubay Maanta Garaad Axmed Diiriye Gayllan Laascaanood}09.01-06 Waa cusub ayaa u beryey dhamaan soomaalida , 9 / 1/2006 waxay noqotay maalin cadaaladeed taariikhda gashay , waa maalin lagu ismay oo lagu macacaabay Maalinta sinaanta iyo caddaaladda , kumanaan iyo kumanyaal dad wayna ah ayaa isgu yimi munaasabad balaadhan oo lagu boqrayey Garaad Axmed Diiriye Gayllan , oo ah garaadka guud ee beelaha Gabooyaha... Waxaa garaadka lagu caana shubay kobta looyaqaan damallada GAALKUDHAL oo tobaneeyo km kaga toosan dhanka koontureed Magaalada Laascaanood ee G/Sool . Garaad Axmed diiriye Gaylan oo kol hore loo cugtay Garaadnimo Maanta ayay waafajinta eebbe ku noqotay maalintii lagu caana shubay , kugu maalnay kugu taraawilnay ayaa jamaahiirtii meesh isugu timi ku dhawaaqeen markii caanaha lagu shubay garaadka Waxaa ka soo qayb galay munaasabadan balaadhan ee lagu boqrayey islamarkaana lagu caana shubayey Garaad Axmed Diiriye gaylan Dhamaan soomaalida oo dhan , oo waxaa la isga yimi guud ahaan gobolada soomaaliya oo dhan . waxaa ka soo qaybgalay garaado , Cuqaal , Culimo ,Masuuliyiin , Waxgarad , Hooyooyin , Dhalinyaro , ururo bulsho , Haddii aynu bal dadkii munaasabadan ballaadhan ka soo qayb galay wax ka xusno , waxaa markiiba in dhuhu qabanayeen Garaadada , cuqaasha oo dhinac fadhiyey Garaad Axmed Diiriye Gayllan . Waxaa ka loo ka soo qayb galay munaasabada caana shubka garaadka Mas'uuliyiinta maamul gobolka sool , xil dhibaano ka tirsan Dawlada goboleedka Puntland , iyo xildhibaanno ka tirsan Dawladda Soomaaliya . Soo koobi kari mayno hadii aynu isku dayno in aynu magac dhawno sharfanayaashii ka soo qayb galay munaasabadan . munaasabadan ayaa waxay ka mid noqotay munaasabadiihii ugu waawaynaa ee ka dhaca deegaamadan , Waxaana maanta laduugay oo la aasay caadadii xumayd ee soomaalidu ku dhaqmi jirtay ee Quudhsiga , kaas oo lagu faquuqi jiray Tolka beelaha Gabooyada . Waxaana la isla qaatay , Sinaan ,Cadaalad, Midnimo, Walaaltinimo . ka dhaxaysa soomaalida . ugaas faarax Maxamuud cali oo munaasabadan hadal ka soo jeediyey ayaa sheegay salaan iyo hanbalyo ka dib in cadaalada iyo dimuqraadiyada dhabta ahi taallo Puntland gaar ahaanna gobolka sool degmada Laascaanood , waxana uu si kaftan ah u sheegay ugaasku in maraykan iyo reer yurub ay kabartaan cadaalada iyo dimuqraadiyada Laascaanood . Waxaa halkaas ay ka sheegeen culimada deegaankani in ay beelaha gabooye oo hoaray loo yasi jiray ay ahayd dulmi iyo cadaalad darro , maantana laga bilaabo aanay dib u jiray caadadaa iyo dhaqankaas xumi , umada soomaaliyeedna ay isku mid tahay. gabayo iyo suugaan kala jaad jaad ah oo lagu boqrayey garaad Axmed Diiriye Gaylan ayaa halkaas laga Mariyey, jawiga guud hadii aynu sawir koban ka bixinno waxaa munaasabada caana shubka garaaka lagu qabtay meel banan ah , oo geed wayn ayaa laxidhxidhay , waxaa la soo joojiyey fardo qurxoon oo aad loo soo sharaxay , gabdho bilicsan oo labisan hidihii iyo dhaqankii soomaaliyeed , dhanka kale saxaafada gobolka sool ayaa kaalin laxaad le ka qaadatay munaasabadan , codbaahiyayaal ay kadananayeen hooso wadani ah oo munaasabadan khuseeya , ayay saxaafadu ku taakulaysay munaasabadan , toos ayay wariyayaasha kala duwani uga soo tabinayeen wararka , oo judhiiba markii caanaha lagu shubay garaadka waxa uu warkii gaadhay qaaradaha aduunka oo dhan . Hadaba waa kuma Garaad Axamed Diiriye Geylan wxaynu milicsanaynaa Taariikh Nololeedkiisa oo kooban : Garaad Axamed Diiriye Geylan , wuxuu ku dhashay laascaanood 1969 kii halkaas ayuu ka bilaabay qur'aanka oo uu ku dhamaystay waxbarashada dugsiga hoose ilaa kasare , kadibna waxa uu u wareegay Muqdisho halkaas oo uu waxbarasho xaga maamulka iyo xisaabaadka ku qaatay . Kadib waxa uu galay ganacsi , ilaa uu u hayaamay yurub , wuxuuna ka qaatay dhalashada wadanka iswiidhan , oo uu deganaa mudo dhawr iyo 10 sano , wuxuu kaloo iskandeneefiyanka ku sii horumariyey tacliintiisa , qur'aankana aad ugu bartay kuna guursaday . Garaad Axmed waxa uu kobanheegan ku leeyahay Shirkad tagaasida iyo xafiisyo ganacsi oo kale . wuxuu muddo dheer waday halganka dadka laxaqiro ee soomaaliyeed wuxuuna socdaallo arimahaa la xidhiidha ku tegey shirar badan kaga qayb galay maraykanka , carabta , yurub , geeska afrika iyo gobolada Puntland . Socdaallo badan ayuu ku yimaaddaa soomaaliya waxana marar badan wada xaajood lagalay Masuuliyiinta p/l xiligii c/laahi yuusuf iyo caddeba , iyo isimada reer /p/l , dawlada fadaraalkana wali xidhiidh buu araimahaas kala leeyahay . Sanadkii 2003 dii ayaa loo doortay garaadka beelha gabooyaha ee degen P/L iyo gobolada dhexe ee soomaaliya , iyo waliaba gobolka soomaalida galbeed (kililka shanaad) . waxaana lagu caana shubay ilaahay idankii maanta oo ay bishu tahay 9/1/2006 , dhanka kale muslimiinta xajaysa ayaa taagan carafa maanta oo caanashubka garaadkani wax uu la kowsaday maalin maamuusan oo sharaf u leh umadda islaamka . waxaynu eebbe wayne uga tuugaynaa garaad axmed diiriye gayllan , in uu noqdo garaad umadda guud ahaan iyo gaar ahaanba ku hogaamiya khyrka , sharkana ka reeba . Source: Widhwidh Online C/rashiid Maxamed Xaashi (Duqa) http://www.midgaan.com