Oh please, Garoweonline is run by President Faroole's son, and ever since their father became president the site is rarely updated timely . True. SL should leave Las Anod if it wants peace.

lol...anigu dee InshaAllah kuweyga markey aduunka imaadaan Muqdishu ayey wax ka baran doonaan. Reer Canada ayey Borama ka haysaa si fiican, 2 of my aunts ayaa caruurtooda u direy halkaas. Koonfurianska ayaa lagu badinaayaa incase of a referendum dhaca malaha...

Guddiga Gurmadka Abaaraha ee DKMG ah oo maanta deeq raashin ah ka qaybiyay Degmada Wardhiigleey Isniin, Maarso 07, 2011 (HOL) – Waxaa manta deeq raashiin ah la gaarsiiyay dadka ku nool degmada Wardhiigleey oo isugu jira barakacayaal iyo dad horay u daganaa degmadaas, kuwaasoo ay lasoo gudboonaatay xaalado nolol xumo iyo raashin la'aan ah. Deeqdan raashinka ahaa ayaa waxaa ka qaybiyay degmada Wardhiigleey guddiga gurmadka abaaraha oo maalmaahan dambe ku howlanaa qaybinta raashinka ay ka heleen wadamada Imaaraadka Carabta. Raashinkan deeqda ah ee loo qaybiyay dadka dhibaateysan ee ku nool Wardhiigley ayaa isugu jirtay bur, bariis, caano boore iyo baasto, iyadoo mas'uuliyiinta guddiga ay ku qaybinayeen tiro kaarar ah oo ay dadka raashinka la siiyay horay loogu qaybiyay. Muuse Faarax Maxamuud oo ka mid ah mas'uuliyiinta guddiga ayaa saxaafadda uga warbixiyay qaabka ay ku bixinayeen raashinka isagoo sheegay inay deeqdan horay uga bixiyeen degmooyinka ay dowladdu maamusho qaarkood haddana ay ku talo-jiraan inay degmooyinka harsan ka bixiyaan. "Waxaan maanta degmada Wardhiigley ka qaybinaynaa deeqdan raashinka ah oo ay guddiga horay uga heleen wadan ka mid ah kuwa carabta, waxaana horay uga soo qaybinay degmooyinka Wadajir, Dharkeynley iyo Xamar-weyne," ayuu yiri Muuse Faarax. Sidoo kale, waxaa xarunta degmada Wardhiigley oo ahayd halka lagu qaybinayay deeqda raashinka ah ka hadashay guddoomiyaha degmada Wardhiigley Deeqo C/qaadir Axmed, iyadoo sheegtay inay halkaan isugu yimaadeen dad haysta kararka ay guddiga ku qaybinayeen raashinka iyo dad aan haysan oo ka tirsan deegaannada horay looga soo qaybiyay. Ugu dambeyn, qaybinta raashinka loo qaybinayay dadkan tirada badan ayaa kusoo gaba-gabowday jawi daggan, iyadoo ayan jirin wax qalalaase ah oo dhacay ayna ammaanka sugayeen ciidamada dowladda Soomaaliya. Maxamed Xaaji Xuseen, Hiiraan Online maxuseen@hiiraan.com Muqdisho, Soomaaliya

Ra'iisul wasaaraha Soomaaliya iyo wafdi uu hoggaaminayo oo Muqdisho ka dhoofay iyagoo ku sii jeeda Mareykanka Isniin, Maarso 07, 2011 (HOL) – Ra'iisul wasaaraha Soomaaliya Maxamed C/llaahi Maxamed (Farmaajo) iyo wafdi uu hoggaaminayo ayaa maanta ka dhoofay Muqdisho iyagoo kusii jeeda dalka Mareykanka si ay uga qaybgalo shir looga hadlayo arrimaha Soomaaliya oo ka dhacaya xarunta Qarammada Midoobay ee New York. "Safarka ra'iisul wasaaraha wuxuu ku saabsan yahay ka qaybgalka kulan hal maalin ah oo looga hadlayo arrimaah dalka Soomaailya oo Khamiista ka dhacaya xarunta Qarammada Midoobay ee New York," ayuu yiri ra'iisul wasaare ku xigeenka, ahna wasiirka arrimaha dibadda ee Soomaaliya Maxamed C/llaahi Oomaar oo saxaafadda uga wabixiyay safarka ra'iisul wasaaraha. Wasiirku wuxuu sheegay in shirka looga hadli doono xilliga kala guurka ee dowadda iyo dardargelinta taageerada ay beesha caalamka siiso dowladda Soomaaliya, balse inta uu socdo lagu wado in mudane Farmaajo uu ka warbixiyo xaaladda uu dalku ku sugan yahay, waxqabadka dowladda iyo taageerada bani'aadamnimo ee loo baahan yahay. Safarka ra'iisul wasaaraha ayaa noqonaya kii labaad oo uu ugu dhoofo Mareykanka tan iyo markii uu xafiiska loo magacaabay, isagoo horay uga qaybgalay shir looga hadlay arrimaha dalka Soomaaliya oo ka dhacay xarunta Qarammada Midoobay. Ra'iisul wasaaraha oo wax ku bartay kana shaqeeyay magaalada New York ee dalka Mareykanka ayaa lagu wadaa in inta uu ku sugan yahay halkaas uu kulammo gaar-gaar ah la yeesho madaxda kasoo qaybgalaya shirka sida u sheegay Oomaar. Wasiirka arrimaha dibadda Soomaaliya oo wax laga weydiiyay muddada uu qaadan doono safarka ra'iisul wasaaraha ayaa sheegay inaan la garan karin, balse sida ugu dhaqsiyaha badan uu ra'iisul wasaaruhu ugu soo laaban doono gudaha dalka. Maxamed Xaaji Xuseen, Hiiraan Online maxuseen@hiiraan.com Muqdisho, Soomaaliya

Masha Allah indeed! Borama is a peaceful city. A lot of the diaspora families are sending their kids to school there, and no, they aint natives of Hargeysa. Konfurian (as XX would say) take over is what it is. lol...

Maya, I was wondering sababta hadda loo ugaarsanaayo ninkaan for something u qorey 2008. Waa interesting news oo ishayda qabtey.

Wax kula sheekeysta raadso. Mahadsanid.

Woow! thanks MMA. Abdikareem Jama is doing it big since taking over wasaarada warfaafinta. Kudos to him.

lol@MMA I agree, Fiqi is the best thing that happened to wasaarada gaashandhiga (ministry of defence). Guuleyso, cadawgaagana (AS al shayaadiin) ha jabo.

Knowledge regained In contrast to their forebears, modern Muslims have a childlike view of science, especially evolution. This needs to change Usama Hasan guardian.co.uk, Thursday 11 September 2008 Professor Richard Dawkins recently said that most Muslims were creationists, and their children are taught that the theory of evolution is wrong, which causes a huge problem in schools. He's largely correct, and the Muslim world desperately needs to debate the matter properly without fear, since science can neither prove nor disprove God. Whereas the Christian world, where Charles Darwin first proposed his thesis, has had a century and a half to come to terms with the theory of evolution, it has only begun to be taught rather recently in the Muslim world, where faith and religious practice is still relatively strong. No wonder then that the theory is opposed by some religious elements, especially those that are ignorant of science. Snazzy websites, videos and books produced by fundamentalist Muslim "creationists" such as those at www.harunyahya.com, are obscuring clear scientific thinking. Creation or evolution? Many believers in God have no problem with an obvious solution: that God created man via evolution. Here is some explanation of this view from a Muslim perspective. I have a background in physical sciences, not biological ones, but there are parallels. Just as we can see clear evidence for the fact that planets, stars and galaxies evolved very gradually over the last 13 billion years since the big bang and weren't just beamed into existence by God, it would seem intuitive that life in its breathtaking variety on Earth also arose through a gradual evolutionary processes. There are plenty of Muslim biologists who have no doubt about the essential correctness of evolutionary theory. The Qur'an teaches that humanity began with Adam, whose wife Eve was made "of like nature". The raw materials from which Adam was created are variously described as dust, clay and water, ie a mixture of water and minerals found on earth and in its soil. God completed the creation of Adam, breathed his spirit into him and taught him the names of everything. Since the angels were ignorant of these names, he commanded them to bow down to Adam, to symbolise human superiority over angels due to our free will, intelligence, capacity to understand and express ourselves in eloquent language. One problem is that many Muslims retain the simple picture that God created Adam from clay, much as a potter makes a statue, and then breathed into the lifeless statue and lo! it became a living human. This is a children's madrasa-level understanding and Muslims really have to move on as adults and intellectuals, especially given the very serious scientific heritage of the medieval Islamic civilisation. Another objection that is sometimes posed is the following: doesn't evolution denigrate and insult all humans, but especially the prophets of God, by insisting that we all originate from apes? I reply that the theory doesn't insult anyone, but does remind us of the humble origins of our created form. This is nothing new or blasphemous, since numerous Qur'anic verses remind us that we are all created from "dust" via sexual discharges: "despised drops of water". Those verses clearly do not insult the prophets. Meanwhile, our spiritual form remains the most exalted, since it is from the spirit of God breathed into Adam: we exist for the most noble purpose of knowing and loving God, freely and after having been given a choice. Another irony in this whole debate is that several medieval Islamic thinkers had ideas that were broadly similar to the theory of evolution. The 10th-century Persian philosopher Ibn Miskawayh may have had ideas about the natural world that were, broadly speaking, evolutionist. The 14th-century philosopher Ibn Khaldun wrote: One should then look at the world of creation. It started out from the minerals and progressed, in an ingenious, gradual manner, to plants and animals. Although Ibn Khaldun wasn't speaking directly about evolution in the modern sense, I don't think he would have had a major problem with Darwin's theory, judging from the passage above. But it is precisely the loss of the heritage of people like Ibn Khaldun that has led to the current, appalling state of science in the Muslim world and the Muslim consciousness.

Monday 7th March 2011 By Ima Jackson-Obot » AN IMAM has received death threats after saying Muslims needed to accept the theory of evolution. A lecture given recently by Dr Usama Hassan, vice chairman of the Masjid Madrasah al-Tawhid mosque in Leyton High Road, was disrupted by protesters who shouted for his execution, according to the national Guardian newspaper. Dr Hasan’s comments were made in an opinion piece he wrote for the national Guardian back in 2008, but rising tensions mean he has now also been forced to step down from giving Friday prayers. In the piece, Dr Hasan wrote: "...One problem is that many Muslims retain the simple picture that God created Adam from clay, much as a potter makes a statue, and then breathed into the lifeless statue and it became a living human. "This is a children’s madrasa-level understanding and Muslims really have to move on as adults and intellectuals." Dr Hasan has also come under fire for expressing his views on the right of Muslim women not to cover their hair. According to reports, several fatwas have been issued by Muslim scholars denouncing Dr Hasan. It is believed he has stepped up security at his home where he lives with his wife and four children. Police are monitoring the situation. Source : Guardian

Isku xishoo . Dogs have rights too, the real ones anyways.

lol@very professional... okiyaal fiican aas wadatey miyaa? lol.... Adiga sirdoon inaa noqoto ayey ahayd, you have a great eye for detail.

lol@Abwaan... nah... isheyda ayey ku dhacdey bas... MMA, you can start with the Udubland thread where Mr Jiirow Bakaal decided to ignore the rules of the site. You are doing an excellent job btw.

Madaxweyne Shariif oo baaq u diray Hay’adaha Samafalka Muqdisho: (Sh. M. Network) Madaxweynaha dowladda KMG Soomaaliya Sheekh Shariif Sheekh Axmed ayaa sheegay in Hay’adaha Samafalka looga baahanyahay inay gar gaaraan dadka ku dhibaataysan degmada Baladxaawo ee gobolka Gedo. Sheekh Shariif Sheekh Axmed Madaxweynaha dowladda KMG Soomaaliya oo u waramayay Idaacadda Shabelle ayaa waxaa uu ka hadlay deegaano ka tirsan gobolka Gedo oo ay ka jiraan abaaro xoogan gaar ahaan degmada Baladxaaawo oo ay ka qaxeen dadkii ugu badnaa ee ku noolaa halkaasi. Madaxweyne Shariif ayaa waxaa uu ugu baaqay Hay’adaha Samafalka iyo shacabka Soomaaliyeed inay gar gaar la gaaraan dadkii ka cararay degmada Baladxaawo ee iminka ku dhibaataysan degmada Mandheera ee dalka Kenya. Waxaa uu sheegay Sheekh Shariif Sheekh Axmed in degmada Baladxaawo ay ku taalo meel istaraatiiji ah oo ay Hay’adaha samafalka gayn karaan gar gaar bini’aadanimo kuwaasi oo uu sheegay in hadda ay awoodaan in inay caawiyaan dadkaasi dhibaataysan maadaama halkaasi ay ka taliyaan ciidamada dowladda KMG Soomaaliya. Madaxweynaha dowladda KMG Soomaaliya Sheekh Shariif Sheekh Axmed ayaa waxaa uu sheegay in degmada Baladxaawo ay ka mid tahay degmooyinka ka tirsan gobolka Gedo islamarkaana si xoogan ay u saameeyeen abaaraha, isagoo xusay in aduun waynaha looga baahanyahay gurmed bini’aadanimo. Hadalka kasoo baxay Madaxweynaha dowladda ayaa waxaa uu soo if baxayaa iyadoo degmooyin badan oo ka tirsan gobolka Gedo ay la wareegeen ciidamada dowladda KMG Soomaaliya.

War hadda Soo dhacay waxa uu sheegayaa in duqeymo culus xalay loo geystey magaalada Dhoobleey ee xuduuda ku taala Madaafiicda ayaa waxaa magaalada ku weeraray ciidamada taabacsan Sh. Axmed Madoobe oo magaalada kusii siqaya Wararka aan heleyno ayaa sheegaya in madaafiicda lagu garaacay bartilmaameedyo dhufeysyo ay ka qoteen ciidamada Shabaabka ee halkaasi heysta. Waxaa suurogal ah in daqiiqad kasta uu dagaal culus dhoco Duqeynta waxay ka mid tahay qorshaha dagaal ee hadda socda iyadoo ay xusid mudantahay in dagaal dhawaa ee Balad Xaawo magaalada lagu garaacay wax ka badan 200 o0 madfac ka hor inta aanan dagaal lala galin xoogaga Alshabaab Dhanka kale xaalada Ceelwaaq oo ay ka baxeen ciidamadii Shabaabka ayaanan wali la xaqiijinin cda heysata, waxaa la ogyahay in ay halkaasi meel u dhow joogeen ciidamo Jubooyinka loo tabobaray oo Kenya ka tagay oo taabacsan Prof. Gaandi Wixii war ah ee kasoo kordha kala soco KismaayoNews

Is this real? ------ Barakac baahsan oo ka socda Dhoobley. wararka naga soo gaaraya degmada Dhoobley ayaa sheegayaa in barakac baahsan uu ka socdo degmadaasi . Dadka ayaa u barakacay dhulka howdka ah qoraxdana waa mid aad u kulul , xuduuda kenya waa ay xirantahay. qaxani ayaa yimid kadib markii xalay lagu garaacay madaafiic goobaha ay Maleeshiyada Alshabab kaga sugan yahiin magaalada. Dhanka kale s Ciidamada Mujaahidiinta deegaanka ayaa iskuweer ka hayaa magaalada iyadoo daqiiqad kasta la fin karo xabadu in ay ka qaraxdo degmooyinka Dhoobley iyo Afmadow. Maleeshiyada Alshabab ayaa bilaabay in ay baxsadaan gaar ahaan kuwa ka soo jeega bay iyo bakool ayaa lagu soo waramaya in ay xalay ka baxsadeen degmada Dhoobley, horjoogayaasha Alshabab ee ku sugan aaga Dhoobley ayaa aad u niyad jabsan waxayna u badantahay in ay ku dagaalami doonin Dhoobley. waamonews.com

Wadamo kale ayey u dhaaranaayaan ayagoo kii ay joogeen lagu bursanaayo! ------------- Hoggaamiye ka tirsan Al-Shabaab oo sheegay inay qorsheynayaan weerar ay ku qaadaan Kenya sniin, Maarso 07, 2011 (HOL) – Hoggaamiye sare oo ka tirsan Xarrakatul Shabaab ayaa sheegay inay ka fiirsanayaan weerarro ay ku qaadaan dalka Kenya oo uu ku eedeeyay inuu qayb ka yahay dagaallada ka socda gobolka Gedo ee koonfurta dalka Soomaaliya. Sheekh Mukhtar Roobow Cali (Abuu-Mansuur), ayaa ku sheegay khudbad uu xalay ka jeediyay masjid ku yaalla deegaanka Ceelasha biyaha ee duleedka Muqdisho in mujaahidiinta looga baahan yahay in ka fiirsadaan weerarro ay ku qaadaan dalka Kenya. "Gobolka Gedo waxaa laga soo weeraray xuduudda Kenya, waxaana soo weeraray ciidamo ay ka mid yihiin Kenyan iyo Itoobiyaan, jawaab ayaana ka bixin doonnaa arrintaas," ayuu yiri Sheekh Abuu-Mansuur oo ka mid ah hoggaamiyeyaasha sarsare ee Xarrakatul Shabaabul Mujaahidiin. Hoggaamiyahan wuxuu sheegay in dagaalyahannadooda markii ay ******** in dagaalku uu dhinacyo badan ka yimid ay si xeelad dagaal ah uga baxeen degmada Baladxaawo, ayna ka go'an tahay inay ka aargutaan dalka Kenya. "Jawaabta aan ka bixin doonno daan-daansiga dowladda Kenya wuxuu noqon doonaa mid muuqda ee ma noqon doono mid afka baarkiisa ku eg," ayuu yiri Sheekh Mukhtaar Abuu-Mansuur oo sheegay inay ka go'an tahay inay weeraraan Kenya. Xoogagga Xarrakatul Shabaabul Mujaahidiin ee ka talinayay degmada Baladxaawo ee gobolka Gedo ayaa dorraad dagaal looga qabsaday iyadoo degmadaas, kaddib dagaal socday muddo shan saacadood ah oo khasaare badan dhliyay, iyadoo sidoo kale maanta dagaal la'aan looga degmada Luuq oo iyadana ka tirsan gobolka Gedo. Sheekh Mukhtaar Abuu-Mansuur ayaa hadalkiisan kusoo beegay xilli uu shalay wasiirka amaanka Qaranka dalka Kenya George Saitoti uu sheegay in dalkiisa uusan lug ku yeelanayn dagaallada ka socda gudaha dalka Soomaaliya, balse ay adkeynayaan ammaanka xuduudda ay la wadaagaan Soomaaliya. Maxamed Xaaji Xuseen, Hiiraan Online maxuseen@hiiraan.com Muqdisho, Soomaaliya

Saacadii wadani la iska dhigi jirey ayaa la gaarey apparently. Wallee Ethiopian, AS ayaa laga necebyahay markaan, haddii cid wadanka laga xoreynaayo waa Al Shabaab Al Xayawaaniin kow. -------------------- Afhayeenka Al-Shabaab oo ugu baaqay dagaalyahannadooda inay isku diyaariyan dagaal ka dhan ah Itoobiya Isniin, Maarso 07, 2011 (HOL) – Afhayeenka Xarrakatul Shabaab Sheekh Cali Maxamuud Raage (Sheekh Cali Dheere) oo shir jaraa'id ku qabtay Muqdisho gallinkii dambe ee shalay ayaa ugu baaqay xoogaggooda inay isku diyaarinayaan dagaal ka dhan ah dowladda Itoobiya oo uu sheegay inay kusoo duushay Soomaailya. "Mujaahidiinta waxaa laga doonayaa inay isku diyaariyaan dagaal la mid ah midkii ay horay ula galeen ciidamada Itoobiya ayna dalka uga saareen, maadaama ay mar kale kusoo duuleen Soomaaliya," ayuu yiri Sheekh Cali Dheere. Afhayeenku wuxuu intaas ku daray in ciidamada Itoobiya ay gobollada badan oo dalka ka tirsan soo galeen ayna dhibaatooyin ku hayaan, haweenka, caruurta, waayeelka iyo dhallinyarada muslimiinta ah, isagoo ugu baaqay shacabka inay ka qaybqaataan dagaalka ka dhan ah ciidamada Itoobiya. "Itoobiya ma ahan markii ugu horreysay oo ay Soomaaliya kusoo duushay, dhowr jeer ayay horay ugu soo duushay waxaana ka hortagay oo ka adkaaday shacabka Soomaaliyeed, maantana dagaalladaas oo kale ayay u baahan tahay in la isaga difaaco," ayuu shirkiisa jaraa'id ku sheegay afhayeenka Xarrakatul Shabaab. Sheekh Cali Dheere, wuxuu sidoo kale xusay in gumeystayaashii Ingiriiska iyo Talyaaniga ay dalka ka xoreeyeen dad muslimiin ah oo ka hortagay, ayna diyaar u yihiin dadkaas inay mar kale ka hortagaan Itoobiya oo doonaysa inay Soomaaliya gumeysato. Dhanka kale, Sheekh Mukhtaar Roobow Cali (Abuu-Mansuur) oo isaguna xalay ka hadlay masjid ku yaalla deegaanka Ceelasha biyaha ee ay ku sugan yihiin dadkii dagaallada uga barakacay Muqdisho ayaa sheegay in ciidamada Itoobiya ay soo dirstay dowladda Mareykanka, sidaasna ay mar kale kusoo galeen Soomaaliya. Hadallada mas'uuliyiintan ayaa imaanaya iyadoo ciidamada Itoobiyaan ah oo wata gaadiid dagaal ay ku sugan yihiin degmada Dhuuso-mareen ee gobolka Galguduud, sidoo kalena ay gacan ka geysanayaan dagaallada ay DKMG ah kula wareegayso degmooyin ka tirsan gobolka Gedo ee Koonfurta Soomaailya. Maxamed Xaaji Xuseen, Hiiraan Online maxuseen@hiiraan.com Muqdisho, Soomaaliya

Somali troops, militia take two towns from rebels Monday, March 07, 2011 MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somali troops backed by pro-government militia took two towns from rebel Islamist group al Shabaab in fighting on Monday morning, local officials said. Battles have raged across central and southern Somalia in recent weeks as Somali troops backed by the moderate Ahlu Sunna Waljamaca militia struggle to reclaim territory from al Shabaab, which has links to al Qaeda. The soldiers captured Luq, 80 km (50 miles) from the Ethiopian border, and Elwaq, a frontier town close to Kenya after taking Beledhawo over the weekend. "We have taken Luq town after a brief fight. Al Shabaab has fled," Abdi Fatah Mohamed Gesey, former governor for Bay region, told Reuters by phone from the agricultural town. "We will not stop our operations against al Shabaab. The residents have warmly welcomed us and our next stop will be Baidoa." President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed said on Saturday his fighters were receiving logistical help from Ethiopian troops. Sustained clashes over the past week have focused on the capital and Somalia's southern border with Kenya. Government troops and African Union peacekeepers say they have inflicted heavy losses on al Shabaab militants in Mogadishu "Our troops have captured Elwaq, nine km from the Kenyan border, peacefully," Colonel Mahamud Ali Shire told Reuters by telephone. "They run away from the town. We are now headed for Garbaharey, we have heard their last convoy has left for Bardhere to keep their foreign fighters safe, but we will not for a minute stop our fight against them." (Reporting by Mohamed Ahmed and Ibrahim Mohamed; Additional reporting by Sahra Abdi in Nairobi; Editing by Helen Nyambura and Michael Roddy).

Maxamed Gacal Xaayow

Dowladda Hindiya oo safiir cusub u soo magacaabatay Soomaaliya (SAWIRRO)

'Arab League is ready to repatriate Somali refugees from Libya’ TFG minister MOGADISHU – The transitional government of Somalia has said that the Somalia refugees in Libya would be repatriated by the Arab league to be save from the up rising violence in Libya. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, the deputy Prime Minister and international contact minister of the Somali government had held press conference in Mogadishu on Sunday evening said that the Arab League responded a call of the Somali government to deploy the Somali refugees experiencing difficulties in Libya. The minister said that more than 2000 Somali refugees were in Libya and lived in difficult conditions pointing out that the people would be airlifted from whole country very soon. Mr. Abdiweli called for the Somali people to be ready for repatriating and returning back to their homeland to be saved from the violence going on in Libya reiterating that Arab League would simplify their deployment back to Somalia. The Minister called for the Libyans not to harm the Somali people reached there for reasons relating in search of better live and peace as they left from their war-torn country. The statement of the transitional government of Somalia comes as most of the states in the world continued airlifting and deploying their families from Libya where deadly demonstrations against the Libyan government continued since mid February.

Foreigners’ role in Somali war, the Story of Mohammed Ibrahim Suley Somalia (AP) — After Mohamed Ibrahim Suley joined Somalia’s al-Qaeda-linked insurgency, foreign fighters taught him how to plant bombs and plan assassinations. He fought alongside an Indian, an Eritrean and an American. But after five years, Suley grew disillusioned by the deaths and by the actions of senior commanders. Then one day, during a firefight against government forces, one of the foreign fighters deliberately shot Suley. The foreigner was displeased because Suley had stopped to attend to a wounded friend. Hundreds of foreign fighters have brought battlefield knowledge and cash to the insurgent group called al-Shabab. But their hardline ideology alienates many Somalis. For his part, Suley abandoned the militia after the foreign fighter turned on him. “I defected from al-Shabab because I was deliberately shot by a foreigner,” the 29-year-old Suley told a reporter, pulling up his shirt to show bullet scars. “He shot me in the back after I had defied his order to not to help some of my friends.” Suley’s experiences, relayed at a fortified government position in Mogadishu in an interview arranged by a public relations firm working for the United Nations, illustrate the complex relationship between Somali insurgents and foreigners who have joined them to topple the country’s weak U.N.-backed government. The foreigners are often blamed for promoting a more hardline version of Islam than Somalis are used to, alienating the local population, but al-Shabab cannot afford to dump them. Foreign intelligence services say a few hundred foreign fighters are helping train al-Shabab and carry out attacks. Most are from other countries in East Africa, but a few come from further afield — Chechnya, Pakistan and even America. They provide cash, skills, and volunteers fluent in English to become suicide bombers. Some teach the insurgency increasingly sophisticated tactics, propaganda and bomb-making. On the advice of teachers at Suley’s religious school in the city of Kismayo, he and 39 other students joined an Islamist training camp in 2006. They learned to plant land mines and plan assassinations. Among the instructors, Suley said, was an Indian man nicknamed Abumuslim and an Eritrean. Later, in the Somali capital, he briefly met a white American recruit — Omar Hammami from Alabama, according to Suley’s account. Nicknamed Abumansur Al-Amriki, Hammami has starred in al-Shabab recruitment videos that have been posted online. “He would organize and lead to us to the fighting. Most of time he was carrying a walkie-talkie,” Suley said, adding that al-Shabab fighters preferred walkie-talkies to mobile phones because they feared cell phone conversations could be intercepted. Sniper attacks are rising, and intelligence analysts say it’s because of the training camps run by foreigners. There was one insurgent sniper attack in December 2009, but in December 2010 there were 18, according to the African Union, which has deployed 8,000 troops to Somalia to back the government. Some foreigners have high-ranking positions within the insurgency and do long-term strategic planning, said Lauren Gelfand, the Africa and Middle East editor of Jane’s Defence Weekly, a military publication. But Gelfand said others are young recruits hoping to gain experience in Somalia to start their own Islamist uprisings at home. Fighters who do not have military skills but can speak fluent English have been used as suicide bombers because they can get past checkpoints. Suley said many of his friends and classmates who took up arms with him had died in the war. “Every day I would see casualties from my side,” Suley said. He says he became disillusioned by the deaths and from seeing senior commanders send young recruits — often children — to the front lines while they themselves stayed out of harm’s way. Being shot by the foreign fighter was the last straw, but now Suley has nowhere to go. Scores have defected from al-Shabab since 2007, said a Nairobi based security official. There’s no program to reintegrate them, and if Suley ventures outside the small area controlled by the government he would likely be killed. The government — which is totally dependent on foreign support — is trying to design a reintegration program. But donors are reluctant to back it because disarmament is complicated and the financial commitment could grow, the official said, citing discussions he had been party to. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press. Somali Defense Minister Abdihakim Mohamud Hajji Fiqi said there have been at least seven defections so far this year.

Somali Forces Take Border Town From Rebels nytimes.com By MOHAMMED IBRAHIM Published: March 6, 2011 MOGADISHU, Somalia — After several days of fighting, Somali and African Union troops have captured the border town of Bulo Hawo, military officials said. Somali officials also said they had taken more territory in the capital, Mogadishu, and the government issued an offer to pay any militants willing to switch sides. The southwestern town of Bulo Hawo, which borders Kenya and Ethiopia deep in rebel-held territory, has changed hands several times. Government forces had last taken the town in October from the Shabab rebels. As a government offensive ramped up in the last few days, thousands of civilians have fled into Kenya, where there are large Somali refugee camps. The government recaptured the town on Saturday, Defense Minister Abdihakim Mohamoud Fiqi announced at a news conference on Saturday. There were reports that Ethiopian troops had joined Somali forces in the attack, but President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed said Ethiopia had only provided logistical support. “No Ethiopian army were involved the in the ongoing government offensive, but they have given our army logistical support,” he said Friday. Mr. Fiqi, the defense minister, also announced a new program to pay rebels to switch sides and buy their guns are market prices. “We promise that every person who joins from the government from the Shabab side will be given money for his gun and a monthly salary and any other necessary assistance,” he said. He did not specify how much the former rebels would be paid. In fighting in the capital on Friday and Saturday, government forces allied with African Union troops moved the front line forward, pushing the Shabab out of one neighborhood and killing 13 militants, Mr. Fiqi said. African Union forces also thwarted coordinated attacks on the former Defense Ministry building on Saturday, the African Union force said. In a statement, the African Union force said it had destroyed a “jeep flying a black flag” that was heading to the gate of the compound, “killing all suicide bombers inside.” The Shabab rebels often fly a black flag. The African force also repelled a simultaneous attack with small and medium weapons, inflicting “serious casualties” on the rebels and only a minor injury on one African Union soldier. The Defense Ministry building had only been recaptured by government and African Union forces two weeks earlier. Since then, it has served as a based for Burundian members of the African Union force. Brig. Gen. Maurice Gatereste, commander of the Burundi contingent, called the attack “an act born out of frustration and desperate desire” to recapture the compound.