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Tuesday, July 31, 2012
ESAT Radio reports Dictator Meles Zenawi's Death at age 57 - 07/31/2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Chinese investment group, SFECO won machinery supply and power plant extension projects in Eritrea - 07/29/2012
Chinese investment group SFECO disclosed in its website today that they won a second phase of supplying various machinery and equipment in the fields of mining, agriculture, transport and infrastructure to Eritrea. The deal is worth of 61.54 million USD.
In addition, the company also won another multi-million dollar EPC contract for Hirgigo Power Plant 2*23 MW Extension project.
Hirgigo Diesel Power Plant is located 5 km southwest of Massawa.
Vice-President of China SFECO Group, Mr. Zheng Yufeng and Mr. Tsegai Tesfazion Eritrea’s ambassador to China signed the contract in Beijing on behalf of the two sides.
Last year, SFECO Group won a 100 million USD contract, the “Eritrea Equipment Procurement Logistic Contract”, that aims boosting the new economic development drive.
The various machinery include excavators, motor graders, rollers, loaders, cranes, pumps, tractors and some other construction and agricultural equipment were provided by Liu Gong, XCMG, SANY Heavy Industry and some other large Chinese domestic enterprises.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
London Olympic 2012 Cycling Men's Road Race Result - 07/28/2012
First place in the 155-mile road race went to the 38-year-old Kazakh rider Alexandr Vinokourov, who beat out the Colombian Rigoberto Uran in a grinding final sprint to the finish. The Norwegian rider Alexander Kristoff claimed the bronze, edging out the young American Taylor Phinney by a nose.
Looking For The Exit In Somalia - 08/28/2012
Kenyan forces in Somalia still say they intend to launch an assault on the port of Kismayo.
August, however, is almost over and August was supposed to be the month of the big attack on the Al Shabaab-held seaport. Kenyan naval forces have launched several gunfire attacks over the last three weeks. The attacks appear to be little more than raids intended to rattle the militiamen defending the port. One attack, however, allegedly killed several civilians.
This past Spring Kenyan government officials and military commanders began meeting with clan leaders in southern Somalia with the intent of getting the clans help hammer out a political agreement for governing Kismayo and southern Somalia after Al Shabaab is evicted from the area. Kenya doesn’t want Blackhawk Down Mogadishu-type chaos in Kismayo and southern Somalia after the big attack. The code phrase for chaos the Kenyans are using is an administrative vacuum. Some of the talks have taken place in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital. At least three major clans were involved in the discussions in Nairobi: the Marhan, Ogden and Harti. If a power-sharing arrangement with the southern Somali clans has been made, no one is talking about it.
In July Ethiopian officers indicated that Ethiopian Army units would participate in the assault on Kismayo. The speculation then was that Ethiopian armor would be valuable in the assault. There is another column marching toward Kismayo from the north, however official reports do not mention Ethiopian forces as being part of the column, only Ugandan and Burundian military forces.
A composite force consisting of African Union peacekeeping troops and Somalia Transitional National Government (TNG) troops took the fishing town of Merca on August 27. Merca is about 70 kilometers north of Kismayo.
Source: http://www.strategypage.com/qnd/ethiopi/articles/20120828.aspx
Source: http://www.strategypage.com/qnd/ethiopi/articles/20120828.aspx
Kenya: Ethnic Clashes Claims Four More Lives in Northern Kenya - 08/28/2012
Death toll from tribal clashes in Mandera County of northern Kenya has risen to 15 after four more people were killed in renewed attacks early on Sunday.
The killing of the four from the Degodia community occurred at Guraderow village in Guba location in Banisa district of Mandera West constituency bordering the Ethiopian border by suspected Garreh armed militia at about 8:30 a.m. local time.
Ahmed Muhumed Hussein, an elder from Guba location said the attackers who were heavily armed and numbering 20 killed the four - A woman, a young boy and two men near a watering point in the area.
Hussein said another person was also injured in the attack that come a barely four days after 6 people from the Garreh clan were killed by the suspected Degodia bandits.
On Saturday, scores of houses were burnt in Mandera and Takaba towns as the a peace talk to end the bloody violence that erupted last week was led by Mandera County Commissioner Michael Tialal in Mandera County Council hall.
Speaking to Xinhua, the Banisa District Commissioner Samuel Martin however said those killed in the Sunday morning attack were only two people and one was injured.
"As local government officer who is in charge of security in the district, I can only confirm two people and another seriously injured on the thigh," Martin said on Sunday.
"We suspected the assailants to be militiamen from the Garreh clan were revenging for the killing of the people in Rhamu and Wajir prior in the week," he added.
Both Garre and Degodia have communal presence and have sophisticated armed militia in Ethiopia who has been used in clan fighting in the Horn of Africa country.
The fighting pitting the pastoralists Somali sub-clans of Garre and Degodia reignited on last Monday after suspected Garre clan militia believed to have crossed from the neigbouring Ethiopia killed six people, wounded three others and escaped with 500 herds of cattle after they raided a Degodia village in Banisa district in Mandera West constituency.
Hundreds of families from the warring clans have fled from far- flung areas dominated by their rival clan for fear of being caught in the recurring reprisal attacks.
The latest attack that comes as negotiation to settle the conflict was spearheaded by the government and the local religious leaders has heighten tension in the wake of the escalating killing that has political bearing.
Livestock herding is the main livelihood and source of income in northern and some parts of eastern Kenya, and the hike in cattle thefts threatens to ignite cross-community reprisals and raids that could set the stage for a surge in ethnic fighting in the region.
Clashes between the rival cattle herding pastoralists in the region are common, with herders often carrying guns to protect their animals, but the recent fighting has been unusually heavy.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Audio: Interview with Artist Kedija Adem, the wife of Isaias Tsegai – VOA - 07/26/2012
Interview with Artist Kedija Adem, the wife of Eritrean Film producer Isaias Tsegai with VOA Tigrinia. Isaias and Kedija are the parents of three kids..ረቡዕ, 25 ሓምለ 2012
`ኢሳያስ ሃገር`ዩ፡ ኮኸብ`ዩ ወዲቑ` ትብል በዓልቲ ቤት ኢሳያስ ጸጋይ ከዲጃ ኣደም
ስነ-ስርዓት ቀብሩ፡ ኣሸሓት ኣብ ዝተረኸብሉ ብሰሉስ ኣብ ኣስመራ ተፈጺሙ
ብ Tewelde Weldegebriel | Washington
ብርክት ዝበላ ዓበይትን ነዋሕትን ፊልምታት ብምድራስን ብምእላይን፡ ከምኡ`ውን ዝተፈላለዩ ድርሰታትን ወሓለ ግጥምታትን ብምብርካቱ ዝፍለጥ ኢሳያስ ጸጋይ፡ ሞቱ ንብዙሓት ዘሰንበደ ኾይኑ`ሉ።
በዓልቲ ቤቱ ኣርቲስት ከዲጃ ኣደም፡ “ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ኩሉ ጽንዓት ይሃብኪ ይብለኒ`ሎ፡ ኣነ`ውን ንህዝቢ ኤርትራ ጽንዓት ይሃብካ ክብሎ እደሊ፡ ንኤርትራ ኮኸብ`ዩ ወዲቕዋ” ዝብል ርኢቶ ንቪኦኤ ሂባ`ላ።
Click below to listen to the Audio interview
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Mandate of UN monitoring group on Somalia and Eritrea extended for another year - 07/25/2012
The Security Council today extended for another year the mandate of the United Nations panel of experts monitoring compliance with the embargoes on the delivery of weapons and military equipment to Somalia and Eritrea.
In a resolution adopted unanimously, the Council decided to extend until 25 August 2013 the mandate of the Monitoring Group on Eritrea and Somalia, which also investigates all activities – including in the financial and maritime sectors – which generate revenue that is then used to break the arms embargoes.
The Group is also tasked with examining any means of transport, routes, seaports, airports and other facilities used in connection with violations of the embargoes.
By the resolution, the Council also decided that the arms embargo on Somalia shall not apply to supplies of weapons and military equipment, or the provision of assistance, for use by the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS).
It also decided that the Eritrea arms embargo shall not apply to protective clothing temporarily exported to Eritrea by UN personnel, media representatives and humanitarian and development workers and associated personnel for their personal use only. It shall also not apply to supplies of non-lethal military equipment intended solely for humanitarian or protective use.
In addition, the Council welcomed the Monitoring Group’s recommendation to set up a Joint Financial Management Board to improve financial management, transparency and accountability of Somalia’s public resources, and called for an end to the misappropriation of funds.
Video: UNSC President says SEMG report is delayed – the Secretary to make a decision on Matt Bryden
UNSC President Nestor Osorio (Colombia) says that SEMG report is delayed because "problems were incurred during the preparation or delivery" of the report He also says that The Secretary will make a decision whether to fire the Monitoring Group's co-coordinator (Matt Bryden) or not.
Allied forces move closer to the port city of Kismayo, militants flee - 08/25/2012
Somali and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) forces are moving closer to rebel-held port city of Kismayo, to wrest control from Al shabab, reports said on Saturday.
Residents in the border town of Dhobley, told Shabelle Media by telephone that Somali and Kenyan military forces backing by tanks and artillery left from the town to Kismayo, 500 Km south of Mogadishu.
Sources said The joint forces are massing in villages located few Kilometers away from the strategic coastal town of Kismayo and the Al shabab fighters began Saturday, vacating from the city to their nearby strongholds in Lower Jubba region.
The move by coalition forces is seen as a step forward in the fight against Al-Shabaab rebel group and also a significant step towards taking over of Kismayo from the Al Qaeda-linked militants.
The Kenyan military entered Somalia in October last year, without AU authorization, after several kidnappings and grenade attacks in their country, but the troops were officially absorbed into the AU force in June 7, 2012.
Residents in the border town of Dhobley, told Shabelle Media by telephone that Somali and Kenyan military forces backing by tanks and artillery left from the town to Kismayo, 500 Km south of Mogadishu.
Sources said The joint forces are massing in villages located few Kilometers away from the strategic coastal town of Kismayo and the Al shabab fighters began Saturday, vacating from the city to their nearby strongholds in Lower Jubba region.
The move by coalition forces is seen as a step forward in the fight against Al-Shabaab rebel group and also a significant step towards taking over of Kismayo from the Al Qaeda-linked militants.
The Kenyan military entered Somalia in October last year, without AU authorization, after several kidnappings and grenade attacks in their country, but the troops were officially absorbed into the AU force in June 7, 2012.
South Sudanese soldiers responsible of killing, torture and rape - UN - 08/25/2012
Government soldiers committed murder, torture and rape in the largest and troubled South Sudanese state of Jonglei said the United Nations mission in the new country (UNMISS) on Friday.
South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit launched last March a large disarmament operation in Jonglei following violent tribal attacks between the Nuer Lou and Murle tribes.
In a speech delivered at this occasion he warned his soldier against committing crimes and urged them to run a responsible operation, to be disciplined and to avoid tribalism.
UNMISS, nevertheless in a statement released on Friday, spoke about "serious human rights violations" allegedly committed "undisciplined" soldiers who are part of the contingents participating in the disarmament programme in Jonglei.
Between 15 July and 20 August, the mission said that the SPLA soldiers allegedly killed one person. It further said there are "27 allegations of torture or ill-treatment, such as beatings, and simulated drowning in some cases, 12 rapes, six attempted rapes and eight abductions."
The Mission underscored that the victims are generally women and in some cases children.
It also said that "Communities in Pibor County" are worried about the vulnerability of the civilians there.
The international mission highlighted the significant efforts done by South Sudanese army to calm tensions and to protect civilians after the inter-communal violence which claimed lives of hundreds there.
Pibor is inhabited mainly by the Murle, Kachipo and Jie tribes but the county is ethnically diverse compared to other counties in Jonglei state.
Human Rights Watch said it collected accounts of victims and witnesses from four villages in Pibor county - of Manyirang, Tangajon, Be, and Likuangole- where SPLA soldiers shot at civilians, ill-treated them by beating, tying them with rope, and submerging their heads in water to extract information about the location of weapons.
The peacekeeping mission said the SPLA ordered to probe the alleged human right violations and to recall those who are involved in criminal incidents.
Further the South Sudanese army, according to UNMISS, have taken some steps "to strengthen investigations, with some arrests in recent rape cases and some older cases going to trial."
Nevertheless, UNMISS and HRW called on the South Sudanese authorities to hold accountable those who committed these abuses against civilians stressing such violations undermine the confidence and collaboration of local communities in the disarmament process.
"The gains of the peace process in Jonglei must not be undermined by these recent incidents," said Hilde F. Johnson, Special Representative of the Secretary-General to South Sudan who called for the Government to take action against the perpetrators.
"Justice and accountability in Jonglei seem to have fallen by the wayside," said Daniel Bekele, HRW Africa director. “Authorities should investigate the cycle of violence in Jonglei, immediately put a stop to violations committed in the course of civilian disarmament, and ensure that those responsible are held accountable.”
Established on 8 July 2011, the 7000 stronghold mission is tasked among others with the support of the South Sudanese government in exercising its responsibilities for conflict prevention, mitigation, and resolution and protect civilians.
(ST)
Dozens killed in US-led drone strike in southern Somalia - 08/25/2012
Dozens of people have been killed in an attack carried out by a US assassination drone in southern Somalia, Press TV reports.
The attack, which took place in the strategically important port city of Kismayo on Friday, claimed over 37 lives and injured dozens.
Further details regarding the incident have not yet been released.
The US military uses remote-controlled drones in Somalia for reconnaissance operations and targeted killings.
Washington has been carrying out assassination attacks using the unmanned aircraft in other countries including Afghanistan, Libya, Pakistan, and Yemen.
The United States claims the CIA-run strikes are aimed at militants. But witness reports and figures offered by local authorities indicate the attacks have led to massive civilian deaths.
The UN has condemned the US assassination drone strikes, saying they pose a challenge to international law.
The weak Western-backed transitional government in Mogadishu has been battling al-Shabab fighters for the past five years, and is propped up by a strong African Union force from Uganda, Burundi, and Djibouti.
Strategically located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia remains among the ones generating the highest number of refugees and internally-displaced persons in the world.
AMF/TNP/JR
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Somali, Kenyan forces advance further in southern Somalia - 08/25/2012
Somali government forces and Kenyan troops are advancing into southern Somali areas in a bid to clear the al-Shabab militants from the region, Press TV reports.
Somali government forces and Kenya troops launched an operation on Saturday, aiming to gain control of the town of Kismayo and the remaining key areas of the region.
Kismayo is a strategically important port city on Somalia's Indian Ocean coast located some 500 kilometers (310 miles) south of capital, Mogadishu.
Reports say that the residents of Kismayo have repeatedly accused al-Shabab of forcing civilians to join them.
“People are fleeing from their homes while al-Shabab is forcing civilians, especially students to join the fight,” a resident, who requested to remain anonymous, told Press TV.
Kenya dispatched soldiers over its border into the conflict-plagued Somalia last October to pursue al-Shabab militants, which it accuses of being behind the kidnapping of several foreigners on its territory.
Somalia has not had an effective central government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.
The weak Western-backed transitional government in Mogadishu has been battling al-Shabab fighters for the past five years, and is propped up by a strong African Union force from Uganda, Burundi, and Djibouti.
Kenyan Defense Forces (KDF) officially joined the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) on July 6 in a bid to secure peace and stability in the neighboring war- ravaged country.
Integrating 4664 Kenyan personnel into AMISOM, the move brought the AMISOM force strength to slightly over 17,000 troops.
Somalia is one of the countries generating the highest number of refugees and internally-displaced people in the world.
AMB/TNP/JR
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Eritrea Report Down, Bryden Leaks – Inner City Press - 07/24/2012
UNITED NATIONS, July 24 — The UN's Somalia and Eritrea sanctions are a circus. A report on Eritrea was put online, then taken down after an Ethiopian UN official Taye Brook-Zerihoun spoke with some but not all Security Council members.
Meanwhile the coordinator of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, the Canadian Matt Bryden, openly leaked his Group's report and was quoted about it by name, before it was given to Eritrea.
Somalia too has criticized Bryden, as supporting the full or formal breakaway of Somaliland.
Tuesday in front of the Security Council members from three countries gave Inner City Press exclusive and negative reviews of Bryden's performance. "He's leaving," one of them said. There is snarky speculation Bryden may have been angling for a book deal, or a post with a group like HRW.In a lower profile but telling more, an individual initially put on the Al Qaeda sanctions list was moved from that last earlier this year to the "list of individuals and entities subject to the travel ban, assets freeze and targeted arms embargo imposed by paragraphs 1, 3 and 7 of resolution 1844 (2008)."
He is Djibouti national named Ali Ahmed Nur Jim'ale, described as the largest shareholder in the telecommunications firm Hormuud.
The UN darkly notes that "Hormuud is operated by several former large shareholders of Al-Barakaat with Jim’ale being the largest shareholder."
Barakaat was a firm that got all of its money, and the small remittances of expatriate Somalis in cities like Minneapolis, frozen (stolen, some say) after a terrorism charge.
The irony is that now the TFG's Somali Mission to the UN, or at least one vocal member of it, tells Inner City Press that Hormuud and by implication Jim'ale did nothing wrong.
A well placed source exclusively told Inner City Press that the fact that Jim'ale was taken off the 1267 Al Qaeda sanctions list, but simply moved to another sanctions list with a lower threshold and no ombudsperson like Kim Prost, is a "travesty." But isn't Matt Bryden, and the take-down of the Eritrea report? So it goes at the UN.
Defenders of the Jim'ale process, or of the UN Security Council, told Inner City Press that Jim'ale was taken off the Al Qaeda list and put on the Somalia list "without any linkage other than a member state who managed the transition."
Another, going bigger picture, said it should be admitted that the UN sanctions is purely political and not legal, adding his view that Jim'ale should have been kept on the 1267 sanctions list too — on a political basis. Even more so, this is how it goes at the UN.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Natnael Berhane (World Cycling Centre) won Sunday's 22nd edition of the Tour du Chablais
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Podium of the best young Eduardo Sepulveda (second) and Natnael Berhane (1) |
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Podium of the Tour du Chablais: Jerome Mainard (2nd), Natnael Berhane (1) and Frederic Brown (3rd) |
By Nicolas Gachet
Natnael Berhane (World Cycling Centre) won Sunday's 22nd edition of the Tour du Chablais (Elite National), raced between Thonon and Evian on 161.8 km. The Eritrean ahead of the French Mainard Jerome (CR4C Roanne) and Frederic Brown (Bourg-en-Bresse Ain Cycling). Berhane Natnael succeeds winners of the race for Sebastian Grédy (SCO Dijon).
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Natnael Berhane will be a trainee with Team
Europcar’s feeder squad (07/21/2012)
A member of the World Cycling Centre (WCC), the Eritrean rider Natnael Berhane, 21, will be a trainee for the reserves of the Team Europcar during the end-of-season period.
This experience at Vendée U-Pays de la Loire (a club in the first national amateur division in France) constitutes an important step for Berhane in his quest for a professional contract. The rider trained initially at the Continental Centre for Cycling in South Africa, and then since 2011 at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle (Switzerland).
Renowned for his qualities as a puncher, Berhane was crowned Continental Champion of Africa in November 2011. That same year, he won a stage of the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in Gabon. This season, he had four victories, including the final rankings of the Tour d’Algérie and the Tour de Chablais. He also finished second in a stage of the Tuscany-Terre de Cyclisme event, a race that goes towards the Under 23 Nations Cup.
Currently riding in the Giro della Valle d'Aosta, Berhane will take a week’s rest before beginning his training with the Vendée U club. The training will last about a month, before he leaves to participate in the Tour de l'Avenir.
Jean-Jacques Henry, Trainer at the World Cycling Centre, is convinced that Natnael Berhane “is ready for the experience” with Vendée U.“He clearly has the potential to go professional, and we hope that this experience with the reserve team will open the door for him in this respect,” added Mr Henry.
“The collaboration with the Team Europcar is very important for the World Cycling Centre,” explains Frédéric Magné, Director of the WCC.“Jean-René Bernaudeau has always encouraged the development of cycling throughout the world, and particularly in Africa. He is therefore very interested in the training activities at the WCC. We are happy that such a great cycling team has this philosophy.”
Friday, July 20, 2012
Meles Zenawi is said to be dead – multiple sources - 07/20/2012
By: EthiopianReview.
An Ethiopian Airlines employee, who wants to remain anonymous, informed Ethiopian Review this afternoon that Ethiopia’s dictator Meles Zenawi has died 4 days ago. But according to our sources, his bodyguards are still at St. Luc Hospital in Belgium. If Meles is dead, what are they doing in Belgium? Is it a diversionary tactic?
When asked how he found out the information, the EAL employee said that he overheard it by accident on Monday from senior airline officials who are members of the ruling party. He added that he receives Ethiopian Review email updates regularly and decided to contact us with this information after hearing Bereket Simon’s interview this morning and was offended by what he heard.
Coupled with similar information we have been receiving since Sunday from several credible sources, the story about the dictator’s death is gaining more credence by the day.
Woyanne propaganda chief Bereket Simon’s press conference this morning (watch below) raised more questions than answers. Observers speculate that the Woyanne junta could be keeping the dictator’s death secret because there is a growing dissatisfaction with Meles Zenawi’s choice of Berhane Gebrekristos as his successor.
Source: EthiopianReview.
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| The late PM Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia (1955-2012) |
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Eritrea Demands UN Sanctions Be Lifted - 07/17/2012
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| Eritrea information minister Ali Abdu |
By Peter Clottey
Eritrea’s UN envoy said Asmara has petitioned the Security Council to lift sanctions on his country after a monitoring group said it found no evidence that Eritrea supports the Somali-based Islamist militant group Al-Shabab.
Ambassador Araya Desta said Eritrea has yet to officially receive a copy of the UN monitoring group’s report before it was allegedly leaked to some media organizations.
“It’s a pity we have not yet received officially the copy of the report. But, we have seen it in Reuters [news website] today that they have got a copy and they are talking about it,” said Desta.
“We have been asking the sanctions committee to give us a copy of the report, [but] they said we cannot give [it to] you. So, we don’t know what this report is saying.”
Reuters reports that “Eritrea has reduced its support for the al Qaida-linked militant group in Somalia under international pressure, but still violates Security Council resolutions and remains a destabilizing influence.”
But, Desta denied Asmara has supported al-Shabab.
“Definitely, I can assure you that the report was leaked to Reuters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia before Eritrea had a chance to see it. And, as indicated in their July 6 press release, the [monitoring] group said it has found no evidence to substantiate allegations that Eritrea supplied al-Shabab with arms and ammunitions by air in October and November 2011,” said Desta.
“We have been saying all this that Eritrea has never given arms to al-Shabab and, even this time, they have come to say that they haven’t received any evidence regarding this.”
Last year, the Security Council imposed sanctions on Eritrea for violating sanctions imposed in 2009 by continuing to provide support to Islamist militants in Somalia, including al-Shabab. Asmara denies aiding al-Shabab or any other militant groups. But, in its latest report to the Security Council, the UN Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea said it found no evidence that Eritrea supported al Shabab in the past year.
Desta said the “unjust” accusations were the basis of the imposed sanctions and demanded the sanctions be lifted.
“These were the main issues that [led] to [UN Security Council] sanctions [Resolution] 1907 [and], if that is the case, we request that the Security Council lift the sanctions,” said Desta.
“We are asking the Security Council officially now, and before in writing, that what has been [previously] reported by the monitoring group was totally wrong and fabricated…And now that the monitoring group said it didn’t find any evidence, then it is the duty of the Security Council to lift it.”
Clottey interview with Ambassador Araya Desta Eritrea’s UN envoy
Eritrea support for Al-Shabab has evaporated (The Monitoring Group) - 07/16/2012
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| Eritrea's support for Al Shabab has evaporated - Monitoring Group |
The UN Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, which investigates violations of an arms embargo on both nations, said in a report to the Council, seen by Reuters news agency, that it had found no evidence of direct Eritrean support for al-Shabaab in the past year.
The Council imposed the embargo on the tiny east African state of Eritrea in 2009 over concerns its government was providing finance and weapons to al Shabaab - charges Asmara denied.
The Monitoring Group now says that support has evaporated.
This was "a symptom of growing friction between the authorities in Asmara and al-Shabaab's leadership" as well as the "result of enhanced international scrutiny, which has made direct support, a much riskier undertaking than in the past", said the report, which is scheduled to be published this week.
"Although it is possible that the Eritrean authorities have continued to provide financial and other forms of assistance to (Somali) armed opposition groups, without their activities being detected, it is the Monitoring Group's assessment that any such assistance is negligible," the report said.
Ethiopian accusations
Instead, the panel presented evidence that Asmara deployed Ethiopian rebel groups via Somalia, sold weapons to smuggling rings in Sudan that do business with Palestinian arms dealers, and imported spare parts for its air force.
Eritrea, which declared independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a long war, is routinely accused by Addis Ababa of supporting Ethiopian separatists. Eritrea says the accusations are false and aim to tarnish its reputation.
Asmara has blamed Ethiopia for the sanctions drive against it and the rivals have frequently clashed as they seek to influence events in Somalia, where Ethiopian troops are among African forces fighting al Shabaab.
The UN report also alleged that Afar rebels responsible for the killing of five European tourists in eastern Ethiopia in January were hosted and trained in Eritrea, though there was no evidence the Red Sea state had a direct role in the killings.
It said the escape last year of Djiboutian prisoners of war held in Eritrea proved Asmara had violated a UN resolution calling on it to disclose information on their whereabouts after their capture following a border clash in 2008.
"Eritrea has failed to comply with Security Council resolutions and remains a destabilizing influence across much of the region," the report said.
The Red Sea state has previously rejected these allegations and has called for the replacement of the panel's members over what it calls their bias in favour of its arch-foe Ethiopia. Eritrean envoys to the African Union declined to comment specifically on the latest UN report.
Al-Shabaab has controlled much of southern Somalia since 2007, imposing a strict version of Islamic law in areas under its control. But over the last year it has been forced out of the Somali capital Mogadishu and other parts of the south by the coordinated military operations of UN -backed African troops.
'Too early to lift sanctions'
Last year, the Monitoring Group alleged Eritrea was behind a failed plot to bomb an African Union summit in Ethiopia, had bankrolled known members of al- Shabaab in Kenya and had been involved in the smuggling of weapons through Sudan and Egypt.
As a result, the Council prolonged the arms embargo and assets freeze on Eritrea, in addition to a travel ban on some officials, amid an escalation in operations against al Shabaab by AU, Kenyan and Ethiopian troops and their Somali allies.
"We're trying to make the case that any improvement in Eritrea's conduct is the result of sanctions, and that it's too early to lift them because of the other violations they have committed," Bryden said.
Earlier this month, the US Treasury Department issued sanctions against Colonels Tewolde Habte Negash and Teame Abraham Goitom, two senior Eritrean military officers Washington says have worked closely with al Shabaab in the past.
Diplomats at the UN say the US move against the two officers, who have not been subject to full Security Council sanctions, suggests that Eritrea will face sustained pressure from the United States and its allies in the Council.
Eritrean officials deny involvement in Somalia and say the Council embargo decision was based on "fabricated lies" made up by the US government and its ally Ethiopia.
In a letter obtained by Reuters in December, Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh accused the UN panel of bias and urged the Council's chair to establish an "independent, impartial and credible body".
Taxes, trafficking and gold revenues
European and North American governments have also been concerned about Eritrea's use of revenues from the taxation of Eritrean citizens in the diaspora, from human trafficking of refugees through Sudan and Egypt, and from gold mining.
The Monitoring Group reported that both the British and German governments had taken action to prevent taxes being collected from diaspora Eritreans in their territories, in which Eritrean government agents often use coercion.
"Individuals who refuse to make payment may have their inheritance rights voided, their family members may be penalized, and they may be subject to detention or denial of an exit visa if they return to Eritrea," it said.
Asmara denies coercing its citizens, but insists it has the right to encourage its diaspora to contribute to the national budget, including for defence.
The report said Eritrean officials involved in the smuggling of weapons through Sudan and Egypt were also part of a people trafficking network that delivered tens of thousands of Eritrean refugees to Israel between 2009 and 2011.
Refugees interviewed in Israel said they were smuggled through Sudan by ethnic Rashaida gangs which the Monitoring Group says work with General Tekle Kiflai, the commander of Eritrea's western military zone.
Asmara says its fleeing nationals, often escaping unlimited military conscription, were being lured to leave the country by sustained American "propaganda".
The panel also urged the UN Security Council to consider measures to regulate Eritrea's opaque gold mining sector, which it said has generated hundreds of millions of dollars.
The Monitoring Group recommended that the Council either ask Eritrea to publish its revenues from gold mining or demand that private gold companies publish all payments to Asmara or pay into a monitored escrow account.
Saturday, July 14, 2012
US, UN concerned over corrupt Somali transition - 08/14/2012
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — World leaders from Africa to the U.S. and Europe said they are growing increasingly concerned that intimidation and corruption are marring the selection of a new Somali parliament, a task still unfinished less than a week before the government's U.N. mandate expires.
The U.S. Embassy said in a statement Tuesday that it shares the concerns of the African Union and U.N. over "multiple credible reports of intimidation and corruption" in the selection of the country's new 275-member parliament.
James Swan, the U.S. representative for Somalia, continued with his list of concerns: "Inadequate representation of women and in some cases reports of former warlords who are being nominated by their communities."
Since 2004, Somalia has been represented by a U.N.-approved leadership structure called the Transitional Federal Government that mostly controlled only small parts of Mogadishu. The government has accomplished little, but because African Union and Somali troops pushed Al-Shabab militants out of the capital last year positive momentum is building.
But the U.N. mandate for the government expires Aug. 20, and Somali leaders still must nominate a parliament that will in turn vote in a president.
That looming deadline — and the messy process of naming a parliament — appears to be making world leaders nervous about Somali power brokers' ability to make decisions that are in the best interest of the country. A report commissioned by the U.N. finalized in July said that systematic misappropriation, embezzlement and outright theft of taxpayer funds have become a system of governance in Somalia.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said Monday that he is seriously concerned about delays in the selection of the new parliament. Ban, through his spokesperson, said recent reports of intimidation and violence should not be allowed to threaten the conclusion of the Somali government's transition.
An EU representative, Alex Rondos, echoed the concerns. "In the run-up to the end of the transition, the responsibility remains with the selected Somali leadership to rise to the challenge of delivering this process fairly and transparently and must understand that, ultimately, they are personally accountable for their actions."
Somalia has been the world's most lawless country since 1991, when the president was ousted and warlords began in-fighting. U.S. troops invaded in the early 1990s to try to help ease the pain of famine, but retreated after losing the battle known as Black Hawk Down.
Ugandan troops — later to be backed by Burundian forces — moved in in 2007 as part of an African Union force and have lost hundreds of lives to secure Mogadishu from the hands of the al-Qaida-linked group al-Shabab.
The transitional government was supposed to end last August, but the U.N. extended its mandate by a year when it became clear not enough political process had been made to move to a new government structure.
As part of the transition, more than 600 Somali elders earlier this month approved a new provisional constitution that contains new individual rights and sets the country on a course for a more powerful and representative government.
The constitution makes it clear that Islamic law is the basis for Somalia's legal foundation. But it also protects the right to an abortion to save the life of the mother and bans the circumcision of girls, a common practice in Somalia that opponents call female genital mutilation. Those rights were opposed by conservative Somalis.
The U.N. hopes one day that the constitution can be voted on by all of Somalia, but the day that security is good enough to hold a nationwide vote remains years away. Though Al-Shabab no longer controls Mogadishu, it still holds sway in much of south-central Somalia.
AFRICAN cyclist Daniel Teklehaimanot and three young Australians will make their Grand Tour debut with Orica-GreenEDGE in this week's Vuelta a Espana - 08/14/2012
Teklehaimanot will be joined by Victorians Simon Clarke and Mitch Docker and Western Australian Travis Meyer for their first Grand Tour starting in Pampalona on Saturday.
Allan Davis, Cameron Meyer, Julian Dean, Pieter Weening and Wesley Sulzberger are also on the team.
Teklehaimanot, 23, is from Eritrea and in his first season on the WorldTour.
He joined Orica-GreenEDGE for its maiden season and his progress has impressed general manager Shayne Bannan.
"We're really happy with him,'' Bannan said.
"He held the mountains jersey until the final day at the Tour of Poland and has been training strongly ever since.
"For him to be selected for a Grand Tour in his first year indicates the type of faith we have in him for the future.''
Bannan said his Vuelta team would showcase some of its emerging talent but did not have ambitions for overall victory.
"We've got a really good mixture of experience and knowledge, combined with some talented young riders,'' he said.
"It will be about taking our opportunities, for guys like Cam Meyer it will be about being as consistent as possible but there's certainly no pressure on him for GC (general classification).
"Pieter Weening will have a go in a few stages and so will Simon (Clarke) and Allan (Davis).''
The Vuelta a Espana, the third and final Grand Tour of the season, runs from August 18 to September 9.
Alberto Contador is expected to start a strong favourite to win the race after returning to cycling at last week's Eneco Tour following his drug ban.
Foreign currency shortage hits Ethiopian banks, threatens inflation - 08/14/2012
A critical shortage in 2008 encouraged the country's decision to devalue the Ethiopian currency, the birr in 2009, by 10 percent againt the US dollar.
The current shortage has been deemed serious by bank officials, following reports that the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) has suspended opening letters of credit to businesses.
A letter of credit is a promise to pay. Banks issue letters of credit as a way to ensure sellers that they will get paid as long as they do what they have agreed to do.
A decision to suspend the issuing of letters of credit was made after there were signs of a marked decline in foreign trade in the past three months.
CBE is the biggest generator of foreign currency from its international banking department and from remittances.
It is feared that the move could push up inflation and will have adverse effects on the livelihood of many citizens.
Many fear there will be a return to last year's sharp price increases and shortages of commodities, a situation that saw the government move to control and cap prices in order to ease inflation.
Sources at the country's largest bank have confirmed that the institution is currently opening letters of credit for basic items such as petroleum and medicine only.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Egypt’s new president replaces army chief Hussein Tantawi - 08/12/2012
By Ines Bel Aiba | AFP
Egypt’s Islamist President Mohammed Morsi on Sunday ordered the surprise retirement of his powerful defence minister and scrapped a constitutional document which handed sweeping powers to the military.
Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who ruled Egypt for more than a year after the revolution that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak, was replaced by Abdel Fattah al-Sissi.
The veteran army leader had served as Mubarak’s defence minister for two decades and headed the country after the strongman’s overthrow, until he handed power to Morsi on June 30.
Armed forces chief of staff Sami Anan was also retired, state television said, a week after a deadly attack on the Egyptian military in the Sinai prompted an unprecedented military campaign in the lawless peninsula.
Both were awarded the Greatest Nile Collar, Egypt’s most prestigious award, and retained as presidential advisors.
Morsi decided to scrap a key constitutional document which gave the military legislative powers and other prerogatives, his spokesman Yasser Ali said.
He amended the interim constitution to deny the military any role in public policy-making, the budget and legislation, and the right to pick a constituent assembly drafting a permanent constitution for post-Mubarak Egypt.
"The president has decided to annul the constitutional declaration adopted on June 17" by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, headed by Tantawi, Ali said.
"Given the circumstances, this is the right time to make changes in the military institution," said Mourad Ali, a senior official with the Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party which fielded Morsi in a May-June presidential election.
"He is a strong president, and he is exercising his authority," Ali said of the surprise decision that tested the balance of power between the first civilian president in Egypt’s history and the army.
Morsi, an Islamist who rose through the ranks of the Brotherhood before his election triumph, also decided to appoint a vice president.
He appointed judge Mahmud Mekki as his deputy, the official news agency MENA reported, making him only the second vice president to be named in Egypt in 30 years.
Mubarak, who was ousted in February 2011, named his spy chief Omar Suleiman as vice president just days before being forced to step down, after having resisted for three decades from naming a likely successor.
Sunday’s moves were the latest in a series of major decisions taken by Morsi since the deadly attack on troops in the Sinai peninsula on August 5.
Last Wednesday, the president ordered spy chief Muraf Muwafi to retire in a reshuffle of military and intelligence ranks after the attack which killed 16 soldiers near Egypt’s borders with Israel and the Gaza Strip.
And he also sacked the governor of North Sinai, Abdel Wahab Mabruk.
And the head of military police, Hamdi Badeen, was replaced because he was deemed to have failed to secure the funeral for the slain soldiers, during which some protesters tried to assault Prime Minister Hisham Qandil.
Islamists scored a crushing victory in Egyptian parliamentary elections that were held in three-stages from November last year, with the Muslim Brotherhood dominating the lower house.
But the military dissolved parliament in May after the Supreme Constitutional Court ruled that certain articles in the law governing the parliamentary polls were invalid, annuling the Islamist-led house, a decision rejected by Morsi.
Daniel Teklehaimanot (Orica-GreenEdge) is still in the mountains classification lead - 07/13/2012
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Daniel Teklehaimanot (Orica-GreenEdge) is still in the mountains classification lead Photo: © Tour de Pologne |
By Green Edge Cycling
Ben Swift (Sky Procycling) won stage two of the Tour of Poland. Daniel Teklehaimanot who climbed into the mountains classification lead yesterday – and stepped onto his first WorldTour podium to received the leader’s jersey as a result – maintained his lead on the relatively flat day of racing. Mitch Docker checked in following the Polish Tour’s longest stage to tell us about ORICA-GreenEDGE's day.
The stage began with a ten kilometer neutral section. It was a relaxed rolling start ahead of our 240 kilometer day. I think we were all thinking about the long day ahead, so the break went quickly and everyone stayed pretty relaxed. We had the idea to stay fresh for the finish, so we weren’t interested in being in the break. The relaxed pace suited us well.
Everyone rolled along and chatted during the first 150 kilometers. I haven’t had a chance to chill in the bunch like that because the few races I’ve done this season have all been full on or in bad weather or something like that. So, we took it easy, and we stayed calm and fresh – well, I certainly did, anyway.
With 50 kilometers left to race, the team started to come together a bit more as we began to prepare for the final sprint. Twenty kilometers from the finish, we came onto the final circuit for three laps to end the stage. It had been a flat day, and really there was nothing eventful to report until we hit the circuits.
Things became eventful quickly on the circuits. We worked hard to stick together. Fumy Beppu and Daniel Teklehaimanot ran in the front before the laps. They assumed responsibility for pulling us all up to the front of the bunch. My objective was to ride on the front before our sprint train took over. When I pulled off, I was hoping Leigh Howard and Tomas Vaitkus would be there to lead out Aidis Kruopis.
As it went, Tomas got lost in the shuffle. Because I was on the front, I wasn’t fully aware of everything that had happened behind, and it wasn’t until after the race that I learned there had been a crash. I swung off the front and saw that there were only about 50 riders left in the bunch. I had no idea why. Tomas wasn’t there. Jens Mouris wasn’t there. I looked back, and I only saw Leigh and Aidis. Three kilometers from the finish, I pulled off and we had only two riders left – and that was my race.
I’m rooming with Leigh, and we’ve had a chance to talk about the finish. He told me he did what he could to protect Aidis in the finish, but they somehow got separated from one another. The last lap on the circuit was really dangerous. It was a nervous bunch from the moment we hit the circuit, and it was even more nervous as the kilometers ticked down.
Lacking a lead out, Aidis tried to find his own way, but he didn’t have the legs today. While it was an easy day, it was a really long day. He said his legs were lacking power in the end.
We had high hopes for a good effort in the sprint. Everyone was certainly up there until the crash divided the field. We fell short in part because we were lacking numbers. When I pulled off, I thought I would see two or three extra guys than we we had.
We’re certainly looking forward to giving it another go tomorrow. I feel a bit more warmed up to the race now after that sprint stage. Yesterday was a bit of a shock to the system. Today felt like the opener I needed.
Daniel Teklehaimont is using this race as preparation for the Olympics, and he has been given free reign by the team to try to go for the general classification.
ORICA-GreenEDGE for Tour of Poland
Aidis Kruopis
Daniel Teklehaimanot
Fumy Beppu
Jens Mouris
Julian Dean
Leigh Howard
Mitch Docker
Tomas Vaitkus
The stage, which was run over four and a half laps of a 39.2km circuit, was dominated by a five-man breakaway from Jaroslav Marycz (Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank), Bartlomiej Matysiak (Poland), Daniel Teklehaimanot (Orica-GreenEdge), Sylvain Georges (AG2R La Mondiale) and Federico Rocchetti (Utensilnord-Named). The five riders managed to open up a lead of more than nine minutes in the first half of the stage, but were steadily reeled in on the final lap…
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
An Ethiopian and Susan Rice Semiannual Ritual at the UN Security Council - 07/11/2012
By: Bereket Tecle
Once again; this July the chairman of the so-called U.N. Somalia Eritrea Monitoring group (Matt Bryden), US Ambassador to the UN (Susan Rice) and PM of the genocidal minority regime in Ethiopia (Meles Zenawi) have begun what they have been doing for a while; a joint semiannual ritual at the UNSC.
The goal is to undermine, ridicule and despoil every Eritrean institution, its people and its leadership. It has been obvious when it comes to Eritrea and the Eritrean people, no road is too low or no lie is too bold for the TPLF-run regime in Ethiopia. There is no doubt that the aid-dependent minority regime of Ethiopia could not and does not have the diplomatic and financial capacity to pull this evil and destructive effort at the UNSC. That is where Ambassador
The goal is to undermine, ridicule and despoil every Eritrean institution, its people and its leadership. It has been obvious when it comes to Eritrea and the Eritrean people, no road is too low or no lie is too bold for the TPLF-run regime in Ethiopia. There is no doubt that the aid-dependent minority regime of Ethiopia could not and does not have the diplomatic and financial capacity to pull this evil and destructive effort at the UNSC. That is where Ambassador
Susan Rice and the SEMG Matt Bryden join the ritual.
Here is how the ritual goes: PM Meles fabricates lies, Monitoring Group Chairman Matt Bryden cuts and pastes it onto an official UN letter head, and US Ambassador Susan Rice adds the necessary packaging to convert an Ethiopian intelligence fabrication into an accusation worthy of sanctioning an innocent nation.
It is mind boggling and disturbing to see the credibility and moral ground of the United States being tarnished for the personal vendetta by nobody but the Ambassador who was put to protect the US national
interest and agenda over any personal grudge. Yes, it is sad to see how low US Foreign policy has dropped to. Instead of looking for a sensible, fair and comprehensive solution to the growing crisis in the HORN of AFRICA, Ambassador Susan Rice has chosen to defend a regime that had committed genocides against its own people in the Gambela, Ogaden and Oromia regions of Ethiopia. A regime that had massacred innocent university students in an open day light on the streets of Addis Ababa and a regime that believes Peace in the Horn of Africa be it in Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan or even in its own country as a threat for its survival is being taken as a poster regime of cooperation. It is sad, heartbreaking.
For any fair minded official in the diplomatic arena, the genocidal regime in Addis Ababa is the most undefendable regime one can ever think of. But and unfortunately Ambassador Susan Rice enthusiastically and even some times sarcastically is continuing to defend and give it diplomatic cover. It is mind boggling and
unbelievable.
Any Peace loving and fair minded person who cares about the long-term interests of USA should do whatever it takes and advise Ambassador Susan Rice to abandon her personal vendetta against the Eritrean
people and take the high road to think of US interests. And long term US interest is not best served by propping up a regime that has no credibility with its own people.
It is time that Susan Rice humbly understands that the position she is occupying at the UN is that of the American People not her own Fiefdom. She needs to work to prevent another bloodbath in the Horn of Africa before it is too late and not put the first African-American President's genuine promise for change in jeopardy. Instead of going after Eritrea on trumped up charges, she should work for the implementation of the final and binding ruling of Eritrea Ethiopia Boundary Commission. Let the genocide in Rwanda that happened under her watch be a lesson for her! Ill-conceived, narrow-minded and misguided policies that gives her a short-term gratification, but ultimately go against the best interest of the American public, and perpetuate injustice and create cycles of conflict and war should not be allowed to tarnish the good name of the peace loving people of the USA.
Over the years, internal Ethiopian political dynamics has historically used Eritrea as a scapegoat and a rallying issue to create domestic coherence. The USA has repeatedly allowed itself to be used in this game of victimizing Eritrea in an attempt to keep a tattered empire, Ethiopia, together. The U.S. must learn from past
mistakes and misguided policies that seem to benefit neither the US nor the region. Not only does the U.S. have an obligation and responsibility to do so, it is also in its own long term interest to bring a peaceful closure to the murderous conflict in the Horn and work to usher PEACE in THE HORN Of AFRICA.