Gunmen Kill Ethiopian Soldier in Somalia
By NASTEEX DAHIR FARAH Associated Press Writer
January 25,2007 | KISMAYO, Somalia -- Gunmen attacked Ethiopian soldiers stationed in southern Somalia on Thursday, killing one and wounding another with a gunshot to the chest, witnesses said. The violence, an apparent sign of tensions between Ethiopian military forces and Somali civilians, broke out in the currency exchange market in Kismayo, said Abdullahi Hassan, a money changer.
"The gunmen used pistols. ... They have taken the Ethiopian soldiers' AK-47s," Hassan said.
Ethiopian troops, whose military strength was crucial to helping Somalia's government drive out a radical Islamic militia, began their withdrawal earlier this week. It was not clear when it would be complete.
Many Somalis resent the presence of Ethiopian troops here; the two countries fought a war in 1977. But without Ethiopia's tanks and fighter jets, the Somali government could barely assert control outside one town and couldn't enter the capital, Mogadishu, which was ruled by fighters loyal to the Council of Islamic Courts. The U.S. accused the group of having ties to al-Qaida.
The withdrawal of Ethiopia, which says it cannot afford to maintain troops in Somalia, has begun in advance of the arrival of a proposed African peacekeeping force. The African Union has approved a plan to send about 8,000 peacekeepers for a six-month mission that would eventually be taken over by the U.N.
Meanwhile, a businessman who financed Somalia's ousted Islamic movement pleaded guilty Thursday in a Nairobi courtroom to being in Kenya illegally, but his attorney argued he shouldn't be deported because he was fleeing for his life.
Abukar Omar Aden, 72, a well-known commodities trader in the Somali capital Mogadishu, was charged along with his son, Omar Abukar Omar, who served as a finance official for the Council of Islamic Courts. The son said he had a visa for Kenya and denied entering the country illegally.
http://www.salon.com/wire/ap/archive.html?wire=D8MSC8AO3.html
Ethiopia: No Security Vacuum in Somalia
Ethiopia said its phased troop withdrawal from Somalia would not create a security vacuum as has been suggested by some. Bereket Simon, an advisor to Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, said Ethiopia has also achieved almost all of its goals for going into Somalia.
“Absolutely! In fact, we have achieved a lot more by sending our troops to Somalia. Our first goal was to ensure that the threat that was posed to Ethiopia was overcome, and with the defeat of the extremes in the Islamic Courts, we have succeeded in achieving our goal. In addition to this, we have been able to bring about peace and stability in most parts of Somalia, including Mogadishu. We have been able also to disarm the warlords and incorporate their militias with the federal army,” he said.
Simon dismissed suggestions by some that a quick Ethiopian withdrawal from Somalia may create a security vacuum there.
http://www.huliq.com/8088/ethiopia-no-security-vacuum-in-somalia
Somalia: Libya Will Provide Financial Support to the AU Forces
Shabelle Media Network (Mogadishu)
January 26, 2007
Posted to the web January 26, 2007
Mogadishu
The Libyan leader and summit host Moamer Kadhafi held talks on Wednesday with some of the leaders of the African states comprising the Community of Sahel-Saharan States (CEN-SAD), the official JANA news agency said.
CEN-SAD, which held the summit in the town of Sirte on the Mediterranean coast east of Tripoli, was formed in 1998 to promote regional economic integration and has its headquarters in the Libyan capital.
The Libyan Foreign Minister Abdel Rahman said "Libya will provide financial support to the the Africa Union force for Somalia."
The Somali people's eyes will be on the Ethiopian capital over the next few days as Africa's heads of state prepare to gather for the full summit which starts on Monday to help the the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops but warned if peacekeepers were not deployed soon the situation on the ground could deteriorate.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200701260355.html
Libya hosts African leaders gathering
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi chaired a meeting of African presidents and other top officials on Thursday to prepare for an African Union summit, officials said.
"The next AU summit is very important. The leaders met today to coordinate and narrow their positions and standpoints so that they go to the summit united and speaking in one voice," Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdel-Rahman Shalgam told reporters.
Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was among the 11 heads of state and eight government representatives attending the meeting of the Sahel and Sahara African grouping, most of whose members are instrumental players in the AU which holds its next summit in Ethiopia in July.
"The meeting in Sirte focused on ways to strengthen the AU Commission further and the possibility of setting up an AU government supervising defence, foreign affairs, foreign trade and telecommunications ministries," Shalgam added.
