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United States Africa Command Public Affairs Office 21 February 2012 USAFRICOM - related news stories

Good morning. Please see today's news review for February 27, 2012. This new format is best viewed in HTML. Features include icons and links to provide more options to the reader. Clicking on the text icon takes you directly to the full text of the story; the paperclip icon links to the article's original source; and the envelope icon allows you to email the article. Of interest in today's report: -Al-Shabaab foreign fighters flee Somalia. -US drone strike targeting an 'international ' fighter kills 4 militants in Southern Somalia. -Nervously, world eyes greater Somalia action. -Libya: Dozens Reported Killed in Ethnic Clashes. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Please send questions or comments to: publicaffairs@usafricom.mil 421-2687 (+49-711-729-2687) Headline Al-Shabaab foreign fighters flee Somalia Date Outlet

02/24/2012 Daily Nation - Online

Foreign fighters in the Al-Shabaab rebel group are fleeing Somalia in droves. Reports said up to eight boats had docked at Kismayu port in the last 48 hours to ferry the fighters, locally known as al-Mujahedeen alMuhajereen (migrant jihadists) to Yemen...

US drone strike targeting an 'international' fighter kills Washington Post 02/26/2012 4 militants in southern Somalia Online
A U.S. military drone strike that targeted an international militant in southern Somalia killed four al-Shabab fighters, officials said Friday.

Nervously, world powers eye greater Somalia action

02/26/2012 Reuters US Edition

Somalia might still be described as the "world's worst failed state," but international enthusiasm for involvement there is ticking up to levels not seen since the 1994 withdrawal of international peacekeepers.

Libya: Dozens Reported Killed in Ethnic Clashes

02/25/2012 AllAfrica.com

The United Nations is providing relief supplies to residents of the desert town of Kufra in south-eastern Libya, where inter-ethnic clashes in the past two weeks have reportedly killed dozens of people.

Nigeria: Boko Haram - Six Police Officers Killed in Kano, Minna

02/25/2012 AllAfrica.com

FOUR police officers were feared killed in the ancient city of Kano yesterday as gunmen suspected to be members of the notorious Boko Haram sect shot at them as they patrolled around the family house of the acting Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Dahi...

Nelson Mandela has hernia surgery

02/26/2012 CNN.com

South African anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela successfully underwent hernia surgery Saturday, a family member told CNN Saturday.

Mandela was "comfortable" and in "a satisfactory condition" Saturday, said the South African president, who referred to t...

Transcript: Somalia's Sharif Sheikh Ahmed 'To Curb The Wall Street 02/26/2012 Journal Corruption You Have to Have the Proper Mechanisms'
Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, president of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, spoke with reporters including The Wall Street Journal's Solomon Moore on Wednesday at Villa Somalia, the transitional government's administrative headquarters. A transcript ...

Boko Haram: Sahel Joint Military Command invites Nigeria As suspects demand full protection, pledge cooperation with security agents

02/26/2012

Nigerian Tribune Online

As the Boko Haram insurgency continues unabated, the Sahel Joint Military Command, comprising militaries of Algeria, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, has reportedly invited Nigeria to join it for a combined counter-terrorism efforts in the Sahel and Northern Ni...

Piracy increases in W Africa

02/26/2012 News24

The waters off West Africa's coast, the Gulf of Guinea, are a growing source of oil and have recently seen a spike in piracy for theft of its riches, a development seen to be fuelled partly by rising crude prices.

Nigeria: Dealing With Boko Haram More Difficult Than 02/24/2012 AllAfrica.com Civil War - - Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan, in this exclusive interview with JONATHAN POWER, a syndicated foreign affairs columnist and commentator, speaks on how his administration has succeeded in tackling corruption, especially on fertiliser procurement and distributi...

Uganda: Questions Over Progress Against the LRA

02/24/2012 AllAfrica.com

The US believes its military intervention in central Africa in pursuit of Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) is having the desired effect, reducing attacks and improving civilian protection - although analysts have reservations.

Nigeria: Killers slit Christian woman's throat

02/24/2012 News24

Police discovered the body of a 79-year-old Christian woman killed in northeast Nigeria, with a note in Arabic left on her chest reading: "We will get you soon", a witness said.

Kenya: Nation Positive On Getting UN Nod to Join AMISOM

02/24/2012 AllAfrica.com

THE government was yesterday confident of obtaining the United Nations nod to join the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia ahead of the Security Council vote on a draft resolution authorising an increase of troops in the warn-torn country. Kenya ha...

United Nations News Centre - Africa Briefs

02/26/2012

United Nations News Service

-Ban inspired by Zambian youth's commitment to democracy and education -Cte d'Ivoire: UN envoy voices satisfaction with conduct of by-elections -Ban praises democracy and development efforts in Zambia -Sudan: Two UN-African Union peacekeepers wounded i...

News Headline: Al-Shabaab foreign fighters flee Somalia | News Date: 02/24/2012 Outlet Full Name: Daily Nation - Online News Text: Foreign fighters in the Al-Shabaab rebel group are fleeing Somalia in droves. Reports said up to eight boats had docked at Kismayu port in the last 48 hours to ferry the fighters, locally known as al-Mujahedeen al-Muhajereen (migrant jihadists) to Yemen. The foreigners are reckoned to have been in Somalia to fight alongside Al-Shabaab militants battling the forces of the Transitional Federal Government and its supporters such as Amisom peacekeepers, Kenyan and Ethiopian troops. Sources in Kismayu, which is 500 km south of Mogadishu, say the boats had carried at least 100 jihadists destined for Yemen, across the Gulf of Aden. Hundreds of fighters fled the central city of Baidoa this week after it was captured by Ethiopian troops.

Near Mogadishu, AU troops are also on the offensive against the rebels. An air strike was launched at around K60 Area in Lower Shabelle region, about 60 km south of Mogadishu on Friday. The raid targeted a four-wheel-drive vehicle carrying high ranking Al-Shabaab officials. Unconfirmed reports said the targets could have been foreign jihadists. Al-Shabaab, a radical Islamist group, recently merged with Al-Qaeda. In London, Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, who attended the Lancaster House conference on Somalia on Thursday, urged the international community to help eliminate Al-Shabaab and Al-Qeada through air raids. We welcome targeted air strikes against Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab, said the premier at the convention that attracted representatives from over 50 countries and international organisations. Mr Ali added that Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda had been weakened and he wanted them eliminated. In Mogadishu, Major General Fred Mugisha, the Commander of Amisom peacekeepers promised on Thursday that his force would remain in Somalia until Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda were defeated. Amisom would also strengthen the Somali forces. Amisom will continue training Somali forces, said Maj-Gen Mugisha. His remarks came after news that the UN Security Council had approved the expansion of the AU mission in Somalia to 17,700 troops. In addition, Gen Mugisha said that Kenyan forces will join Amisom while Ethiopian troops helping the progovernment forces will not be in Somalia for long. The Ethiopian troops will go back after offering help to the transitional government, said the commander.
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News Headline: US drone strike targeting an 'international' fighter kills 4 militants in southern Somalia | News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: Washington Post - Online News Text: By Associated Press, A U.S. military drone strike that targeted an international militant in southern Somalia killed four al-Shabab fighters, officials said Friday. A U.S. official in Washington confirmed the attack was carried out by a U.S. drone. A second U.S. official said an international member of al-Shabab was the target of the strike, though he said a white Kenyan reported killed in the attack was not the target. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity in order to share details of the classified program. Somalia's al-Shabab formally merged with al-Qaida this month, a move analysts said was borne of desperation. AlShabab has been forced out of Mogadishu and faces military attacks on three sides. Al-Qaida's power has ebbed as the group has seen key leaders killed in targeted attacks. Still, al-Shabab boasts hundreds of foreign fighters many of whom have fighting experience in Iraq and Afghanistan among its ranks. The group also counts several dozen Americans, many of Somali origin, among its estimated 8,000 fighters. Officials in Somalia confirmed Friday's attack in the Lower Shabelle region, where al-Shabab still controls wide

swaths of territory. A Somali military official said a white Kenyan commander named Akram was among the four killed. The official said he could not be named for security reasons. A second Somali intelligence official confirmed the attack, but also could not be named. The U.S. military has carried out multiple attacks inside Somalia against high-ranking militant targets in recent years. Last month, a raid by Navy SEALs rescued an American and a Danish hostage from a gang of criminals. The U.S. military actions in Somalia are representative of the Obama administration's pledge to build a smaller, more agile military force that can carry out surgical counterterrorist strikes to cripple an enemy. Kenya's military has also launched multiple airborne attacks in southern Somalia since Kenyan troops moved into the region in October.
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News Headline: Nervously, world powers eye greater Somalia action | News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: Reuters US Edition News Text: Somalia might still be described as the "world's worst failed state," but international enthusiasm for involvement there is ticking up to levels not seen since the 1994 withdrawal of international peacekeepers. Following the October 1993 "Blackhawk Down" debacle in which 18 US servicemen and well over a thousand Somalis died in a botched Mogadishu battle, world powers have largely left Somalia to anarchy, chaos and conflict. Some estimates suggest more than a million people may have died since Somalia's last government collapsed in 1991. But Thursday's London conference on Somalia -- which brought together representatives of more than 40 countries including U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon -- appeared to be the latest sign that approach might be beginning to shift. Officials say growing worries over Somalia becoming perhaps the leading global haven for Islamist militancy and the rising cost of Somali piracy -- estimated to cost the global economy some $7 billion a year -- helped spur action. "For two decades politicians in the West have too often dismissed the problems in Somalia as simply too difficult and too remote to deal with," British Prime Minister David Cameron told the summit. "Engagement has been sporadic and half-hearted. That fatalism has failed Somalia. And it has failed the international community too." But with the capital Mogadishu largely under transitional government and peacekeeper control, Islamist group Al Shabaab on the back foot and apparent if largely unexpected progress against piracy and a regional hunger crisis, a cautious optimism is also driving involvement. The examples of semi-independent and relatively stable enclaves such as Somaliland and other non-Al Shabaab held areas -- and now perhaps Mogadishu itself -- are boosting international hopes the country might not be as ungovernable as previously feared. "We are moving Somalia from the "too difficult" box into the "difficult" box," said one Western official. While many officials, analysts and Somalis themselves remain skeptical, leaders such as Britain's Cameron and Turkey's Tayyip Erdogan appear increasingly to see the country as an arena on which they can show global and personal leadership. CHANGING THE LANDSCAPE?

In August, Erdogan became the first non-African leader in years to visit the country, part of a wider strategy positioning Turkey as a growing regional and global power. Turkish firms have also begun major reconstruction projects in the country including an airport, spurring Somali hope other investors from other countries will now follow. Whilst United Nations and Western diplomats -- and indeed Somalia's government itself -- have largely based themselves in neighboring Kenya, Turkey has opened relief camps within Somalia and an embassy in Mogadishu. Others now look set to follow. The UN is already relocating its political office to Mogadishu, while Britain said it was also looking to reopen its long-closed embassy. U.S. Secretary of State Clinton was more noncommittal, but she too talked of moving to a "more permanent" U.S. diplomatic presence in the country. Attendees at the summit made it clear Somalia's current internationally-backed transitional government was expected to stand down when its mandate expires in August. In its place, foreign officials hope, will be a new government that should be more representative and accountable, drawing up a new constitution. "The August deadline probably isn't realistic," said Adjoa Anyimadu, a researcher and Somali specialist at Londonbased think tank Chatham House. "But the idea of a government chosen by Somalis rather than the international community is a good one. We're almost certainly not talking true democratic elections at this stage but any more accountable process is better... And there's no doubt the international community is more confident than it was on Somalia " British officials say that while the London conference did not yield any one particular breakthrough or agreement, it did help speed activity on a range of fronts necessary to build on recent successes. Indian Ocean nations agreed several steps to tackle piracy, moving to track the payment of ransoms and pin down pirate kingpins as well as setting up new agreements by which countries in the region would try and imprison pirates captured at sea. Successful hijackings of merchant ships fell sharply in the second half of 2011 largely due to greater use of private armed guards and a more aggressive approach by naval forces, international maritime officials say. There were also multiple new pledges of humanitarian aid for the Horn of Africa. Aid agencies say malnutrition and hunger remained widespread there, but that a robust and rapid response to last year's drought staved off more serious starvation. HEIGHTENED MILITARY INTERVENTION But 18 years after U.S. and UN peacekeepers mounted their humiliating retreat, there is also growing apparent appetite for heightened military intervention. A British-sponsored UN Security Council resolution agreed the expansion of the African Union AMISOM mission from 12,000 to a surprisingly precise 17,731. That figure would include new Sierra Leonean and Ugandan troops, a senior U.S. State Department official said, as well as placing thousands of Kenyan troops already in the country under AU command. Troops from Ethiopia -- which fought a controversial US-backed campaign against Somali Islamists between 2006 and 2009 -- also re-entered the country late last year and this week captured the key southern town of Baidoa alongside Somali forces. Ethiopian troops will not come under the AU mission and say they will withdraw once stability is restored. Somalia's transitional government would clearly like more support. In interviews and during the conference itself, Somali Prime Minister Abdiwell Mohammed Ali said repeatedly that he would welcome foreign air strikes against Al Qaeda and Al Shabaab targets providing there were no collateral civilian casualties. Al Shabaab recently

announced it was allying itself to Al Qaeda. Secretary of State Clinton bluntly rejected the call, saying that whilst she was no military strategist she knew enough to know that such strikes would be "a bad idea." Instead, she pledged a tougher line on enforcement of sanctions -- particularly blocking charcoal exports to Middle Eastern countries believed a major source of Al Shabaab funding. But early on Friday, Somali officials said there did appear to have been an airstrike in southern Somalia -- perhaps one of the largest so far -- killing at least three foreign Al Shabaab fighters. Analysts say that while it is not entirely clear who launched that or previous similar strikes, U.S. unmanned drones appear the most likely suspects. "In many ways, I think I was more confident before the summit," said Anyimadu at Chatham House. "All this emphasis on security and talk of airstrikes -- there's a real risk we will simply repeat the mistakes of the past."
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News Headline: Libya: Dozens Reported Killed in Ethnic Clashes | News Date: 02/25/2012 Outlet Full Name: AllAfrica.com News Text: The United Nations is providing relief supplies to residents of the desert town of Kufra in south-eastern Libya, where inter-ethnic clashes in the past two weeks have reportedly killed dozens of people. Georg Charpentier, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Libya, told the UN News Centre today that the world body has begun distributing water, food and non-food items to people caught up in the fighting. The situation in Kufra is relatively calm today, he said, with a ceasefire between the Toubu and Zwai tribal groups apparently holding and a Libyan military contingent in place to deter further hostilities. Long-simmering tensions between the two ethnic groups erupted on 12 February in Kufra, a key staging point for migrants making their way between sub-Saharan Africa and the north of the continent. Media reports indicate at least 30 people have been killed in the clashes, with the possible death toll much higher. Mr. Charpentier, who is also the Secretary-General's Deputy Special Representative for Libya and deputy chief of the UN political mission (UNSMIL), said an inter-agency mission reached Kufra yesterday to assess the situation and determine humanitarian needs. Some of the injured from the fighting have been evacuated, and those that were stranded can now be reached by humanitarian workers. Mr. Charpentier said Libya's interim authorities are leading efforts to mediate between the Toubu and the Zwai, and the UN was willing to offer support to those efforts if needed.
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News Headline: Nigeria: Boko Haram - Six Police Officers Killed in Kano, Minna | News Date: 02/25/2012 Outlet Full Name: AllAfrica.com News Text: FOUR police officers were feared killed in the ancient city of Kano yesterday as gunmen suspected to be members of the notorious Boko Haram sect shot at them as they patrolled around the family house of the acting Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Dahiru Abubakar. The incident occurred on Lawan Danbazau link road in Gwandu Albasu quarters in the city at about 8:30a.m.

yesterday; heightening fear among residents of the commercial city that the war declared on the nation and the people by Boko Haram was far from being over. This is even as two police officers of the Niger State Police Command were killed late Wednesday night by some gunmen who just opened fire on the officers at a check point close to the NNPC mega station in Minna, Niger State. An eye witness said that the Kano attack involved four gunmen who stormed the area on motorcycles, wearing mobile police uniform and without any warning pumped bullets on the mobile policemen, took away their guns and quickly disappeared the way they came. 'People ran helter-skelter as sounds of gunshots rented the air. The hapless policemen were just walking on the street and all of a sudden, mean looking young men opened fire on them, killing them instantly. Their bodies were quickly removed by their colleagues and the area was immediately cordoned off by the security men,' a resident of the area volunteered. Our correspondent who arrived the area shortly after the incident, saw residents gathered at different locations discussing the development in quiet tones, with one man asking rather rhetorically: 'what is Kano turning into? We are indeed in a war situation. When will these troubles stop? This is gradually grinding economic activities in Kano to a halt. Only God will save us.' The Kano police spokesman, ASP Musa Magaji Majia confirmed the incident, saying, however, 'at about 8:30 a.m. this morning, along BUK Road, our men on foot patrol were attacked by four gunmen on motorbikes. Two of our men died while two were injured. 'Already, 15 suspects have been arrested in connection with the crime. At the moment, the area has been cordoned off and investigation is still ongoing. I urge good citizens to move about their businesses without panic,' he added. The killing of the two police officers in Minna was confirmed by the Niger State Police Commissioner, Alhaji Ibrahim Maishanu who said in an interview that the incident took place between 10 and 11p.m., stressing 'it was dark when my men were attacked.' He said after shooting the officers, the gunmen took away with them one rifle belonging to one of the killed officers. He vowed that the state police command would track the culprits and make them pay in accordance with the law for the crime. It would be recalled that only a week ago, the Boko Haram group also killed three policemen- an inspector and a sergeant in Minna, the state capital and a corporal at Maje in Suleja Local Government Area of the state respectively in a similar pattern. The police boss also said his men had the same Wednesday recovered an AK 47 rifle from a suspect in Lapai Local Government Area of the state who he said had escaped from the Kogi jail break. He contended that the attack on his men had increased since the Kogi jail break, pointing out that 'each time we rearrest the Kogi prison inmates, our men are attacked.'
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News Headline: Nelson Mandela has hernia surgery | News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: CNN.com News Text: South African anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela successfully underwent hernia surgery Saturday, a family member told CNN Saturday.

Mandela was "comfortable" and in "a satisfactory condition" Saturday, said the South African president, who referred to the medical event only as "a planned procedure." The 93-year-old likely will be discharged within the next two days, a Mandela relative told CNN. Considered the founding father of South Africa's democracy, Mandela became an international figure when he endured 27 years in prison for fighting racial segregation. He was freed in 1990, and three years later, he and thenSouth African President F.W. de Klerk won the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1994, Mandela was elected president, serving only one term as he had promised. On Saturday, President Jacob Zuma said Mandela was being treated for a "longstanding abdominal complaint." The president referred to Mandela by his affectionate clan name Madiba. Mandela's surgery 'not at emergency' "Madiba is fine and fully conscious and the doctors are satisfied with his condition, which they say is consistent with his age," Zuma said in a statement Saturday afternoon. "He was in good health before admission in hospital but doctors felt the complaint needed a thorough investigation. He underwent a diagnostic procedure as part of his ongoing medical management. We are happy that he is not in any danger and thank the doctors for their hard work and professionalism," Zuma said. A government official assured the public that Mandela's hospital stay was not an emergency. "People need not panic. This was planned ... Mandela has had abdominal pains for sometime," said Keith Khoza, a spokesman for the ruling African National Congress. Officials and family declined to name the hospital where the former president is undergoing treatment. Mandela last appeared in public in the closing ceremonies of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He was hospitalized last year for treatment of an acute respiratory infection, and continued to receive treatment at home after doctors discharged him. Despite his rare appearances, Mandela retains his popularity and is considered a hero of democracy here. He spent 27 years in prison after being convicted of sabotage and attempts to overthrow the former apartheid regime. In a life fighting the racism of apartheid he went from being considered a terrorist to jailed freedom fighter to nation builder to elder statesman respected in the world's capitals. Clint Eastwood's 2009 film "Invictus," starring Morgan Freeman as Mandela, dramatizes Mandela's nation-healing presidency in the 1990s. Mandela relocated to his childhood town of Qunu last year, but moved back to his Johannesburg home earlier this year. At the time, Zuma said the move was because the home in his boyhood town was undergoing maintenance. Members of the public can send messages to Mandela through President Zuma to president@po.gov.za, officials said.
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News Headline: Transcript: Somalia's Sharif Sheikh Ahmed 'To Curb Corruption You Have to Have the Proper Mechanisms' |

News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: The Wall Street Journal News Text: Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, president of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, spoke with reporters including The Wall Street Journal's Solomon Moore on Wednesday at Villa Somalia, the transitional government's administrative headquarters. A transcript of the news conference is below. The questions are edited for brevity and clarity. Mr. Sharif's answers appear as they were translated by his aide. What are you hoping will come out of the Somalia conference? We're hoping that the London conference will support the progress that we have achieved in terms of politics and security in Somalia. The international community has been critical of Somalia in terms of corruption. What can you do to weed out corruption? To curb corruption you have to have the proper mechanisms, and that's what we put in place and that's what we hope to strengthen. But a lot of times when we get reports from the international community, they get their reports from elsewhereorganizations that are not on the ground and individuals that don't have the facts. The resources that we get are very limited, and we're quite happy to be open and transparent about it any time. Somaliland is a reluctant participant in the London conference. Can you see why they would be amazed to be part of the transition when they already have peace in their own territory? Of course we're happy for Somaliland to participate in this conference. We congratulate them for the peace and the system they have put in place in terms of democracy. But as you know, you're aware of how the two sides united in the first place and we hope to build on that in this conference. Why suddenly has the international community gotten interested in Somalia? I'm not the best person to be asked that question, and we hope to get answers before this conference is finished. Is this the last chance for Somalia? For every conference it has been said it's the last chance for Somalia. But the Somali people are strong, they're courageous, they've gone through a lot of problems. But the international community should not always put the blame on Somalia. They should look for what they have contributed and what they have done for Somalia. But in the end it will be up to Somalia to solve its own problems. You talk of international blame, but for 20 years haven't the problems of Somalia been caused by Somalis? That's not an easy question to answer. Of course the Somali people have to have ownership of their own issues, but if you look at any country where there has been a failure in the system the international community has come to their aid. Look at other examples in other countries. The Somali people are the same as any other people in the world. They want to live in peace in peace and prosperity and of course when there's a lot of problems it needs sometimes the help from the international community, but the end result is that the Somali people must take ownership. Somalis have revolted against other foreign armies that have tried to enter the country. Will there be a violent reaction against Amisom as it expands? It will be very different in a sense that the African Union is working alongside the Somali forces who are here to bring about what the Somali people aspire to, which is peace, unity and governance, and that's what Somali people want and what they see these troops contributing to this cause. Can you offer some concrete ideas what are you hoping for in this London conference?

We want this conference to support the Road Map process [a comprehensive U.N.-brokered plan that would lead to a constitution and elections by August], the Mogadishu and Garowe agreements and we want this conference to have concrete steps in supporting vital institutions in the government whether security and other institutions. We also want agreements on reconstruction and infrastructure in the country and also the humanitarian issuethat's still an issue we have to deal with. Britain called this a brief window of opportunity. Does it feel like that to you? I see it as a window of opportunity and I think the international community finally understands where the problems lie and I think we'll get a comprehensive solution. What are the problems? For the international community to take the line they previously tookthat we can leave this situation as it isI think they found that to be an irresponsible solution. Why is now different? Why the sense of hope? This has come about, as the British government has said, as a result of the progress we've made and this is simply to build on that progress. But it's also at a moment when the international community and the Somali people understand the importance of getting this right. But that's exactly what we were saying 12 years ago. Of course it's always good to have meetings and conferences in order to find solutions but the situation is different in that we've made progress that can be built upon. When is Somalia going to be able to rely on its own troops? When corruption going to end? When will you hand over power? We're not where we were a year ago in terms of Somali security. It's much better now; the numbers are greater, we're building on that steadily and we're taking over security bit by bit through out the country. And in terms of other issues of corruption, as I said before we've put in place a mechanism to deal with that. Our income is very limited and it can easily be verified and we're transparent about it. And the last issue, as you know the transition period will come to an end and we have the Road Map process that would obviously lead to elections. Could you see a time when there is western intervention in Somalia? I think the African Union mission will succeed because of the purpose it has and the support it has from the people. Will it need military hardware from the West? Of course the military weapons they have are from the West. Do you think the United Nations arms embargo should be lifted on Somalia? Of course, I think this is absolutely the time for the arms embargo to be lifted because of the enemy we face, but we also feel that our forces are being professional and trained and they're ready to take over responsibility. How intertwined are al Shabaab and pirates on a financial level? There's no doubt that there's a link between the two. We shouldn't say al Shabaab now because they've formally announced that they're part of al Qaeda, so we say al Qaeda in East Africa, and there is a link in how they share resources.

When the Kenyans entered Somalia your office opposed the incursion. Then you changed your mind after African Union made gains in Mogadishu. The parliament is split down the middledo politicians have the ability to step into the breach? With regard to Kenya, in the beginning we always worked together; we had a good relationship, but of course we didn't want troops just coming in without agreement. In the beginning the troops just came and we had to speak out. After that and we agreed that we had to work together, cooperate at every level in all military operations and the Transitional Federal Government must take the lead role. Of course we're happy to welcome anyone who's helping us fight al Qaeda but it has to be a Somali-led process and we have to lead that process. We have asked Kenya to be part of Amisom [the African Union Mission in Somalia] and they have agreed to that so that's a good achievement on that front. There's been positive strides politically. There's been there Garowe agreement the Road Map process, which clearly highlights the way we're going to move forward from the transition. The new parliament and also election. There's not only security improvement but a political improvement whereby we've had signatories from all the entities of Somalia working on the process which will finish the transition. What mechanisms have been put in place to deal with corruption, especially regarding food aid? We have a mechanism from the finance ministry. We have a financial management team, which deals specifically with this issue, with the central bank. Everything's done in a manner that is transparent in its implementation. As you know, a lot of money that's donated to Somalia goes to NGOs, but they don't directly deal with us. We set up an emergency disaster committee, which is made up of ministers, and we've asked all organizations, NGOs and governments to deal with those in terms of channeling humanitarian assistance. Some countries work well with us. One example is Turkey and everything is accountable. But some of them don't deal directly with the government so we can't account for what they have wasted.
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News Headline: Boko Haram: Sahel Joint Military Command invites Nigeria As suspects demand full protection, pledge cooperation with security agents | News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: Nigerian Tribune - Online News Text: AS the Boko Haram insurgency continues unabated, the Sahel Joint Military Command, comprising militaries of Algeria, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, has reportedly invited Nigeria to join it for a combined counterterrorism efforts in the Sahel and Northern Nigeria. This is just as arrested suspected members of the sect have pledged to cooperate with security agencies, provided they are given protection. Sunday Tribune was told that Nigerian officials were approached over the issue during the recently-concluded Somali conference which was attended by President Goodluck Jonathan and presidents and heads of governments from the Sahel nations, Central Africa and North Africa. Intelligence officials had earlier confirmed that al-Shabaab in Somalia, al-Qaeda in the Maghreb and Boko Haram in Nigeria are coordinating insurgencies in direct association with the mainstream al-Qaeda movement, a development that prompted recent Nigeria's interest in happenings in the Sahel region. Findings from the headquarters of the command in Southern Algeria indicated that Nigerian membership is seen as crucial to defeating both al-Qaeda in the Maghreb and Boko Haram as the Sahel nations regard Nigeria as a rear base of Islamists on the continent. It was, however, not clear whether the contact with the Nigerian delegation at the London conference includes a direct official invitation to join the military command, even though the Nigerian Chief of Defence Staff, Oluseyi Petinrin, recently confirmed the association between al-Qaeda in the Maghreb and Boko Haram in Nigeria.

While Nigerian officials are not talking about the development, the country recently took major steps to collaborate with the Sahel nations through the opening of defence units in Mali and Niger and through the attendance of Nigeria at the recently concluded meeting of foreign ministers of the Sahel nations. Foreign ministers of Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Algeria and Nigeria at the January meeting had vowed to assist one another in the fight against Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Nigerian terrorist organisation, Boko Haram. There is a proven connection between AQIM and Boko Haram, Malian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Soumeylou Boubye Maga, said at the Nouakchott ministerial meeting of the four Sahel countries and guest, Nigeria. Along with jointly facing the great challenge posed by AQIM in the Sahel and Boko Haram in Nigeria, Mauritanian Foreign Minister, Hamadi Ould Hamadi, said the four core countries also intended to continue the dialogue to eradicate organized crime, trafficking in weapons and explosives and abductions of Westerners. Sunday Tribune, however, learnt that Nigeria's attendance at the meeting was only exploratory with the Nigerian government yet to take strategic decisions on how to engage with the Sahel nations regarded as the supply route of the Boko Haram insurgents. Sahel states of Algeria, Mauritania, Mali and Niger had in 2011 agreed to form a 75,000-man counter-terror security force to police the Sahel-Saharan region. The Algiers-based Joint Military Staff Committee of the Sahel Region (CEMOC) co-ordinates the new military force, and makes the Sahara a stable region in terms of field work and military co-operation, Malian Foreign Minister, Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga, was quoted as saying at the approving meeting. The counterterrorism force is reported to have two components, namely the military command and the intelligence coordinating center with the European Union (EU) while the United States provides technical support. Meanwhile, leaders of Boko Haram who are in security agencies' net were said to have demanded what is called Witness Protection Service (WPS) from the security agencies to enable them to fully cooperate with investigators. Sources close to the administration confirmed that the security agencies have been inundated with requests by the kingpins for full protection, especially the WPS, which would enable them cooperate fully with the government. It was learnt that the agencies involved have also communicated the same to the top echelons of the administration to enable the government come to a conclusion on the idea. Sources said that following the arrest of the leaders of Boko Haram, including the spokesman, Abu Quaqa and the acclaimed number two man, Kabiru Sokoto, the kingpins feared for their lives as well as that of the members of their family. Sources said that the kingpins were very hostile to investigators in the first few days they spent in detention but that as the reality of the situation dawned on them, they started opening up. It was learnt that one after the other, the leaders were requesting a protection service that would make them adapt well to current realities. Sources said that the Boko Haram kingpins were demanding protection in view of the existing oath of secrecy they entered into while operating within the sect. We have been made to understand that those in custody are asking for a protection service that would enable them to cooperate with investigators. They were said to be afraid initially due to the oath of secrecy they entered into, so they proved a bit difficult. They are afraid that members of their family can be wiped out if the sect members feel betrayed.

There is no doubt that many of the members are living in fear of the leader, Mallam Abubakar Shekau, whom they described as very violent, a source stated. It was also gathered that some of the agencies involved have uncovered some tightly held secrets of the sect, including some operational details. Though sources refused to name the operational details, it was gathered that the key lieutenants of Shekau and other operational details are now known. Earlier in the week, the arrested spokesman, Abu Quaqa, was said to have told operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) that some of the cars used by leaders of the sect were stolen vehicles while expensive cars were used to beat the police at check points. Quaqa was quoted as saying, We snatch those vehicles at gun point. We use the less exotic ones for suicide bombings and just load vehicles with bombs, drive them near our target, park and get out of it and leave them to explode thereafter. The leader, Shekau, takes the exotic ones and he is always saying that he would arrange for them to be sold and the proceeds put into the Jihad. This is never done, anyway. Most of those vehicles end up with him and the Kanuri members of our sect. They use them; pose in them to deceive security agents at check points. The distribution of these stolen vehicles on man-know-man', man-know-tribesman' became another source of anger and acrimony, but you have to bear it or you die. Once you are in, you are in. If you attempt to leave, you are seen as a traitor who must die.
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News Headline: Piracy increases in W Africa | News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: News24 News Text: The waters off West Africa's coast, the Gulf of Guinea, are a growing source of oil and have recently seen a spike in piracy for theft of its riches, a development seen to be fuelled partly by rising crude prices. Attacks on vessels have grown in number and scope, spreading across a broader region in what is becoming a new piracy hotspot. Vessels carrying petroleum products have been the most targeted. As oil prices hit nine-month highs this week, the leader of the small West Africa country of Togo called on the UN Security Council to create an international group to combat piracy. The group could be styled along the lines of one battling pirates off Somalia on the eastern side of the continent. Governments and investors in the region are concerned. Attacks Most of the attacks in the past year have been concentrated off the coast of Nigeria's commercial hub of Lagos and nearby Cotonou, the capital of Benin. Denmark-based RiskIntelligence last year listed 34 piracy incidents off Lagos and Cotonou, from 13 in 2010. A maritime watchdog body, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), has warned sailors to steer clear of the Gulf of Guinea which spans across a dozen countries, several of them oil-producers. Rob Borthwick, risk analyst with the London-based Maplecroft global risk think-thank, says there is no single

explanation to the upward trend in attacks. But "ongoing tensions related to the 2009 Niger Delta amnesty and higher prices for oil on global markets over the past year are likely to be factors," he said. Michael Howlett, deputy director in charge of commercial crime services with the IMB, says oil prices "may have an impact" on piracy. Reduce conflict Nigeria, Africa's top oil producer, managed to greatly reduce militant attacks in the delta, but the region still remains heavily under-developed. Piracy and illegal oil bunkering by youths roaming the creeks can be viewed as "legitimate" activity of the region beset by low levels of development, unemployment and pollution, analysts say. Higher oil prices on the Nigerian domestic market following a partial removal of subsidies in January "may also prove an added incentive to target oil cargoes," said Borthwick. The long-running battle against piracy off Somalia has cost the world billions of dollars to protect ships - nearly $7 billion last year alone - but analysts say attacks off West Africa are still comparatively less. "There is really no similarity between Somalia and Nigeria. It's very different dynamics," said Thomas Horn Hansen of RiskIntelligence. In any case, Nigeria has a stable government that has the capacity to curb the scourge, even as it faces serious security threats in the north from the Islamist sect Boko Haram. Piracy "The military and economic strength of Nigeria - which is the predominant regional power - should mean that the country has sufficient capacity to actively combat piracy," said Borthwick. But a former senior Nigerian navy official said the political will to definitively end piracy is lacking because a lot of the illegal oil business syndicates are run by powerful political godfathers of some of the leaders in power. Structures to check crime are "very weak, the police is corrupt, the judiciary is tardy," said the officer asking not to be named. Unlike the Gulf of Aden, analysts say the Gulf of Guinea presents greater potential for regional co-operation to fight piracy due to the oil boom spreading to other countries. Ghana a year ago became the latest country to join the regional club of oil producers that include Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Ivory Coast. Worrying Mamadou Makhtar Gueye, in charge of African economic integration in Senegal's foreign affairs ministry, said piracy is "clearly worrying." "Currently it is very localised, but the risk is that it can spread to more countries... (and) that is the risk we want to limit." he said. Nigeria and Benin last year launched joint sea patrols with the backing of France. Leaders of 15 ECOWAS member nations have ordered their military chiefs to urgently draw up plans to crack down

on the increasing threat from piracy and organised maritime crime. The theft of cargo is relatively sophisticated. Pirates hijack and direct tankers to other ships, where the fuel is transferred and then taken elsewhere for sale.
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News Headline: Nigeria: Dealing With Boko Haram More Difficult Than Civil War - - Jonathan | News Date: 02/24/2012 Outlet Full Name: AllAfrica.com News Text: By Jonathan Power President Goodluck Jonathan, in this exclusive interview with JONATHAN POWER, a syndicated foreign affairs columnist and commentator, speaks on how his administration has succeeded in tackling corruption, especially on fertiliser procurement and distribution, and why the security threat posed by the Boko Haram sect remains a hard nut to crack, among other national issues. Excerpt. You have a country with an image problem - crime, slums, poverty, corruption and poor governance. I have just been to Calabar, a city with one million people. I was amazed. I had never seen anything like it in Africa, and I have been travelling all over Africa for decades. It is so well run: the streets are clean; no potholes; there are trees and flowers planted all over...; has well controlled traffic; hardly any slums; good health facilities centres and schools for all and a low crime rate. Along the river front, there is a beautiful esplanade. Why can't all Nigerian cities be like Calabar? The states in our federal structure are literally autonomous. They are not under the direct control of the federal government. Our history has been truncated by military intervention. That is why there was very little competition between the states. That is why you didn't see other states getting to the level of Calabar. But now, you will see other states coming up. There is competition. Look at Lagos - a city of 15 million people, the streets are cleaner, the slums are smaller, the traffic flows more easily, there are bus lanes, trees have been planted along the main roads and crime is down. Now, every state wants to do the same. Abuja, our nation's capital, is rather like Calabar in many ways. Cross River State, of which Calabar is the capital, in terms of the revenue they get from the centre, it's quite low; but they have spent it well during the rule of two progressive governors. They set their eyes on tourism to increase the amount of investment in the state.
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News Headline: Uganda: Questions Over Progress Against the LRA | News Date: 02/24/2012 Outlet Full Name: AllAfrica.com News Text: The US believes its military intervention in central Africa in pursuit of Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) is having the desired effect, reducing attacks and improving civilian protection - although analysts have reservations. In 2011, the US deployed about 100 troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan and Uganda to assist the region's military forces in killing or capturing Kony and his senior command, following President Barack Obama Administration's announcement in November 2010 to deal decisively with the armed group. Karl Wycoff, the US deputy assistant secretary for African affairs, in a telephone briefing on 22 February, told IRIN: "Over recent months the military of Uganda, CAR, DRC and South Sudan have continued to carry out operations against the LRA. We are supporting them in these efforts. We are providing logistical support to help the Ugandan

military sustain its forward operations against the LRA. We are funding, for example, some airlift, fuel and other transport support for their troops. In the DRC we trained and equipped a Congolese battalion that is now operating in LRA-affected areas of the DRC and we are also working with the UN peacekeeping mission, MONUSCO [UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC]." About US$40 million has been provided by the US so far in support of the Ugandan military effort. MONUSCO and Congolese forces were involved in recent operations to prevent any repeats of the LRA's 2008 and 2009 Christmas massacres, he said, and the US was also providing support to CAR and South Sudan military forces. "With our support, these four military forces continue to make progress in reducing the LRA numbers and keeping them from regrouping. We believe it is critical the militaries in the region continue to work together to keep the pressure on the LRA and protect their own citizens. As we have seen in the past, the LRA will exploit any reduction in military or diplomatic pressure to regroup and rebuild their forces," Wycloff said. Still dancing to Kony's tune He cited UN statistics saying that in 2011 there were 278 attacks attributed to the LRA and more than 300 abductions, but in the second half of the year, which coincided with the deployment of US troops, incidents "appear" to have decreased - although about 465,000 people in the region were displaced or living as refugees in 2011 because of LRA activities. Rear Admiral Brian Losey, commander of Special Operations Command Africa, believed the drop in attacks was a result of the US and local military operations and the "numbers of [LRA] fighters have been reduced to 200 or so... We do not have a specific timeline with this mission, nor is it open-ended." The important thing now is what Kony is actually doing and as far as anyone can tell, he is still in control and calling the tune the rest of us dance to. However, Phil Lancaster, one of the authors of the 2011 International Working Group on the LRA report, Diagnostic Study of the Lord's Resistance Army and former head of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration division of the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), predecessor to MONUSCO, told IRIN, "Estimates of core numbers have bounced between 250 and 150 for the past 18 months. "He [Wycoff] doesn't know any more than anyone else what is going on inside the LRA... The important thing now is what Kony is actually doing and as far as anyone can tell, he is still in control and calling the tune the rest of us dance to." The LRA, which relies on forced recruitment, and more often than not the use of child soldiers, to bolster its ranks, has largely operated with a core strength of about 250 fighters from its inception in the 1980s, say analysts. A 22 February briefing note by the Small Arms Survey (SAS), Lord's Resistance Army Update said although in 2012 there had been no reported attacks in South Sudan or CAR since 18 January, "raids in northeastern DRC have increased this year". "At least 12 attacks were reported in the first two weeks of February, all in or near areas where LRA groups have attacked during the last three years. Ngilima, Bangadi, Dungu and areas around Faradje have been consistently targeted by LRA combatants, indicating a return to old bases, particularly in Garamba National Park," the update said. Lack of regional cooperation The SAS update also questioned the level of cooperation between regional forces and the DRC, considering President Joseph Kabila's government antipathy towards Ugandan troops on its soil. Of the four contributing military forces, Ugandans are viewed as the most professional.

"Ugandan troops are not officially allowed to enter the DRC, even though the Congolese army units located in areas with an LRA presence are notoriously incapable of dealing with the rebels... This refusal to allow Ugandan troops, and by association US advisers, to enter the DRC has impeded the Americans' drive to remove top LRA commanders from the battlefield," the SAS update said. Resolve, a US-based advocacy NGO, said in a February 2012 report, Peace Can Be. President Obama's chance to help end LRA atrocities in 2012, questioned Uganda's commitment to continued operations against the LRA, as its border regions were no longer threatened by the armed group and since 2009 it has withdrawn more than half its soldiers dedicated to the pursuit of Kony and his senior commanders. Uganda's military is also heavily committed to the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), which in recent days has seen a renewed emphasis by the international community to resolving the conflict in the country. Measuring success against the LRA in terms of reduced attacks was also questioned. "In the second half of 2011, the LRA dramatically reduced its attacks, particularly those involving killings of civilians. Regional military forces interpret these trends as a sign that the rebel group's capacity has been severely decimated. However, the LRA's proven ability to protect its core commanders and to regenerate itself if given the opportunity should inspire caution. "LRA commanders may be intentionally reducing violence against civilians in the hopes that renewed US and regional initiatives lose momentum. If current initiatives fail to break apart the LRA's command structure, the group will be poised to survive indefinitely and eventually replenish its strength in the tri-border region," the report said. Resolve said the US commitment was also threatened by the 2012 presidential campaign as "the Obama Administration may encounter domestic pressure to withdraw the US military advisers before they have achieved their objectives." Among Resolve's recommendations to end the "predations" of the LRA, was "convincing" Uganda to devote more troops to the fight, increasing "intelligence and aerial mobility support to the Ugandans", and "especially to ensure that Congo [DRC] allows the Ugandan military conditional access to Congolese territory affected by the LRA".
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News Headline: Nigeria: Killers slit Christian woman's throat | News Date: 02/24/2012 Outlet Full Name: News24 News Text: Police discovered the body of a 79-year-old Christian woman killed in northeast Nigeria, with a note in Arabic left on her chest reading: "We will get you soon", a witness said. The slaying raises religious tensions in Nigeria as a radical Islamist sect increasingly targets Christians in its bloody attacks. While police said on Thursday they knew of no immediate suspects in the killing, witnesses blamed the attack on the sect known as Boko Haram, which has been blamed for killing at least 305 people this year alone, according to an Associated Press count. The dead woman was identified as Shetu Haruna Malgwi, a Christian living in the city of Maiduguri in Nigeria's Muslim north. Assailants apparently attacked Malgwi on Wednesday, a day after she returned home from receiving an eye treatment in the city of Kaduna, Borno state police spokesperson Samuel Tizhe said. Her killers slit the woman's throat, then wrote a note with red pen they left on her chest, witness Audu Ibrahim said. Ibrahim said the woman's family believes the message is for her son, who is a pastor of a local church where the 79-year-old sang in the choir.

Authorities found a Bible placed under the woman's feet, Ibrahim said. Police continue to investigate the killing and no arrests have been made, Tizhe said. Boko Haram, whose name means "Western education is sacrilege" in the local Hausa language, is carrying out increasingly sophisticated and bloody attacks in its campaign to implement strict Shariah law and avenge Muslim killings in Nigeria, a multiethnic nation of more than 160 million people. Maiduguri is the sect's spiritual home, though its members have carried out attacks across the north. This year, a spokesman for the sect warned it would begin specifically targeting Christians living in the north. That has further widened divisions between Christians and Muslims in the country. Meanwhile, police said four police officers were killed in two separate attacks in Nigeria on Thursday.
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News Headline: Kenya: Nation Positive On Getting UN Nod to Join AMISOM | News Date: 02/24/2012 Outlet Full Name: AllAfrica.com News Text: THE government was yesterday confident of obtaining the United Nations nod to join the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia ahead of the Security Council vote on a draft resolution authorising an increase of troops in the warn-torn country. Kenya had requested for its troops, currently inside Somalia in pursuit of the alQaeda linked militia al Shabaab, to join AMISOM. The vote at 7pm Kenyan time during the6718th and 6719th meetings of the council yesterday came ahead of an international conference on Somalia in London that begins today. According to the final text of the draft resolution, the UN will authorise troop ceiling for the AU Mission in Somalia from 12,000 to17,731 uniformed personnel, according to What's In Blue, an insight produced bythe security council. In addition, the UN will expand its support package for the mission to include reimbursement of contingent-owned equipment,as recommended by the Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon's January 31 report on Somalia. However, the council will demand greater accountability through a new reporting requirement, requesting the AUthrough the secretary-general-to keep the council informed through written reports every 60 days, of the implementation of AMISOM's mandate. The text of the draft could still be expected to change during the voting stage, albeit minimally, since it had reached the final stage of negotiations. The most difficult issues during the negotiations on the draft resolution seemed to relate to the troop levels and the details of the support package. The United Kingdom, which recently posted its first envoy to Mogadishu, has been supportive of the AU and Kenya's requests but other European members-including the United States of America-continued to have concerns about the cost of the expansion. "Some also questioned the timing of the adoption,arguing that it would have been better to do so after the London Conference on Somalia on February 23, as one of its main objectives is to review the international community's overall approach to Somalia. However, it seems the UK, which has the lead on Somalia in the council, was keen to have there solution adopted before the London Conference," said the council. The final text of the resolution will give the AU the number it had sought, besides providing adequate and reliable funding for the mission. The Kenya Defence Forces crossed over to Somalia in pursuit of al-Shabab members it blames for a series of kidnappings within it sterritory in mid-October and has made substantial progress in weakening the militants' control of key towns in somalia, including Badhadhe, some 180 kilometres south of the port of Kismayu.
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News Headline: United Nations News Centre - Africa Briefs |

News Date: 02/26/2012 Outlet Full Name: United Nations News Service News Text: Ban inspired by Zambian youth's commitment to democracy and education 26 February Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today concluded his first visit to Zambia saying he left the country convinced that it has a bright future, especially because of the commitment of the younger generation to democratic principles, human rights and education. Cte d'Ivoire: UN envoy voices satisfaction with conduct of by-elections 26 February The head of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Cte d'Ivoire today voiced his satisfaction with the conduct of the legislative by-elections in the country, saying the polls were carried out in an atmosphere of calm. Ban praises democracy and development efforts in Zambia 25 February Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today praised Zambia for entrenching democracy and making efforts to achieve the globally-agreed social and economic development targets aimed at halving the number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide by 2015. Sudan: Two UN-African Union peacekeepers wounded in attack in Darfur 25 February Two peacekeepers serving in the joint African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)were wounded when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a bus in which they were travelling near the town of El Dein in the western Sudanese region, the mission reported today. Libya: UN distributes relief supplies to victims of deadly ethnic clashes 24 February The United Nations is providing relief supplies to residents of the desert town of Kufra in southeastern Libya, where inter-ethnic clashes in the past two weeks have reportedly killed dozens of people.
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