The first took place outside the presidential palace late on Friday. The second hit a nearby hotel. Dozens of people were wounded.

The Islamist militant group al-Shabab, which has been trying to oust Somalia’s government, says it was behind both.

A gun battle followed the attack near the presidential palace in which five militants were killed, officials say.

Friday’s bombings are the latest in a series of attacks attributed to al-Shabab, which once controlled Mogadishu before being forced out by African Union troops in 2011.

Last October, more than 500 people were killed by a truck bomb in the city. Officials blamed al-Shabab but the group never said it was behind that attack.

The latest incident began when a vehicle failed to stop at a checkpoint outside the presidential palace before being blown up, state media say. This was followed by an exchange of fire between militants and security forces.

Then a parked car exploded near the hotel. However, al-Shabab said it had targeted security forces.

The group said five of its fighters, including the two drivers, had been “martyred” and 35 soldiers were killed in the attacks.

A police spokesman told Reuters news agency: “There were many military soldiers who guarded the street adjacent to the palace.”

–

Source: BBC

The post Somalia: Deadly double car bombing near presidential palace appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The US Africa Command said the strike took place on Thursday in southern Somalia, around 50 kilometers (30 miles) northwest of the port city of Kismayo.

Africa Command did not provide details on the attack, which it said was undertaken “in coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia.”

But it said no civilians were killed.

“US forces will continue to use all authorized and appropriate measures to protect US citizens and to disable terrorist threats,” US Africa Command said in a statement.

It was the second strike by US forces so far this year against the Shabaab militants.

The group has been fighting to overthrow successive internationally backed governments in Mogadishu since 2007, and frequently deploy car and truck bombs against military, government and civilian targets.

US military attacks have increased over the past year.

According to a study by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington think tank, 35 US air strikes were conducted in Somalia in 2017, a huge increase over prior years.

–

Source: AFP

The post US says four Shabaab militants killed in Somalia strike appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In the past, a victim’s family could force them to marry their rapist to avoid being shamed.

Rapists now stand to face at least 30 years in prison.

Somaliland declared itself independent from Somalia in 1991 but is not internationally recognised as a country. There is still no law against rape in Somalia.

Somaliland’s speaker of parliament, Bashe Mohamed Farah, told the BBC that rape cases have risen and he hoped the new law would help stop that trend.

“Nowadays we have seen even people carrying out gang rapes,” he said.

“The main emphasis of the new act is to completely stop rape.”

The new law has come in after years of lobbying by children and women’s rights advocates.

Faisa Ali Yusuf of the Women’s Agenda Forum told the BBC they have been waiting for such legislation for a very long time.

The BBC’s Anne Soy explains that the new law comes within the context of the self-declared republic being keen to be seen internationally as a viable democracy with functioning institutions.

–

Source: BBC

The post Somaliland passes first law against rape appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

In the past, the victim could be forced to marry the rapist and the families would support such a resolution to hide the shame attached to rape.

Rapists now stand to face at least 30 years in prison.

Somaliland’s speaker of parliament, Bashe Mohamed Farah, told the BBC that rape cases have risen and he hoped the new law would help stop that trend.

“Nowadays we have seen even people carrying out gang rapes,” he said.

“The main emphasis of the new act is to completely stop rape.

The new law has come in after years of lobbying by children and women’s rights advocates.

Faisa Ali Yusuf of the Women’s Agenda Forum told the BBC they’ve been waiting for such legislation for a very long time.

The BBC’s Anne Soy explains that this comes within the context of the self-declared republic being keen to be seen internationally as a viable democracy with functioning institutions.

It declared itself independent from the rest of Somalia in 1991 but is not internationally recognised as a country.

Our correspondent says there is still no law against rape in Somalia.

–

Source: BBC

The post Somaliland passes first law against rape appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The first blast was caused by a car bomb being driven into a hotel. Militants then stormed the building.

The second explosion took place near the former parliament house nearby. The number of casualties is unclear.

The Islamist militant group al-Shabab – which officials blamed for the attack two weeks ago – said it carried out the latest bombings.

Police officer Mohamed Hussein told Reuters news agency: “At least seven people including soldiers and civilians died”.

The city’s Aamin Ambulance said it had already ferried 15 wounded, adding there were “many dead bodies”.

Major Abdullahi Aden told Reuters: “It is a busy hotel frequented by lawmakers, (military) forces and civilians.”

Police official Ibrahim Mohamed told AFP news agency that in the second explosion a “minibus loaded with explosives” went off at a nearby intersection.

The attacks comes as provincial leader gather in Mogadishu for a meeting on Sunday with the government to agree on a united strategy against al-Shabab.

The 14 October attack left at least 358 dead, and another 56 still missing.

–

Source: BBC

The post Somalia Mogadishu: Explosions rock capital appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The Mayor of Mogadishu, Thabit Abdi said a memorial wall will be erected to honour the victims of the bomb blast which left about 400 people injured with critical cases transferred to Turkey, Kenya and Sudan for treatment.

“We are doing this because we don’t want to forget this tragedy. Its part of our history … We remember them as our heroes. We and the next generations will remember them as heroes,” he told local media Radio Dalsan.

Saturday’s explosion hit a busy junction in Mogadishu killing civilians including doctors and students. The world sympathised with Somalia as they received aid and emergency response from over a dozen countries.

We are doing this because we don’t want to forget this tragedy. Its part of our history … We remember them as our heroes. We and the next generations will remember them as heroes.
No group has claimed responsibility but the Somali government points fingers at Islamist group al Shabaab.

–

Source: Africanews

The post Somalia to erect memorial wall along renamed bomb blast street appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Hundreds more were wounded when a lorry packed with explosives detonated near the entrance of a hotel.

It is the deadliest terror attack in Somalia since the Islamist al-Shabab group launched its insurgency in 2007.

It is not clear who staged the bombing, but Mogadishu is a target for al-Shabab militants battling the government.

President Mohamed Abdullahi “Farmajo” Mohamed has declared three days of mourning for the victims of the blast.

Local media reported families gathering in the area on Sunday morning, looking for missing loved ones amid the ruins of one of the largest bombs ever to strike the city.

Police official Ibrahim Mohamed told AFP news agency the death toll is likely to rise. “There are more than 300 wounded, some of them seriously,” he said.

Officials also confirmed that two people were killed in a second bomb attack in the Madina district of the city.

A BBC Somali reporter at the scene of the main blast said the Safari Hotel had collapsed, with people trapped under the rubble.

An eyewitness, local resident Muhidin Ali, told news agency AFP it was “the biggest blast I have ever witnessed, it destroyed the whole area”.

Meanwhile, the director of the Madina Hospital, Mohamed Yusuf Hassan, said he was shocked by the scale of the attack.

“Seventy-two wounded people were admitted to the hospital and 25 of them are in very serious condition. Others lost their hands and legs at the scene.

“What happened yesterday was incredible, I have never seen such a thing before, and countless people lost their lives. Corpses were burned beyond recognition.”

–

Source: BBC

The post Somalia: At least 230 dead in Mogadishu blast appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Its fighters killed 61 government troops and seized 16 vehicles in the dawn raid, the group said.

A Puntland government minister has denied the high death toll, but did not give separate casualty figures.

The al-Qaeda-linked group has carried out several big attacks on military bases in Somalia.

In January, it said it had killed 50 Kenyan soldiers in an assault on their base in Kolbiyow town in the south of the country.

Kenyan troops are part of an 18,000-strong African Union (AU) force helping the UN-backed government tackle al-Shabab in Somalia.

In the the latest attack, the militants withdrew after more than three hours of fighting with government forces, residents told the BBC.

The attack took place on the base near the remote Galgala Mountains, about 70km (43 miles) from the port city of Bosaso.

Confirming the attack, Puntland Security Minister Abdiaziz Hirsi said that an investigation was under way and details would be given later.

The Galgala Mountains are a stronghold of al-Shabab, but a faction of militants broke away in 2015 to affiliate themselves with the Islamic State group.

–

Source: BBC

The post Al-Shabab fighters storm military base in Somalia appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Dayow Mohamed Hassan, 44, was buried neck-deep and pelted to death with stones by al-Shabab militants.
He was convicted of being in an adulterous relationship with a woman and impregnating her, despite having two wives, an official said.

Al-Shabab occasionally passes such sentences for sexual offences in areas it controls in Somalia.

In 2014, a teenage boy was stoned to death after being convicted of raping a woman.

In 2008, a young girl was killed in a similar manner after being convicted of adultery.

In the latest case, a woman filed a complaint of rape against Hassan, but the court tried him for adultery as it is easier to prove, says BBC Somali’s Mohamed Mohamed.

Hundreds of people watched him being stoned death in Ramo Adey village in the south-central Bay region, said Moalim Geedow, the al-Shabab governor for the area.

Hassan had committed adultery with a divorcee, and there was “no trace of valid matrimony”, Mr Geedow told Reuters news agency.

Al-Shabab is fighting to overthrow the weak UN-backed government in Somalia and impose its own strict interpretation of Islamic law.

It has lost control of many towns and cities to a 22,000-strong African Union force supporting the government.

But the group still has a strong presence in many rural areas.

–

Source: BBC

The post Somalia’s al-Shabab court stones man to death for adultery appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

MPs will gather at the airport to elect a new head of state.

On Tuesday evening, suspected Al-Shabab militants launched a series of attacks, with two mortar rounds fired close to the venue where the vote will be held.

Residents in Arbacow village outside Mogadishu say jihadists attacked an African Union military base there.

More than 20 candidates are vying to become Somali president, with the top three proceeding to a second round of voting and the top two from that round going forward to a third and final vote.

Incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is standing for re-election and analysts say he is likely to be one of those who goes forward to the later rounds.

Results are expected later on Wednesday.

The airport is viewed as the most secure site in the Somali capital and voting was moved there from a police academy because of growing security concerns.

Wednesday’s security measures will include a ban on flights to and from Mogadishu airport.

Correspondents said most schools and offices remained open on Tuesday but people had had to walk to reach their destination.

Analysts say holding the election in the airport environment may also reduce the possibility of vote buying or other corruption in the election process.

Somalia has not had an effective central government since the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991. The Mogadishu-based government is backed by an African Union force, Amisom, made up of more than 22,000 troops and police, as well as civilian staff.

Al-Shabab has a presence in much of the southern third of the country and has carried out many attacks in Mogadishu.

It has previously attacked the Somali parliament, presidential palace, courts, hotels and the fortified airport zone.

At least 19 politicians, as well as civilians and soldiers have been killed in its assaults.

–

Credit: BBC

The post Traffic banned ahead of Somali election appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.