TOP UN ENVOY SHOCKED BY ‘COWARDLY’ ATTACK AGAINST SOMALI MINISTER

The United Nations envoy to Somalia today strongly condemned the deadly roadside bomb blast which wounded the country's Interior Minister and killed one of his assistants in the capital, Mogadishu.

The minister, Sheikh Abdulkadir Ali Omar, was walking through bustling Bakara Market on Thursday when the landmine exploded.

"I am shocked by this attack on the Interior Minister and his entourage," said the Secretary General's Special Representative for Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah.

"This is a cowardly act which has been widely condemned inside and outside Somalia," he added.

Aided by the UN-facilitated Djibouti Agreement, last month saw the formation of a new Government of National Unity, as well as the creation of a newly-expanded Parliament and election of President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in the Horn of African nation, which has been ravaged by factional conflict since the overthrow of Siad Barre in 1991.

The Special Representative noted that the new administration led by President Sheikh Ahmed was working hard to improve security, raise resources and help Somalis lead a normal life.

"Attacks such as these are clearly aimed at trying to stain the country's reputation," said Mr. Ould-Abdallah. He stressed that the new Government has the support of the majority of Somalis as well as the international community and that "the country is on the road towards peace and will not be thrown off course by these actions."
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THOUSANDS OF SOMALIS STILL FLEEING TO KENYA, REPORTS UN AGENCY

Despite recent elections and the establishment of new government in their homeland, thousands of Somalis are continuing to flee to north-eastern Kenya, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported today.

More than 20,000 Somalis have been registered in Kenya's Dadaab refugee camps since the start of 2009. Several of the new arrivals told UNHCR that they left due to rising insecurity, coupled with drought and food shortages.

"Many also express little optimism for the return of peace to their country in the near term," UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters in Geneva. "Despite the recent elections held in Djibouti which saw a new Government come to power, many parts of Somalia are still insecure."

Somalia, which has been beset by factional strife since the overthrow of Siad Barre in 1991, has witnessed a number of positive developments in recent months, including the creation of an expanded Parliament, the election of President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and the formation of the Unity Government.

At the same time, the UN estimates that over 3 million people, a third or more of the total population, will remain dependent on humanitarian assistance this year.

According to UNHCR, more than half of the new arrivals to Dadaab are women and children, some having travelled as much as 800 kilometres over 16 days by foot to reach the camps.

Mr. Redmond said UNHCR is continuing to receive new arrivals at Kenya's sprawling and overcrowded Dadaab refugee complex. Designed nearly two decades ago to accommodate a total of 90,000 people, the complex currently houses over 261,000. There are concerns that the upcoming rainy season, set to begin in early April, could put additional constraints on the already congested camps.

The agency and the Kenyan Government are finalizing plans for the construction of new camps to ease the burden on the Dadaab site. "It is crucial for the Government to provide us with land as soon as possible, where we can build other camps and thus decongest the existing camps and prepare for more people if the current arrival trend continues," Mr. Redmond stated.

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SOMALIA: TOP UN ENVOY PRAISES NEW GOVERNMENT, URGES FULL SUPPORT

SOMALIA: TOP UN ENVOY PRAISES NEW GOVERNMENT, URGES FULL SUPPORT
New York, Mar 13 2009 1:00PM

The United Nations' top envoy for Somalia today lauded progress made in the past month by the new Government of the Horn of Africa country, which has been torn by factional strife since the overthrow of Siad Barre in 1991.

In a statement issued in Nairobi, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah encouraged the Government of National Unity to continue working towards peace and stability and urged Somalis and the international community to support it.

The formation of the Government last month, and its return to the violence-plagued capital, Mogadishu, followed on the 2008 UN-facilitated Djibouti Agreement between the Transitional Federal Government and the Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia, in which the two agreed to end their conflict.

In today's statement, Mr. Ould-Abdallah said he was pleased by the number of "patriotic Parliamentarians" who have returned to Mogadishu to start their work, and called for concrete diplomatic and material assistance for both branches of the administration.

"President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the Speaker and the Prime Minister have demonstrated responsible leadership in all fields and the unity Government is now functioning from the capital," Mr. Ould-Abdallah said.

He added that the Council of Ministers has met a number of times and passed important measures, including one on the place of Sharia, or Islamic law, in the country.

"All these developments will not only help the move towards normality inside the country, but will also help secure Somalia's image and reputation abroad. There is now absolutely no excuse for any Somali to continue plotting to destroy more Somali lives," he said.

Planning is underway for the next meeting of the High Level Committee that is tasked to look at such issues as political cooperation, justice and reconciliation, Mr. Ould-Abdallah said, adding that there would also be a meeting of the Joint Security Committee shortly.

With the vast majority of Somalis working together for the first time in many years, he said, the international community must do its part to fully support the new Government. "This help is not needed at some point in the future, but right now," he stressed.

He noted that President Ahmed has received offers of support from Africa, the Middle East, Europe, the Unite States and elsewhere and Somalia will be discussed at the Security Council on 20 March and at the upcoming League of Arab States Summit in Qatar.

In his latest report on Somalia, Secretary-General Ban also praised recent progress, but cautioned that much work lies ahead, with the instability caused by hostilities, abductions and fear continuing to hinder delivery of vital humanitarian aid.

A January UN analysis found that more than three million people in Somalia, a third or more of the total population, will remain dependent on assistance this year.

Mr. Ban noted that among the aims of the UN's comprehensive strategy for Somalia is to help the African Union Mission there (AMISOM) give Somali security institutions the capacity to create a level of security to enable the Djibouti peace process to continue.

The UN Security Council has yet to decide whether to deploy a multidimensional UN peacekeeping operation that would take over from AMISOM.
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