A community portal about Somalia with blogs, videos, and photos. According to Wikipedia.org: Somalia, formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a coastal nation at the Horn of Africa in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia...
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A community portal about Somalia with blogs, videos, and photos. According to Wikipedia.org: Somalia, formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a coastal nation at the Horn of Africa in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the north and mid-west, Kenya on its south-west, and the Gulf of Aden on its north, and the Indian Ocean at its east. The Somali state currently exists solely in a de jure capacity; Somalia has no recognized central government authority nor any other feature associated with an established independent state. De facto authority resides in the hands of the governments for the unrecognized entities of Somaliland, Puntland, the Supreme Islamic Courts Council and the weak, but United Nations -recognized, Interim transitional government in Baidoa about 250 kilometers north-west of the capital Mogadishu. Violence has plagued Somalia since warlords ousted former Supreme President Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
Two journalists from Canada and Australia flew out of Somalia on Thursday at the end of a 15-month hostage ordeal during which they were tortured and shackled in windowless rooms by their captors. Amanda Lindhout, her head covered with a black veil, and fellow freelancer Nigel Brennan boarded a private plane at Mogadishu airport after being escorted there by pro-government militia, witnesses said. It was not immediately clear where they were headed. While the two were kept away from... Read Full Story
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somali pirates said they freed a Greek ship on Thursday that they hijacked more than six months ago as it sailed to the Middle East from Brazil. The Ariana was carrying 24 Ukrainian crew when it was seized on May 2 north of the capital Mogadishu. The ship was flying a Maltese flag and belonged to All Oceans shipping in Greece. Last month, the pirates said they had agreed a $3.5 million ransom and expected to release the vessel soon. "After days of negotiations we freed... Read Full Story
Somali pirates said Thursday they had released a Greek cargo vessel and its Ukrainian crew after a payment of 3.7 million dollars more than six months after it was captured in the Indian Ocean. "After serious negotiations over the past four days, the Ariana is free after the payment of 3.7 million dollars," pirate Ahmed Abdullahi Mohamoud told AFP. "The owners of the ship were joking for a while without understanding the seriousness of the situation," he said by phone from Harardhere, a... Read Full Story
Two freelance journalists, one from Canada and the other from Australia, were freed on Wednesday after 15 months in captivity in Somalia, with the Canadian alleging she was tortured. One of their kidnappers, who refused to identify himself, told AFP a ransom of one million dollars (665,000 euros) had been paid for the release of Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout and Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan. Lindhout and Brennan were in a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Wednesday... Read Full Story
Two freelance journalists, one from Canada and the other from Australia, were freed on Wednesday after 15 months in captivity in Somalia, with the Canadian alleging she was tortured. One of their kidnappers, who refused to identify himself, told AFP a ransom of one million dollars (665,000 euros) had been paid for the release of Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout and Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan. Lindhout and Brennan were in a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Wednesday... Read Full Story
Two freelance journalists, one from Canada and the other from Australia, who were freed after 15 months in captivity in Somalia, left Mogadishu by plane on Thursday, witnesses said. Canadian Amanda Lindhout, her head covered with a black veil, and Australian Nigel Brennan boarded a small private plane at Mogadishu airport shortly after arriving there with a big security escort made up of pro-government militia, the witnesses said. The plane took off around 0545 GMT. There was no immediate... Read Full Story
Two freelance journalists, one from Canada and the other from Australia, were freed on Wednesday after 15 months in captivity in Somalia, one of their kidnappers told AFP. The kidnapper, who refused to identify himself, said a ransom of one million dollars (665,000 euros) had been paid for the release of Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout and Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan. Their release was confirmed by an independent source in the Somali capital Mogadishu to an AFP journalist... Read Full Story
NAIROBI (Reuters) - An Australian freelance journalist kidnapped in Somalia in August last year feared he would be handed over to hardline rebels when he was bundled into a car Wednesday night. Instead, photojournalist Nigel Brennan and Canadian freelance reporter Amanda Lindhout were driven to a hotel in Mogadishu and released -- ending their 15 month ordeal. "Tonight we were ripped out of our rooms, stripped of everything, told to put on new clothes and then thrown in a car and then driven... Read Full Story
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Two freelance journalists kidnapped in Somalia in August 2008 were freed Wednesday and are in a hotel in the capital Mogadishu, a Somali member of parliament and hotel sources said. "We have now brought both foreign journalists to the Sahafi hotel. We have been working for eight days on their release, but finally succeeded," MP Ahmed Diiriye told Reuters. "I don't want to comment on how we released them now." Amanda Lindhout, a Canadian freelance reporter, and Nigel... Read Full Story
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - The U.N.'s World Food Program must immediately stop importing relief rations to Somalia, hard-line rebels said on Wednesday, accusing the aid agency of devastating local agriculture. Al Shabaab insurgents control most of the south of the drought-ravaged country, where fighting has worsened one of the world's most acute humanitarian crises. Washington says the group is al Qaeda's proxy in the Horn of Africa nation. WFP is a major player in the international response to... Read Full Story
