04 April 2012
A London father of three helped his brother plot attacks in Somalia and owned a terror manual written by one of al Qaeda’s most senior figures, a court heard today.
Mohammed Shabir Ali, 24, from Stepney, was accused of funding his brother Mohammed Shamim in “numerous ways” to travel to the east African country to fight and become a martyr.
Westminster magistrates also heard that he was found with a manual, 44 Ways to Support Jihad, written by extremist cleric Anwar al Awlaki — the man who inspired the Detroit underpants bomber and the woman who tried to stab to death East Ham MP Stephen Timms.
Today’s hearing came as 10 people, including the heads of Somalia’s Olympic and football federations, were killed by a girl suicide bomber in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
The al Qaeda linked militant group al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the bombing, which took place at the newly reopened national theatre at an event also attended by Somali prime minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali.
The allegations against Ali were outlined by prosecutor Louise Gray, who said that he had helped his brother, who left the UK with two other men, to “commit acts of terrorism in Somalia” by raising cash to help fund his trip.
She said he had also been found with Awlaki’s manual during a raid by counter-terrorism police on his home in Stepney. It also led to the arrest of two other men, aged 24 and 30, and a 21-year-old woman, who all remain in police custody.
Shaven headed Ali sat with his hands in his pocket while the charges of assisting another to commit acts of terrorism and possessing a terror manual were read out.
The offences were allegedly committed between 20 August 2008 and 21 June last year. He did not enter a plea and spoke only to confirm his name and address.
He was remanded in custody to appear at the Old Bailey on 20 April after District Judge Caroline Tubbs refused an application for bail.
Unemployed Ali, whose three children are aged four, two and 18 months, was supported at court by his wife and other family members, one of whom saluted him as he walked in.
The terror manual allegedly found in his possession was written by American-born Awlaki, who was killed last year in a drone strike after leading al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
His teachings were said to have influenced Mohammed Merah who carried out a spate of shootings in south-west France last month. He killed seven people, including children, before he was shot by police.
The acts by a lone al Qaeda terrorist fits the profile of a new generation of Islamist terrorists who are now regarded as posing a major security threat to the West.
Awlaki, whose perfect command of English made him a highly effective al Qaeda propagandist, regularly posted sermons on the internet urging his followers to carry out attacks against Western “infidels” using any means at their disposal.
In Britain, his sermons were blamed for the attack on Mr Timms at his constituency surgery in May 2010, when Roshonara Choudhry, 21, tried to stab him to death with a kitchen knife.
British security officials have also broken up several al Qaeda plots in which militants were planning to attack crowded shopping centres with primitive explosives.
A Scotland Yard spokesman confirmed that two men and a woman remain in custody as part of the investigation into the offences allegedly committed by Ali and have not yet been charged.
Friday, 22 June 2012
19 arrested in two-day blitz on drug gang
Benedict Moore-Bridger 29 February 2012
Scotland Yard smashed a drugs gang today by arresting 19 suspected members in a series of dawn raids.
Officers stormed known criminals' homes in Haringey in a two-day blitz as part of a crackdown on gang activity in London by the Met's new task force.
Detectives said the raids on the Somali gang would have a big impact on improving residents' lives by taking out major players in its drug network. It is one of four known "street gangs" in the area being targeted by officers from the
Trident Crime Gang Command.
The action, codename Operation Fadden, saw several "high-harm" individuals aged 17 to 30 arrested on suspicion of possession and dealing Class A drugs.
Two were also arrested for possessing CS spray and having a dangerous dog. In a raid at Wood Green, a 17-year-old suspected gang member yelled in defiance as officers led him away in handcuffs. Bags of cannabis were seized.
A police source said: "These gangs have built up a reputation of being untouchable in the area. They are not as organised as some of the major criminal networks but they have a hierarchy of employees, several drug runners and a lucrative turnover selling mainly heroin and crack cocaine.
"They are known to supply drugs quite openly - in parks, in front of children and people going to work. That is why they have been targeted."
Gang members were also tailed and snatched on the streets. Det Chief Insp Tim Champion, who led today's operation, said: "They don't have a Mr Big. There is a degree of structure but they are fairly chaotic.
"However, that makes them dangerous. It's either kill or be killed, as we saw on Boxing Day in Oxford Street where two gangs argued over shoplifting and it resulted in murder.
"We've disrupted that drugs network and these arrests will have a big impact, but it is not the end. We have ongoing operations against many other gangs.
"Normally after arrests you get a void but we are fully aware of the potential for new people to move in."
Woman stabbed 57 times in knife frenzy by Somali boyfriend Zakaria Mohamed
A violent partner was jailed for at least 26 years today for stabbing his girlfriend 57 times.
Somalian refugee Zakaria Mohamed, 29, was on probation when he killed television recruitment consultant Amina Adan, 32.
He had assaulted her twice before during their year-long relationship, but magistrates put off sentencing him so he could take part in a domestic abuse programme.
But she took him back and he killed her with three knives and shards of glass from a broken mirror before the counselling sessions were implemented, the Old Bailey heard.
Judge Anthony Morris said he did not know why the sessions were not prioritised before Mohamed served an unpaid work element of a community order.
Mohamed pleaded guilty to murdering Miss Adan on November 6, last year, at the home they shared in Walworth, south London.
After a row, drunken Mohamed went home, dragged her down the stairs by the hair, beat her unconscious, kicked and stamped on her and began to stab her.
After police arrived, Mohamed threatened to kill them and had to be subdued with a Taser gun.
Miss Adan, who was brought up in Kenya, was described as being hard working and popular at the Al Jazeera news network where she worked in human resources.
Judge Morris told Mohamed: "You are a controlling and domineering man and Amina was frightened of you and you sought to control her with violence.
"I am satisfied this was a punishment for her standing up to you.
"This was a savage, brutal, sustained and premeditated attack in which you clearly intended to kill.
"It was clearly a totally senseless killing in which you deprived a hardworking young woman of her life."
Mohamed had been in breach of a community order and a deferred sentence at the time.
He came to the UK in 2002 on a forged Dutch passport. His request for asylum was turned down but he was given indefinite leave to remain in 2007 under an amnesty.
In April 2011, he pleaded guilty to battery on Miss Adan and was placed on a community order which included a domestic abuse programme.
In May, 2011, he punched Miss Adan in the stomach and went on the run before being arrested in July.
In September, he was convicted of the assault and on October 20, of breaching the order.
On October 20, Camberwell Green magistrates deferred a likely prison sentence until January 20 this year, so he could take part in the programme.
Judge Morris said he was surprised the programme had not been implemented first.
He said: "It would be more important that they should have prioritised the domestic violence programme.
"This was not something the probation service were not aware of because he committed another offence, and it became even more urgent he should embark on this programme.
"Unfortunately, for reasons I do not fully understand, that programme had not been started fully."
Prosecutor Timothy Carey told the judge the Ministry of Justice would be holding a review into the case because the murder took place while Mohamed was subject to probation.
Miss Adan's sister, Hanan, said in a statement: "We will probably never know why he could possibly act in this way to another human being. It is something we will never forgive or forget."
Somalia promises west oil riches as diplomats vow to defeat al-Shabaab
Somali prime minister says his country will give west a share of natural resources in return for help with task of reconstruction
Members of the Islamist group al-Shabaab distribute aid near Mogadishu. Photograph: Feisal Omar/Reuters
They expect the oil to flow within weeks. Coming from two miles underground, the crude should reach the arid plains of Puntland in the north-east corner of Somalia by April.
Around the same time, Somali diplomats say an offensive against al-Shabaab militia in the south of the country, backed by US drone strikes, should have damaged the Islamist group's "effective fighting capability".
Meanwhile, the UN plans to impose trade sanctions on the illicit international trade in charcoal, Somalia's "black gold" which not only funds al-Shabaab but also destroys the country's forests and led in part to last year's widespread famine.
The promise of stability coupled with the apparent discovery of oil reserves could help to rebuild this poverty-stricken country. But experts warn the west must not pillage the newly found resources of Somalia, or risk massively escalating the conflicts already in the region. Kenyan, Ethiopian and Ugandan soldiers are in Somalia fighting al-Shabaab and each country has vested interests in Somalia's future. Already a new militia, led by the unlikely-sounding Sheik Atom, has formed around Puntland's oilfields.
The Somali prime minister, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, speaking to the Observer after meeting Hillary Clinton and David Cameron at the London Somalia Conference last week, said that in the future a share of natural resources would be offered in return for help with reconstruction. "There's room for everybody when this country gets back on its feet and is ready for investment," he said. "Although now is not the time.
"What we need is capital from countries like the UK to invest. If the private sector can come in and do the work, then we welcome them."
But many observers are uneasy about foreign interference in a country still emerging from 21 years of civil war and facing political transition. The mandate for Somalia's transitional government runs out in August.
Chatham House analyst Adjoa Anyimadu said: "There's already a lot of scepticism from parts of the Somalian community about the reasons for the sudden focus on Somalia and the reasons behind the UK's interest.
"The potential for things to go wrong is high, for the population to feel they are being undermined or invaded by foreigners. Al-Shabaab has little credence with many Somalians but a foreign intervention could create a common enemy."
While a new wealth could bring back the diaspora, she said, they too would need to be wary about riding roughshod over respected clan structures. "There are big gulfs between the experiences of those educated abroad and those living in Somalia. Everyone has a duty to make sure the population really does get a say in establishing governance so that it is seen as legitimate. The pressing issue remains food and security."
Mark Bradbury, director of the Rift Valley Institute and author of several reports on Somalia, said oil was "a big game changer". He added: "The international community has been very quiet on the whole exploitation of minerals and hydrocarbons. There is clearly potential for dispute between the relatively stable Puntland and the rest of the country. The positive end would be a federal government put in place with international support; the negative, a Somalia being divided up by international military forces."
Markets expert Stuart Joyner, of Investec Securities in London, warned against the Somalis getting too carried away with the oil discoveries.
"Somalia obviously has oil potential because it's very close to some of the big east Africa finds and people are looking for more. It's a very poor country so it's going to help them, but in the global oil industry it's nowhere.
"I'd be flabbergasted if the Puntland fields were worth the time of the big players such as BP or Shell. It will be more private investors."
So the real corporate goal may well be not what is due to arrive on the surface next month but what is known to be under the Indian Ocean off Somalia's coast – where sovereignty is unclear.
Drilling in Puntland by the Canadian firm Africa Oil began last month and transitional government officials, in London for David Cameron's conference, said pipelines to the country's ports had been laid.
Civil war, insecurity and lack of infrastructure ensured that the region became a no-go for western companies from the early 1990s when the government collapsed, leaving local warlords and militias to claw out territories.
For Americans, Somalia still holds the painful memory of the "Black Hawk Down" incident of 1993 when 18 members of a US helicopter assault force and an estimated 700 Somalis were killed in a battle in Mogadishu. A senior Somali delegate in London last week said creating the conditions for stability was essential. "If citizens of Britain are kidnapped, then that will interfere with progress."
Dahabo Isse, from Mogadishu, and a prominent member of London's Somali community, is among those concerned at the prospect of western multinationals profiting from their resources. "If resources go to the people, then fine, but if they
Members of the Islamist group al-Shabaab distribute aid near Mogadishu. Photograph: Feisal Omar/Reuters
They expect the oil to flow within weeks. Coming from two miles underground, the crude should reach the arid plains of Puntland in the north-east corner of Somalia by April.
Around the same time, Somali diplomats say an offensive against al-Shabaab militia in the south of the country, backed by US drone strikes, should have damaged the Islamist group's "effective fighting capability".
Meanwhile, the UN plans to impose trade sanctions on the illicit international trade in charcoal, Somalia's "black gold" which not only funds al-Shabaab but also destroys the country's forests and led in part to last year's widespread famine.
The promise of stability coupled with the apparent discovery of oil reserves could help to rebuild this poverty-stricken country. But experts warn the west must not pillage the newly found resources of Somalia, or risk massively escalating the conflicts already in the region. Kenyan, Ethiopian and Ugandan soldiers are in Somalia fighting al-Shabaab and each country has vested interests in Somalia's future. Already a new militia, led by the unlikely-sounding Sheik Atom, has formed around Puntland's oilfields.
The Somali prime minister, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, speaking to the Observer after meeting Hillary Clinton and David Cameron at the London Somalia Conference last week, said that in the future a share of natural resources would be offered in return for help with reconstruction. "There's room for everybody when this country gets back on its feet and is ready for investment," he said. "Although now is not the time.
"What we need is capital from countries like the UK to invest. If the private sector can come in and do the work, then we welcome them."
But many observers are uneasy about foreign interference in a country still emerging from 21 years of civil war and facing political transition. The mandate for Somalia's transitional government runs out in August.
Chatham House analyst Adjoa Anyimadu said: "There's already a lot of scepticism from parts of the Somalian community about the reasons for the sudden focus on Somalia and the reasons behind the UK's interest.
"The potential for things to go wrong is high, for the population to feel they are being undermined or invaded by foreigners. Al-Shabaab has little credence with many Somalians but a foreign intervention could create a common enemy."
While a new wealth could bring back the diaspora, she said, they too would need to be wary about riding roughshod over respected clan structures. "There are big gulfs between the experiences of those educated abroad and those living in Somalia. Everyone has a duty to make sure the population really does get a say in establishing governance so that it is seen as legitimate. The pressing issue remains food and security."
Mark Bradbury, director of the Rift Valley Institute and author of several reports on Somalia, said oil was "a big game changer". He added: "The international community has been very quiet on the whole exploitation of minerals and hydrocarbons. There is clearly potential for dispute between the relatively stable Puntland and the rest of the country. The positive end would be a federal government put in place with international support; the negative, a Somalia being divided up by international military forces."
Markets expert Stuart Joyner, of Investec Securities in London, warned against the Somalis getting too carried away with the oil discoveries.
"Somalia obviously has oil potential because it's very close to some of the big east Africa finds and people are looking for more. It's a very poor country so it's going to help them, but in the global oil industry it's nowhere.
"I'd be flabbergasted if the Puntland fields were worth the time of the big players such as BP or Shell. It will be more private investors."
So the real corporate goal may well be not what is due to arrive on the surface next month but what is known to be under the Indian Ocean off Somalia's coast – where sovereignty is unclear.
Drilling in Puntland by the Canadian firm Africa Oil began last month and transitional government officials, in London for David Cameron's conference, said pipelines to the country's ports had been laid.
Civil war, insecurity and lack of infrastructure ensured that the region became a no-go for western companies from the early 1990s when the government collapsed, leaving local warlords and militias to claw out territories.
For Americans, Somalia still holds the painful memory of the "Black Hawk Down" incident of 1993 when 18 members of a US helicopter assault force and an estimated 700 Somalis were killed in a battle in Mogadishu. A senior Somali delegate in London last week said creating the conditions for stability was essential. "If citizens of Britain are kidnapped, then that will interfere with progress."
Dahabo Isse, from Mogadishu, and a prominent member of London's Somali community, is among those concerned at the prospect of western multinationals profiting from their resources. "If resources go to the people, then fine, but if they
Seven arrested on suspicion of exporting qat to fund terrorism
The Guardian, Sandra Laville, crime correspondent
http://www.guardian.co.uk/,
Tuesday 1 May 2012 11.17 BST Seven people have been arrested in three cities on suspicion of raising money for terrorism through illegal exports of the substance qat.
The suspects, who include a 45-year-old woman, were arrested as part of an operation run with the US government's department of homeland security and the UK Border Agency, police said.
They are suspected of exporting qat – which is legal in the UK – to the US and Canada, where it is illegal, to fund a terrorist group overseas.
Qat is used predominantly by members of the Somalian community in the UK. The arrests appear to be linked to the alleged funding of al-Shabaab – the al-Qaida-linked terrorist group in Somalia.
The seven are being questioned on suspicion of funding of a terrorist organisation, and laundering the proceeds of crime for that purpose, contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000.
The arrests come as police and security services are on high alert in the runup to the Olympics and as a major military exercise takes place across the capital in preparation for the Games.
The suspects were arrested at four residential addresses in London, Cardiff and Coventry at approximately 6am on Tuesday, Scotland Yard said.
They are a 45-year-old woman and a 49-year-old man, who were both arrested in Croydon, south London, two men aged 47 and 30 who were arrested in Brent, north London, two men aged 45 and 42 arrested in Coventry and a 40-year-old man arrested in Cardiff.
A spokesman for the Metropolitan police said: "The co-ordinated operation is led by the Met's counter-terrorism command, with assistance from the counter-terrorism network, the UK Border Agency and local forces.
"The arrests were a part of a pre-planned, intelligence-led operation, into suspected fundraising for terrorism overseas.
"The operation, which also involves homeland security investigations in America, is investigating a network suspected of illegally exporting the stimulant qat, which is legal in the UK, to the USA and Canada where it is a controlled substance."
Searches of the homes were under way, the police said, and searches of eight further properties – residential addresses in London, Worthing and Coventry and a business premises in Coventry – were also taking place, the police said.
Several Britons are known to have travelled to Somalia for training with al-Shabaab. In a separate ongoing investigation, British police are liaising with the authorities in Kenya in the hunt for two Britons who are allegedly involved in the organisation, including the widow of the 7 July suicide bomber Germaine Lindsay.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/,
Tuesday 1 May 2012 11.17 BST Seven people have been arrested in three cities on suspicion of raising money for terrorism through illegal exports of the substance qat.
The suspects, who include a 45-year-old woman, were arrested as part of an operation run with the US government's department of homeland security and the UK Border Agency, police said.
They are suspected of exporting qat – which is legal in the UK – to the US and Canada, where it is illegal, to fund a terrorist group overseas.
Qat is used predominantly by members of the Somalian community in the UK. The arrests appear to be linked to the alleged funding of al-Shabaab – the al-Qaida-linked terrorist group in Somalia.
The seven are being questioned on suspicion of funding of a terrorist organisation, and laundering the proceeds of crime for that purpose, contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000.
The arrests come as police and security services are on high alert in the runup to the Olympics and as a major military exercise takes place across the capital in preparation for the Games.
The suspects were arrested at four residential addresses in London, Cardiff and Coventry at approximately 6am on Tuesday, Scotland Yard said.
They are a 45-year-old woman and a 49-year-old man, who were both arrested in Croydon, south London, two men aged 47 and 30 who were arrested in Brent, north London, two men aged 45 and 42 arrested in Coventry and a 40-year-old man arrested in Cardiff.
A spokesman for the Metropolitan police said: "The co-ordinated operation is led by the Met's counter-terrorism command, with assistance from the counter-terrorism network, the UK Border Agency and local forces.
"The arrests were a part of a pre-planned, intelligence-led operation, into suspected fundraising for terrorism overseas.
"The operation, which also involves homeland security investigations in America, is investigating a network suspected of illegally exporting the stimulant qat, which is legal in the UK, to the USA and Canada where it is a controlled substance."
Searches of the homes were under way, the police said, and searches of eight further properties – residential addresses in London, Worthing and Coventry and a business premises in Coventry – were also taking place, the police said.
Several Britons are known to have travelled to Somalia for training with al-Shabaab. In a separate ongoing investigation, British police are liaising with the authorities in Kenya in the hunt for two Britons who are allegedly involved in the organisation, including the widow of the 7 July suicide bomber Germaine Lindsay.
Saturday, 22 January 2011
And continues in 2011.....
Knife crime and muggings rise but police hail stop-and-search
Justin Davenport, Crime Editor - 18 Jan 2011
Knife crime in London rose last year as police tackled stabbings and gangland youth violence, figures revealed today.
The number of knife offences rose by eight per cent, although the total being injured in stabbings fell. Police say the increase may be partly due to a rise in stop-and-search operations against gangs, which caught more people carrying knives.
There was also an increase in muggings, where knives were used to threaten victims. The figures for last year show there were rises in robbery, rapes and serious youth violence. But, at the same time, there were falls in burglary, gun crime and violent offences.
Muggings rose by seven per cent last year to a total of 35,012 - or around 96 robberies a day. There were 647 more cases of rape reported. This follows a shake-up in how the Met tackles sex crimes. Worryingly, cases of serious youth violence rose by 3.1 per cent while there was also an increase in the number of teenage murders.
Police said their efforts to tackle knife crime through initiatives such as Operation Blunt 2 were paying off.
Commander Steve Rodhouse, who is leading the battle against gang violence, said: "Our efforts in proactive operations and stop and searches of young people will mean we are uncovering offences and recording them and that, in part, contributes to some of these rises we see today.
"I would make the point that the number of people who have been injured with a knife has fallen and that is a significant figure. We have taken many, many knives off the street."
The Met statistics show the total number of offences fell last year to 824,601 - more than 8,000 fewer reported crimes than the previous year. There were 3,392 fewer residential burglaries in London and the Met said the number had dropped by 18 per cent in the last decade.
Gun crime was down by 10.4 per cent compared with 2009, or 352 fewer offences. The number of murders also fell to 125, the lowest total since 1978, and seven fewer than in 2009.
There were also falls in violent offences, down five per cent, road deaths, 58 fewer than 2009, homophobic crime, down five per cent, and domestic offences, down five per cent.Police said that vehicle crimes had risen slightly last year against a background of 10 years of falling crime.
Mayor Boris Johnson said: "London now boasts the lowest murder rate since 1978 and our targeted policing operations have led to a huge reduction in gun crime and burglary.
"However, the challenge of tackling violent youth crime remains, and whilst injuries by knives have fallen, there is no room for complacency. Operation Blunt 2 has taken 10,000 knives off our streets."
Addict' officers trapped drug gang
A drugs gang led by a convicted robber which made £100,000 a month was smashed after police mounted a “Wire-style” investigation involving covert surveillance and officers posing as addicts.
The Stick 'Em Up Kids, which controlled the flow of cocaine and heroin in Wandsworth, was run by Musa Mohammed, on licence after being released from a four-year jail term. Mohammed, who goes by the street name Mikey, has 10 previous convictions for charges including armed robbery and drugs offences, and was only released in February last year — two months before the investigation started. His gang is also suspected in connection with a murder of a teenager in 2006.
In a four-month period, five undercover officers made 32 deals. They became so trusted that dealers would contact them to let them know “we've got good stuff”, Kingston crown court heard. When police arrested the gang in August and seized their phones they found that more than 25,000 calls regarding drugs had been made during the time they were under surveillance.
The gang paid £40 a day to runners as young as 15 for their services. A total of 13 youths pleaded guilty to dealing drugs between May and August last year.
Mohammed, 23, was due to be sentenced for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs today.
His gang members were given sentences ranging from five years to 24 months.
It began in 2008......
Court seizes spoils of drug dealer gang chief
Justin Davenport and Ken Hyder
29 May 2008
A 'General' in a London street gang has been stripped of his personal possessions by a court - including a collection of nearly 60 baseball caps and trainers.
Musa Mohammed, 20, was also ordered to hand over a plasma TV and £1,500 bike. His two pitbull terriers were seized and destroyed.
The move is part of a campaign against gang members using laws aimed at confiscating the proceeds of organised crime networks.
Mohammed, a key member of Wandsworth-based gang SUK - Stick Up Kids - was ordered to hand over his possessions after pleading guilty to supplying class-A drugs. Police successfully argued that the drug dealer, who was unemployed and not claiming benefits, had paid for items with profits from drug dealing.
The list of items he was forced to hand over included: 29 pairs of £110 trainers, 29 baseball caps, a laptop computer, a 42in plasma TV, an Xbox, a PlayStation, designer clothes and two bicycles.
Pc Laura Milne, who led the investigation into Mohammed, said police found £21,000 worth of drugs and £7,000 in cash after searching his flat. "The one thing he was really upset about was the loss of his trainers. He told us we could keep the drugs and the money but he wanted his trainers and his property back," she said.
Mohammed, from Southfields, was arrested in January as he drove to Surrey to deliver drugs. He had wraps of heroin and crack cocaine hidden down his trousers. Police described him as a "general" in SUK, which has about 100 members and has been associated with tit-for-tat shootings with rival groups.
Wandsworth detectives began targeting the gang after the murder of 16-year-old Eugene Attram in Mitcham two years ago. So far around 50 members have been arrested and others "disrupted".
Detective Superintendent Guy Ferguson said: "They think they can make money quickly - up to £1,000 a day dealing drugs. But systematically, using confiscation powers, we're taking away their cash and the things they spend it on."
Mohammed, a Somali illegal immigrant, was today beginning a four-year sentence after appearing at Kingston crown court. He tried to challenge the application to seize his property but failed.
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Why did no one tell me about this story?
There is a distinct possiblity that nowhere is safe!!
Somaliland sentences German to four years for porn
13 January 2011 Last updated at 18:17
A German man has been jailed for four years for making pornographic films in the breakaway Somaliland republic.
A judge said Gunter Bischoss, 72, was guilty of unIslamic behaviour and also fined him $10,000 (£6,300).
"The evidence in this case has been exaggerated and I will appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court," AFP news agency quoted Mr Bischoss as saying.
A Somali woman who appeared in some of the home videos was also given a one-year jail term and a $900 fine.
'Never allowed back'
The BBC's Ahmed Said Egeh in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, says the trial was held outside the city in the prison of Mandhera for security reasons.
"After serving his prison term, he will be deported from Somaliland and never allowed back again," the judge said.
Somaliland has been relatively stable since it declared independence from Somalia in 1991 after the overthrown of Somali President Siad Barre.
Although the region is not recognised internationally, it has its own working political system, government institutions, currency, police force and judiciary.
Much of the rest of Somalia, which has suffered two decades of fighting and clan warfare, is now controlled by Islamist groups which have imposed strict Sharia law in recent years.
Somaliland sentences German to four years for porn
13 January 2011 Last updated at 18:17
A German man has been jailed for four years for making pornographic films in the breakaway Somaliland republic.
A judge said Gunter Bischoss, 72, was guilty of unIslamic behaviour and also fined him $10,000 (£6,300).
"The evidence in this case has been exaggerated and I will appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court," AFP news agency quoted Mr Bischoss as saying.
A Somali woman who appeared in some of the home videos was also given a one-year jail term and a $900 fine.
'Never allowed back'
The BBC's Ahmed Said Egeh in the Somaliland capital, Hargeisa, says the trial was held outside the city in the prison of Mandhera for security reasons.
"After serving his prison term, he will be deported from Somaliland and never allowed back again," the judge said.
Somaliland has been relatively stable since it declared independence from Somalia in 1991 after the overthrown of Somali President Siad Barre.
Although the region is not recognised internationally, it has its own working political system, government institutions, currency, police force and judiciary.
Much of the rest of Somalia, which has suffered two decades of fighting and clan warfare, is now controlled by Islamist groups which have imposed strict Sharia law in recent years.
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
More fraud? Really??!!
By Michael Seamark and Tamara Cohen
Last updated at 1:54 AM on 11th January 2011
Swindler is handed four-and-a-half year jail term for 'professionally planned' benefit scam
Her harrowing account of being brutally gang-raped by armed militiamen in Somalia won Amina Muse refuge in Britain.
The mother-of-six, whose asylum application graphically described her brothers being shot dead in front of her, was later given UK citizenship because of the ‘appalling atrocities’.
But the terrifying ordeal, like her identity, was completely bogus – it was merely a front for an elaborate benefit fraud that cost taxpayers more than £400,000.
On the day that Muse claimed that armed men stormed her family home in East Africa she was giving birth in Sweden.
The 38-year-old, who investigators suspect might actually be Kenyan, conned that country out of £50,000.
She spent the money on luxury living, flying between Stockholm and London to perpetuate her scam.
In Britain, she applied for every welfare benefit possible under her false name and claimed further UK handouts using the bogus identity she had adopted to secure a Swedish passport.
Yesterday she was jailed for four and a half years after a jury convicted her of a string of fraud charges.
The judge said the sentence would have been harsher but for consideration of the welfare of Muse’s children, the ‘real victims in this case’.
The court was told she cannot be deported because she is a British citizen. Last night there were demands that the Home Office, which is reviewing her status, remove her from this country.
Tory MP Philip Davies said: ‘This kind of scam brings the whole asylum system into complete disrepute.
‘It’s no wonder there is no confidence in the authorities to properly control our borders and stop our hospitality being abused.
‘The fact that this woman’s future status in this country is in any doubt whatsoever is unbelievable.
There can’t be one person in this country who doesn’t want her kicked out of the country and never allowed back.’
Harrow Crown Court heard that Muse had sought refuge in Britain after eight years of ‘comfortable’ living in Sweden.
On her 2003 asylum application, she claimed militiamen targeted her family home in December 1998 because she was a member of a minority group.
‘They opened fire at us and then broke into our house by force,’ she said. ‘They shot dead my
Besides the murder of her two brothers, she said her niece had been raped, tortured and beaten and that she herself had been gang-raped while three months’ pregnant, leading to a miscarriage.
Between June 2004 and May 2010, Muse, from Neasden, North-West London, claimed £261,358.14 in income support, disability living allowance for one of her children and carer’s allowance for herself.
The total included child benefit, child tax credits and housing benefit from various councils.
She received £112,985.51 from the borough of Camden and lived in a four-bedroom property there.
Judge Stephen Holt, sentencing Muse, told her: ‘One of the most serious aspects of this case is your cynical, dishonest manipulation of the whole system of asylum.’
Condemning her deceit, he said: ‘It was fraud from the outset. It was professionally planned. Your actions harm the people who really do need and deserve asylum.
‘In total you took somewhere in the region of £261,358.14 from the British taxpayer and have shown absolutely no remorse.’
Investigating the case cost taxpayers a further £150,000.
Muse had denied obtaining money transfers by deception, fraud by false representation, 12 counts of making false representations, four counts of receiving overpayments of benefits and five counts of fraud.
Migrationwatch chairman Sir Andrew Green said: ‘It is absolutely essential in a case like this that her citizenship be revoked and she should be removed.
‘All scams of this kind are deeply offensive to the public and undermine support for genuine refugees. It seems to have been a deeply cynical scam from the start.
TIMELINE:
1995: Arrives in Sweden with three children and given passport in her false name, Ayan Abdulle. Has two more children in Sweden and one in Denmark.
2003: using another bogus name, Amina Muse, she applies for asylum in Britain. Original claim rejected.
2004: Decision overturned on appeal and given indefinite leave to remain in UK. She starts claiming £261358 in benefits.
2009: Granted British citizenship
Sunday, 2 January 2011
What happened next? The destitute asylum seeker
At the Red Cross Centre in Birmingham, asylum seekers are given £10 food vouchers. Photograph: Fabio De Paola
Amelia Gentleman The Guardian, Monday 27 December 2010
In June, Abdi was living rough on a weekly £10 food voucher. Has his life improved since then?
Abdi appears to have good news when I call him. Three weeks ago, just as the temperatures began to drop below freezing, a friend said he could sleep on the floor of his room for a while. After a year on the streets of Birmingham, this marked a significant turn for the better. However, as he talks, it becomes clear that life has not improved much.
Originally from Somalia, Abdi (who prefers not to give his real name), 34, has been in the UK for two years. For the first year, while his application for asylum was being processed, he received state support, but a year ago the application was rejected. Since then he has been surviving without any money from the state, without anywhere to live, not permitted to work. Homelessness hostels are not allowed to offer him a bed, because he is classified as an illegal migrant.
"Before I was living outside. Now I am living inside, but the difference is very, very minor," he says, laughing and coughing down the telephone. He has been unwell since the cold weather began. The flat where his friend sleeps has no heating, no proper plumbing and is extremely dirty, says Abdi. "When I was outside, I'd never see rats. Inside the flat, the rats jump on me."
When I met Abdi in the summer, he was rotating the places he slept, according to the weather conditions, anxious to avoid arousing suspicion by sleeping in the same place too often. Sometimes he would hide in a toilet cubicle in a Birmingham mosque, until the building was locked up for the night, and he could sleep undisturbed for a few hours; sometimes he slept in an alleyway, accessible only by climbing over spiked park railings; and sometimes on a cardboard box at the top of a concrete council block staircase.
A few weeks ago, when he was sleeping in the stairway, he thinks a rat or possibly a mouse bit him, giving him an infection in his leg which has made it painful to walk. His friend, a fellow asylum seeker, took pity on him and is letting him sleep on his floor for the moment, until he gets better, but the friend's tenancy comes to an end in January, so both men will shortly be forced to find somewhere new. Where will he go? "This is a very difficult question," he says.
The only income he gets is a weekly £10 Morrisons voucher from the Red Cross. Officially, he is allowed to remain while he prepares to appeal against the Home Office decision to reject his asylum claim, but he is not eligible for any help. He prefers living in destitution here to the alternative, proposed by the Home Office, of returning to Somalia. "If you understand that it is a choice between living here in this way and going back to be slaughtered, then you understand that there is no choice," he says.
He is gathering documents to support his appeal but the process is exceptionally slow, and hampered by the fact that getting any free legal support is increasingly difficult, and by practical obstacles such as not having enough money to spend time in an internet cafe researching his case. He remains hopeful that his appeal will eventually be approved (last year 28% of people who appealed against their refusal were granted leave to remain), but after a year of sleeping on the street, his optimistic outlook has been badly bruised. "It's very complicated. It is so sad," he says.
Joseph Nibizi, manager at the Red Cross destitution clinic where the vouchers are distributed every week, says he is angry that Abdi remains on the streets. He has seen the number of destitute asylum seekers queuing up for emergency help at the centre rise from 860 in January to 1,400 in July. "These people are not here because they are attracted by the [welfare] system in this country. They are here because they have run away from persecution. You can't starve them out of the country, you can't expect them to return home because they are hungry. They won't go," he says. He believes the government should support asylum seekers while they go through the process of appealing a decision. "These are human beings. They should be given their basic needs."
Saturday, 1 January 2011
Nine Birmingham charity workers in court on fraud and money laundering charges
Dec 4 2010 by Catherine Lillington, Birmingham Mail
SEVEN men and two female former workers from a Birmingham charity have appeared before city magistrates charged with conspiracy to defraud and launder money.
Mohammed Hassan Abdi Arwo, aged 52, and Abdi Wahab Said, aged 34, both of Waldrons Moor, Kings Heath, Hamud Hirad Yassin, aged 58, of Wembley, London, Sahra Abdillahi Absia, aged 60, of Stratford Road, Sparkbrook, Asha Ali Mohammed, aged 47, and Abdillahi Musa Abdi, aged 53, both of Greenway Street, Bordesley Green, Abdirahman Arwo, aged 37, of Stratford Road, Sparkhill, Mustafe Hassan Arwo, aged 41, of Gaddesby Road, Small Heath and Kaise Ismail, aged 36, of Stoney Road, in Perry Barr, all worked for the Aston Brook Housing Association.
The charity provides help for the Somali refugee community.
All nine ex-employees were granted conditional bail and told to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on February 25.
SEVEN men and two female former workers from a Birmingham charity have appeared before city magistrates charged with conspiracy to defraud and launder money.
Mohammed Hassan Abdi Arwo, aged 52, and Abdi Wahab Said, aged 34, both of Waldrons Moor, Kings Heath, Hamud Hirad Yassin, aged 58, of Wembley, London, Sahra Abdillahi Absia, aged 60, of Stratford Road, Sparkbrook, Asha Ali Mohammed, aged 47, and Abdillahi Musa Abdi, aged 53, both of Greenway Street, Bordesley Green, Abdirahman Arwo, aged 37, of Stratford Road, Sparkhill, Mustafe Hassan Arwo, aged 41, of Gaddesby Road, Small Heath and Kaise Ismail, aged 36, of Stoney Road, in Perry Barr, all worked for the Aston Brook Housing Association.
The charity provides help for the Somali refugee community.
All nine ex-employees were granted conditional bail and told to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on February 25.
Asylum seeker housing charity has contracts terminated
May 22 2008
By Shahid Naqvi
A Birmingham charity which is the biggest in the country for providing housing to asylum seekers is facing closure after losing Government contracts worth £11 million in the wake of a fraud inquiry.
Astonbrook Housing Association based on Moseley Road, Highgate, is being investigated by police following allegations of misuse of public funds.
The Charity Commission - a watchdog that regulates UK charities - put the association under the interim management of Birmingham accountants Baker Tilly last year.
On Wednesday, 15 people were dismissed by the accountancy firm which also terminated Astonbrook’s lucrative five-year contract with the Home Office this week, effectively cutting off its income.
Last night the Astonbrook - most of whose 150 staff are Somalian - hit back claiming it had been victimised by the Charity Commission because it was a black-run charity.
It also accused Baker Tilly of siphoning off £1 million in fees while overseeing its destruction and stressed no charges had been brought despite a year-long investigation.
Saeed Omar, director of Astonbrook, said: "It is the biggest charity to be run by black and ethnic minorities. We have been discriminated against. We feel the Charity Commission took our charity and gave it to someone who sucked out our money.
"They sucked out our money without doing anything. Baker Tilly ran the company for a year. Their duty was to look after the charity and preserve it until new trustees were appointed.
"They have destroyed the charity and nobody will speak about the £1 million they have taken. We feel Baker Tilly handed back the contract to stop anyone investigating this."
Astonbrook - which was set up by a group of former Somali asylum seekers in 2002 - gained the biggest Government contract to provide homes for asylum seekers two years ago.
Since then it has received almost £20 million in public money providing accommodation for refugees in the Midlands, South West, Wales and Yorkshire.
But the charity - which also has an office in Erdington - was raided by police last July following concerns raised by Birmingham City Council and the Home Office. Seven managers were arrested and released on bail.
A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said: "This is a long and complex investigation and any charges will be communicated in the usual manner."
Baker Tilly last night refuted the criticisms made by Mr Omar.
"We categorically reject any suggestion undermining our undertaking as interim managers of Astonbrook which has been a challenging and complex project involving an ongoing fraud investigation which remains current.
"The fees and costs involved, which have been approved by our appointers the Charity Commission, have not in any way impacted upon services to the beneficiaries of the charity who remain our priority."
The UK Border Agency - a Home Office department responsible for immigration control - said it made "no apologies for demanding that tax payers get value for their money and asylum seekers receive an adequate service".
The Charity Commission said it would release full details about the case when the inquiry reached its conclusion
Read More http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2008/05/22/asylum-seeker-housing-charity-has-contracts-terminated-65233-20945583/#ixzz19o8kI6nh
By Shahid Naqvi
A Birmingham charity which is the biggest in the country for providing housing to asylum seekers is facing closure after losing Government contracts worth £11 million in the wake of a fraud inquiry.
Astonbrook Housing Association based on Moseley Road, Highgate, is being investigated by police following allegations of misuse of public funds.
The Charity Commission - a watchdog that regulates UK charities - put the association under the interim management of Birmingham accountants Baker Tilly last year.
On Wednesday, 15 people were dismissed by the accountancy firm which also terminated Astonbrook’s lucrative five-year contract with the Home Office this week, effectively cutting off its income.
Last night the Astonbrook - most of whose 150 staff are Somalian - hit back claiming it had been victimised by the Charity Commission because it was a black-run charity.
It also accused Baker Tilly of siphoning off £1 million in fees while overseeing its destruction and stressed no charges had been brought despite a year-long investigation.
Saeed Omar, director of Astonbrook, said: "It is the biggest charity to be run by black and ethnic minorities. We have been discriminated against. We feel the Charity Commission took our charity and gave it to someone who sucked out our money.
"They sucked out our money without doing anything. Baker Tilly ran the company for a year. Their duty was to look after the charity and preserve it until new trustees were appointed.
"They have destroyed the charity and nobody will speak about the £1 million they have taken. We feel Baker Tilly handed back the contract to stop anyone investigating this."
Astonbrook - which was set up by a group of former Somali asylum seekers in 2002 - gained the biggest Government contract to provide homes for asylum seekers two years ago.
Since then it has received almost £20 million in public money providing accommodation for refugees in the Midlands, South West, Wales and Yorkshire.
But the charity - which also has an office in Erdington - was raided by police last July following concerns raised by Birmingham City Council and the Home Office. Seven managers were arrested and released on bail.
A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said: "This is a long and complex investigation and any charges will be communicated in the usual manner."
Baker Tilly last night refuted the criticisms made by Mr Omar.
"We categorically reject any suggestion undermining our undertaking as interim managers of Astonbrook which has been a challenging and complex project involving an ongoing fraud investigation which remains current.
"The fees and costs involved, which have been approved by our appointers the Charity Commission, have not in any way impacted upon services to the beneficiaries of the charity who remain our priority."
The UK Border Agency - a Home Office department responsible for immigration control - said it made "no apologies for demanding that tax payers get value for their money and asylum seekers receive an adequate service".
The Charity Commission said it would release full details about the case when the inquiry reached its conclusion
Read More http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2008/05/22/asylum-seeker-housing-charity-has-contracts-terminated-65233-20945583/#ixzz19o8kI6nh
Saturday, 25 December 2010
SHARAXII LATUMEY SHEEKAA KA DAMBEYSEY...
This blog has covered in detail how the Somali community in the Diaspora has struggled to engage with matters of complexity away from the influences of their homeland.
Considering how the improvisational theatre productions of the 1960s/70s/80s covered these matters at length, it is all the more worrying that the Somali community appears to have stagnated. There is a tragic inability to [a] logically analyse issues in detail and [b] find a consistent solution to a problem. This is confounded by the inability of Somalis in general to tackle these issues in their mother tounge.
The work of Xasan Ganey in the theatre production Waa Maadays Adduunyadu Dadkuna Wey Matelayaan is based on the popular poem of the same name; you can see excerpts of this work here, here and here. The live performances of the play took place in 1984, the topics discussed and the language used still resonates today. People quote sections of the work as examples of how the Somali language has appeared to have deterirorated over the last twenty five years.
The comparison between this work and the kind of stuff that passes for analysis these days is stark. You could write a PHd. thesis about how the standards have dropped when you consider the premise behind the Dhig ama Dhaqo film [click here for the full effect]. The drop in standards is also evident when you look at talk shows [click here to listen to a mess] and articles [click here for a poorly written piece] on topics like divorce.
The title of this blog post has a double meaning; for matters like divorce Somalis should consider the detailed analysis that has been illustrated in the culture by the society's intellectuals. For example, on divorce why not suggest that SHARAXII LATUMEY SHEEKAA KA DAMBEYSEY? There is a stunning lack of appreciation within the community, and possibly wider society, of the difference between the sacred and profane. These two spheres of our lives should be mutually exclusive; for example one should marry according to the traditions of their culture and the rituals of their religion. One should not marry on the basis of how someone looks, or how much money can be made or to cement a relationship between two people that has struggled along for a questionable period of time. Now it is one thing to understand, appreciate and act on the basis of one's understanding of their culture, religion and way of life. It is another to act on the kinds of whims and desires that are encouraged by a particular group who dress these matters up as being socially acceptable.
What is socially acceptable for Somalis in the UK and possible the Diaspora at large? Eeking out an existence on state benefits because having money is fundamental to our way of life. What is unacceptable? Well your child should go out and live in a hostel so that he/she can eventually be on the register for a home from the borough council. Should your child not want this and should he/she wish to entertain a life outside of benefit dependency than this is unacceptable. In this envrionment, a child is taught that this kind of wrong [lying and cheating to maintain the mirage of benefit dependency]to maintain a standard of living is right. Problem is that when you start telling your children lying and cheating is acceptable, then they will stray into other areas where this could be affirmed. The high levels of criminality within the Somali community are down to the lack of a coherent message being communicated by parents to their children as to what is acceptable and what is unacceptable in the public sphere of life.
It is frankly pathetic that prominent intellectuals in the secular liberal capitalist nations of the developed world decry the influeces of the commodification of the human soul and Somalis are still clinging onto the benefits of the system. This is not new though, you see Xasan Ganey, Axmed Sulimaan Bide, Sangub et al identified the flaws in the neo-liberal order over 25 years ago.
Considering how the improvisational theatre productions of the 1960s/70s/80s covered these matters at length, it is all the more worrying that the Somali community appears to have stagnated. There is a tragic inability to [a] logically analyse issues in detail and [b] find a consistent solution to a problem. This is confounded by the inability of Somalis in general to tackle these issues in their mother tounge.
The work of Xasan Ganey in the theatre production Waa Maadays Adduunyadu Dadkuna Wey Matelayaan is based on the popular poem of the same name; you can see excerpts of this work here, here and here. The live performances of the play took place in 1984, the topics discussed and the language used still resonates today. People quote sections of the work as examples of how the Somali language has appeared to have deterirorated over the last twenty five years.
The comparison between this work and the kind of stuff that passes for analysis these days is stark. You could write a PHd. thesis about how the standards have dropped when you consider the premise behind the Dhig ama Dhaqo film [click here for the full effect]. The drop in standards is also evident when you look at talk shows [click here to listen to a mess] and articles [click here for a poorly written piece] on topics like divorce.
The title of this blog post has a double meaning; for matters like divorce Somalis should consider the detailed analysis that has been illustrated in the culture by the society's intellectuals. For example, on divorce why not suggest that SHARAXII LATUMEY SHEEKAA KA DAMBEYSEY? There is a stunning lack of appreciation within the community, and possibly wider society, of the difference between the sacred and profane. These two spheres of our lives should be mutually exclusive; for example one should marry according to the traditions of their culture and the rituals of their religion. One should not marry on the basis of how someone looks, or how much money can be made or to cement a relationship between two people that has struggled along for a questionable period of time. Now it is one thing to understand, appreciate and act on the basis of one's understanding of their culture, religion and way of life. It is another to act on the kinds of whims and desires that are encouraged by a particular group who dress these matters up as being socially acceptable.
What is socially acceptable for Somalis in the UK and possible the Diaspora at large? Eeking out an existence on state benefits because having money is fundamental to our way of life. What is unacceptable? Well your child should go out and live in a hostel so that he/she can eventually be on the register for a home from the borough council. Should your child not want this and should he/she wish to entertain a life outside of benefit dependency than this is unacceptable. In this envrionment, a child is taught that this kind of wrong [lying and cheating to maintain the mirage of benefit dependency]to maintain a standard of living is right. Problem is that when you start telling your children lying and cheating is acceptable, then they will stray into other areas where this could be affirmed. The high levels of criminality within the Somali community are down to the lack of a coherent message being communicated by parents to their children as to what is acceptable and what is unacceptable in the public sphere of life.
It is frankly pathetic that prominent intellectuals in the secular liberal capitalist nations of the developed world decry the influeces of the commodification of the human soul and Somalis are still clinging onto the benefits of the system. This is not new though, you see Xasan Ganey, Axmed Sulimaan Bide, Sangub et al identified the flaws in the neo-liberal order over 25 years ago.
Police arrest suspected Somali terrorists in Rotterdam
This is believed to be linked to an attempt to behead the controversial political figure Geert Wilders.
AFP - 25/12/2010
Twelve Somalis suspected of terrorist activities have been arrested in Rotterdam, Dutch officials said Saturday. The arrests were made after a tip-off by Dutch intelligence that the Somalis could commit attacks "in the near future". By News Wires (text) AFP - Twelve Somalis suspected of involvement in terrorist activities have been arrested in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands prosecution service said on Saturday.
A statement said the arrests were made late Friday following a tip-off by Dutch intelligence "that a number of Somalis wanted to commit a terrorist attack in the Netherlands in the near future".
The arrested Somalis were aged between 19 and 48, the statement said. Six lived in Rotterdam, five had no known address and one was a Danish resident.
A shop and four houses were searched in Rotterdam and two motel rooms in the southern town of Gilze-Rijen, but no weapons or explosives were found, prosecutors said.
The men "are being questioned," prosecution spokesman Wim de Bruin told AFP.
"They will be brought before a judge within three days to decide whether or not to keep them in custody."
De Bruin said more arrests were not on the cards "for now".
Dutch news agency ANP quoted the National Coordinator for Counter-Terrorism as saying the arrests did not warrant changing the country's terror threat level from "limited".
AFP - 25/12/2010
Twelve Somalis suspected of terrorist activities have been arrested in Rotterdam, Dutch officials said Saturday. The arrests were made after a tip-off by Dutch intelligence that the Somalis could commit attacks "in the near future". By News Wires (text) AFP - Twelve Somalis suspected of involvement in terrorist activities have been arrested in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands prosecution service said on Saturday.
A statement said the arrests were made late Friday following a tip-off by Dutch intelligence "that a number of Somalis wanted to commit a terrorist attack in the Netherlands in the near future".
The arrested Somalis were aged between 19 and 48, the statement said. Six lived in Rotterdam, five had no known address and one was a Danish resident.
A shop and four houses were searched in Rotterdam and two motel rooms in the southern town of Gilze-Rijen, but no weapons or explosives were found, prosecutors said.
The men "are being questioned," prosecution spokesman Wim de Bruin told AFP.
"They will be brought before a judge within three days to decide whether or not to keep them in custody."
De Bruin said more arrests were not on the cards "for now".
Dutch news agency ANP quoted the National Coordinator for Counter-Terrorism as saying the arrests did not warrant changing the country's terror threat level from "limited".
Monday, 13 December 2010
Who would like to get involved in a research project??
"I am looking for two research assistants with the qualifications and experience necessary to carry out life history interviews with 40 Somali women living in Tower Hamlets and, where possible, additional discussion with family members. The interviews will be taped so assistants will be responsible for transcribing the interviews and translating into English if necessary. They will also work with me in organising the material for analytical purposes. We will be working closely with the Tower Hamlets Diversity Division so they will get an insight into the inside workings of a local government bureaucracy. Pay in £25 an hour for 10 weeks starting in early Jan including some training in interviewing techniques if necesary. Report has to be submitted by end March so we are working to a tight time line."
I would be grateful if you would circulate this email through your networks. Anyone interested should contact Naila directly (nk34@soas.ac.uk).
All the best, Anna
--
Dr Anna Lindley
Lecturer
Department of Development Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
University of London
http://www.soas.ac.uk/staff/staff51769.php
Recent book:
The Early Morning Phonecall: Somali Refugees' Remittances
http://www.berghahnbooks.com/title.php?rowtag=LindleyEarly
I would be grateful if you would circulate this email through your networks. Anyone interested should contact Naila directly (nk34@soas.ac.uk).
All the best, Anna
--
Dr Anna Lindley
Lecturer
Department of Development Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
University of London
http://www.soas.ac.uk/staff/staff51769.php
Recent book:
The Early Morning Phonecall: Somali Refugees' Remittances
http://www.berghahnbooks.com/title.php?rowtag=LindleyEarly
Saturday, 11 December 2010
Children's charities hit out at plans by London Councils to cut their funding
By Joe Lepper
Children & Young People Now
2 December 2010
Children and young people's charities in London have criticised plans by London Councils to cut their annual funding by £1.3m.
London Councils' grants committee is recommending that the London Borough Grants Scheme is cut by £16.8m, bringing the total pot to £9.8m.
The committee said money contributed by London boroughs to the scheme can be more effectively spent by the councils themselves.
Among the 200 charities and voluntary groups affected by the recommendation are 21 children and young people's organisations, which are set to lose combined annual funding of £1.3m.
The London Voluntary Service Council (LVSC) and the Voluntary Sector Forum network said the cuts are disproportionate and will affect the poorest Londoners and most disadvantaged children.
The charity bodies want to see any "repatriated funds" ringfenced by councils for the charity sector.
Peter Lewis, chief executive officer of LVSC, said: "This programme serves some of the most disadvantaged Londoners. Leaders should not be retaining funds to fill potholes in their own boroughs."
London Councils’ leaders committee will vote on the recommendation when it meets on 14 December.
Grants committee chair Sir Steve Bullock said: "Members of the grants committee have recommended the continuation of a grants programme focusing on pan-London commissions within a set of agreed priorities.
"These include services, such as those to do with homelessness and domestic violence, where there is often no clear relationship with an individual borough."
He added that the committee has also recommended a "managed transition" period of three months from April next year for initiatives that do not meet its pan-London requirement.
He said: "This would allow boroughs more time to establish which services they should continue to fund and give them flexibility to decide what will work best in their own local areas."
However, Marie-Anne Diedhiou-Roy, organisational support officer at LVSC, said: "The cuts will affect the most disadvantaged children and young people in London for whom these funded services represent a real lifeline. At a time of cuts to public services, affecting youth services in particular, London Councils should be prioritising the funding for this programme because it makes economic and social sense."
Organisations that will be affected include Somali Youth Union in UK, Beatbullying and Barnardo's.
Children & Young People Now
2 December 2010
Children and young people's charities in London have criticised plans by London Councils to cut their annual funding by £1.3m.
London Councils' grants committee is recommending that the London Borough Grants Scheme is cut by £16.8m, bringing the total pot to £9.8m.
The committee said money contributed by London boroughs to the scheme can be more effectively spent by the councils themselves.
Among the 200 charities and voluntary groups affected by the recommendation are 21 children and young people's organisations, which are set to lose combined annual funding of £1.3m.
The London Voluntary Service Council (LVSC) and the Voluntary Sector Forum network said the cuts are disproportionate and will affect the poorest Londoners and most disadvantaged children.
The charity bodies want to see any "repatriated funds" ringfenced by councils for the charity sector.
Peter Lewis, chief executive officer of LVSC, said: "This programme serves some of the most disadvantaged Londoners. Leaders should not be retaining funds to fill potholes in their own boroughs."
London Councils’ leaders committee will vote on the recommendation when it meets on 14 December.
Grants committee chair Sir Steve Bullock said: "Members of the grants committee have recommended the continuation of a grants programme focusing on pan-London commissions within a set of agreed priorities.
"These include services, such as those to do with homelessness and domestic violence, where there is often no clear relationship with an individual borough."
He added that the committee has also recommended a "managed transition" period of three months from April next year for initiatives that do not meet its pan-London requirement.
He said: "This would allow boroughs more time to establish which services they should continue to fund and give them flexibility to decide what will work best in their own local areas."
However, Marie-Anne Diedhiou-Roy, organisational support officer at LVSC, said: "The cuts will affect the most disadvantaged children and young people in London for whom these funded services represent a real lifeline. At a time of cuts to public services, affecting youth services in particular, London Councils should be prioritising the funding for this programme because it makes economic and social sense."
Organisations that will be affected include Somali Youth Union in UK, Beatbullying and Barnardo's.
UCL Somali Students Society Event: 17/12/2010
An excerpt from the film is accessible below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTxF7xzOgS8
The film will be shown at the Cruciform Building, UCL. Lecture Theatre 1. beginning at 5pm and finishing at 7pm.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTxF7xzOgS8
The film will be shown at the Cruciform Building, UCL. Lecture Theatre 1. beginning at 5pm and finishing at 7pm.
This is the first time I have heard of this..
Somali Youth Helpline
Somali Youth Helpline is a voluntary organisation, established as a charity in March 2007. The organisation runs a bilingual helpline for counselling and confidential support for disaffected and vulnerable Somali youth ages 13 to 19.
It has the following services:
- Free telephone helpline - 0800 542 6855
- Office - (020) 0208 813 9155
- Email helpline - syhelpline@gmail.com
- Consultation and guidance sessions/workshops
- Referrals to appropriate organisations
- Advice on where to access services
- Opportunity for volunteer work in the community
Address: Resource Centre, Featherstone Terrace, Southall, Middlesex, UB2 5AL
For more information
Website: http://syhelpline.org.uk
Email: syhelpline@gmail.com
Helpline: 0800 542 6855
Office: (020) 8813 9155
Contact person: Zuhur Elmi
How to get there
Nearest station: Southall BR Buses H32, 105, 195, E5
For further information, click here
Undisclosed Muslim country 'paying for anti-piracy force in Somalia'
Donor nation has hired US security experts as advisors to Somali government, according to a report
Xan Rice guardian.co.uk, Thursday 2 December 2010 18.26 GMT
An undisclosed "Muslim nation" is funding a 1,000-strong, privately trained military force in northern Somalia and has hired a former CIA officer and a senior official from the Bush administration to advise the Somali government on security matters, according to a report.
The Associated Press said the "anti-piracy" force was receiving instruction in Puntland, a semi-autonomous region on the tip of Africa's horn that oil and gas exploration firms are interested in.
A separate force will be trained in the capital, Mogadishu, the news agency said, citing sources involved in the programme, which has reportedly cost many millions of dollars. A large convoy of pick-up trucks, small aircraft and armoured vehicles will support the troops.
The motivation of the donor country remains unknown, and UN experts have confirmed they are investigating whether there has been a violation of Somalia's arms embargo. The country has not had a functioning government since 1991, and Islamists who claim allegiance to al-Qaida are trying to gain overall control.
AP said the same country funding the security forces had hired Pierre Prosper, who was an ambassador at large for war crimes issues under George Bush from 2001-05, to advise the Somali government on legal issues related to security, anti-corruption and transparency. Prosper, who was also the diplomat responsible for engaging with countries whose citizens were held at Guantánamo Bay after the September 11 attacks, said he was being paid to do the job by "a Muslim nation", which he declined to name.
Fellow American Michael Shanklin, the CIA deputy chief of station in Mogadishu 20 years ago, told AP he was employed by the same country as "a security adviser and liaison to the Somali government".
The involvement of the two men is likely to be viewed with deep suspicion in Somalia, and is likely to be used by the Islamists for propaganda. Many Somalis are mistrustful of foreign meddling, and were angered by the US's decision to give money to a group of warlords in Mogadishu in 2006 then back the Ethiopian invasion a few months later.
AP named the private security company involved in training the troops as Saracen International, a Uganda-based firm headed by a South African former special forces soldier called Bill Pelser. In a November statement the Puntland government said Saracen had been hired to establish its "marine forces", while documents from the Somali presidency this year suggested the company had been hired to train the presidential guard in Mogadishu.
But in a phone interview, Pelser told the Guardian claims of his company's involvement were "bullshit", and said he would take legal action against the media. "I have already given a statement to the UN security council on this. None of my assets are involved in Somalia. It must be another company called Saracen," he said.
Puntland is more stable than the rest of Somalia, but the creation of an "anti-piracy" force will raise questions. Senior members of the current administration are believed to have close links to some pirate groups, who have raked in millions in ransoms for foreign ships. Previous efforts to train a local navy have seen recruits "go off and become elite pirates themselves", according to a Somalia analyst in Nairobi, who asked not to be named.
Mohamed Farole, the son of Puntland president Abdirahman Mohamed Farole and a powerful figure in his own right, said the first 150 graduates completed a 13-week training course this week. He told AP they would be used to hunt pirates in the Galgala mountains. However, that area is not known as a major piracy hotspot. The main pirate bases fall outside Puntland.
But Galgala is the territory of a well-known weapons dealer and militia leader called Mohamed Said Atom. Accused of supplying arms to Somalia's main Islamist insurgent group al-Shabab, Atom has clashed with Puntland's administration before and complained about being excluded from energy exploration deals.
Xan Rice guardian.co.uk, Thursday 2 December 2010 18.26 GMT
An undisclosed "Muslim nation" is funding a 1,000-strong, privately trained military force in northern Somalia and has hired a former CIA officer and a senior official from the Bush administration to advise the Somali government on security matters, according to a report.
The Associated Press said the "anti-piracy" force was receiving instruction in Puntland, a semi-autonomous region on the tip of Africa's horn that oil and gas exploration firms are interested in.
A separate force will be trained in the capital, Mogadishu, the news agency said, citing sources involved in the programme, which has reportedly cost many millions of dollars. A large convoy of pick-up trucks, small aircraft and armoured vehicles will support the troops.
The motivation of the donor country remains unknown, and UN experts have confirmed they are investigating whether there has been a violation of Somalia's arms embargo. The country has not had a functioning government since 1991, and Islamists who claim allegiance to al-Qaida are trying to gain overall control.
AP said the same country funding the security forces had hired Pierre Prosper, who was an ambassador at large for war crimes issues under George Bush from 2001-05, to advise the Somali government on legal issues related to security, anti-corruption and transparency. Prosper, who was also the diplomat responsible for engaging with countries whose citizens were held at Guantánamo Bay after the September 11 attacks, said he was being paid to do the job by "a Muslim nation", which he declined to name.
Fellow American Michael Shanklin, the CIA deputy chief of station in Mogadishu 20 years ago, told AP he was employed by the same country as "a security adviser and liaison to the Somali government".
The involvement of the two men is likely to be viewed with deep suspicion in Somalia, and is likely to be used by the Islamists for propaganda. Many Somalis are mistrustful of foreign meddling, and were angered by the US's decision to give money to a group of warlords in Mogadishu in 2006 then back the Ethiopian invasion a few months later.
AP named the private security company involved in training the troops as Saracen International, a Uganda-based firm headed by a South African former special forces soldier called Bill Pelser. In a November statement the Puntland government said Saracen had been hired to establish its "marine forces", while documents from the Somali presidency this year suggested the company had been hired to train the presidential guard in Mogadishu.
But in a phone interview, Pelser told the Guardian claims of his company's involvement were "bullshit", and said he would take legal action against the media. "I have already given a statement to the UN security council on this. None of my assets are involved in Somalia. It must be another company called Saracen," he said.
Puntland is more stable than the rest of Somalia, but the creation of an "anti-piracy" force will raise questions. Senior members of the current administration are believed to have close links to some pirate groups, who have raked in millions in ransoms for foreign ships. Previous efforts to train a local navy have seen recruits "go off and become elite pirates themselves", according to a Somalia analyst in Nairobi, who asked not to be named.
Mohamed Farole, the son of Puntland president Abdirahman Mohamed Farole and a powerful figure in his own right, said the first 150 graduates completed a 13-week training course this week. He told AP they would be used to hunt pirates in the Galgala mountains. However, that area is not known as a major piracy hotspot. The main pirate bases fall outside Puntland.
But Galgala is the territory of a well-known weapons dealer and militia leader called Mohamed Said Atom. Accused of supplying arms to Somalia's main Islamist insurgent group al-Shabab, Atom has clashed with Puntland's administration before and complained about being excluded from energy exploration deals.
Saturday, 4 December 2010
Your thoughts on this post would be most welcome......
It has been increasingly difficult for Somali Brothers and sisters to meet with a view to marriage. Due to the lack of such arenas, we felt it necessary to arrange such an event. It has become apparent that many Sisters are looking outside for marriage.(NOT THAT THERE IS ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT). Many have said that they feel there are no suitable and eligible Somali Brothers available. We DO NOT believe this to be the case and so, Insha’Allah, we hope that this event will dispel such negative perceptions.
Jazak Allah Khairun
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