Addis Ababa, November 24 (WIC) - Some 130 Kenyan soldiers arrived Monday in Djibouti as a prelude to military exercises that the East Africa Standby Force (EASBRIG) will hold from 29 November to 04 December in Djibouti, African Press Agency (APA) reported.
Upon their arrival at the international airport of Ambouli, this group of Kenyan soldiers has been warmly welcomed by the EASBRIG commander, General Osman Nour Soubagleh.
Still as part of this exercise piloted by the EASBRIG Staff headquarters, Kenya has also deployed a second contingent of the same size, which is expected to arrive in Djibouti in the coming hours.
In addition to Djibouti, the host country for the military drill, four other EASBRIG member countries, namely Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda and Sudan will each send at least a hundred men.
Apart from Eritrea that is however part of the EASBRIG and has decided to send soldier to Djibouti, seven other East Africa states such as Burundi, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Somalia, Tanzania, will be simply sending some military experts.
This drill will take place in a military zone located some sixty kilometers south of Djibouti city, the capital, and between Arta and Holl-Holl.
The 13 East African states gathered under the EASBRIG are considering on the long-run to establish a continental emerging force capable of intervening in cases of conflicts or disasters.
Source:waltainfo.com/
Friday, December 11, 2009
Sudan to construct military hospital in Djibouti
November 21, 2009 (ADDIS ABABA) — Sudan will construct a military hospital for Djibouti armed forces, according to a bilateral agreement inked this week in the capital of Horn of Africa country.
The deal was signed by Dijbouti National Defence Minister Ougoureh Kifleh Ahmed and Gen Al-Sadiq Kismalla, secretary general of the medical services fund for the Sudanese army. on Thursday 19 November.
The construction of military hospital will be entirely financed by the Sudanese government, reported the official Djibouti news agency.
The Sudanese ambassador to Djibouti, Hassan Al-Tayib, the deputy chief of General Defence Staff, Gen Hassan Ali Kamil and the secretary general for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Badri Ahmed Bogoreh, took part in the signing of the agreement.
Defence Minister Ougoureh thanked in a brief speech, the Sudanese government for its assistance and its support for the construction of a new health structure for the Djibouti armed forces.
The minister added that the noble project will lead to the improvement of the health environment of our armed forces, their families as well as Djibouti’s population.
The Sudanese military delegation led by Gen Al-Sadiq Qismallah, also held talks with the foreign affairs and international cooperation minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
Talks focused on bilateral cooperation and in particular on the construction by the Sudanese part of a new hospital for Djibouti armed forces in 2010.
The two parties discussed the diary for the next joint cabinet meeting between Djibouti and Sudan planned for January 2010.
Source:sudantribune.com/
The deal was signed by Dijbouti National Defence Minister Ougoureh Kifleh Ahmed and Gen Al-Sadiq Kismalla, secretary general of the medical services fund for the Sudanese army. on Thursday 19 November.
The construction of military hospital will be entirely financed by the Sudanese government, reported the official Djibouti news agency.
The Sudanese ambassador to Djibouti, Hassan Al-Tayib, the deputy chief of General Defence Staff, Gen Hassan Ali Kamil and the secretary general for the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Badri Ahmed Bogoreh, took part in the signing of the agreement.
Defence Minister Ougoureh thanked in a brief speech, the Sudanese government for its assistance and its support for the construction of a new health structure for the Djibouti armed forces.
The minister added that the noble project will lead to the improvement of the health environment of our armed forces, their families as well as Djibouti’s population.
The Sudanese military delegation led by Gen Al-Sadiq Qismallah, also held talks with the foreign affairs and international cooperation minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
Talks focused on bilateral cooperation and in particular on the construction by the Sudanese part of a new hospital for Djibouti armed forces in 2010.
The two parties discussed the diary for the next joint cabinet meeting between Djibouti and Sudan planned for January 2010.
Source:sudantribune.com/
government of Djibouti is harvesting 60,000ql
The government of Djibouti is harvesting 60,000ql of wheat from its farm in Western Arsi around Serofta, in the Oromia Regional State. The tiny nation, which is Ethiopia’s gateway to the sea, had been granted 3,000ht of prime land in June 2009, where it started growing wheat immediately.
This land used to be part of the Bale Agricultural Development Enterprise, a state enterprise supervised by the Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervisory Agency (PPESA). The land given to Djibouti, free of any payment, was transferred from the enterprise by the order of the PPESA in June 2009. It was in keeping with a promise the government made during a visit of President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti and his wife to Ethiopia in July 2008, which included a meeting with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
Source:jimmatimes.com/
This land used to be part of the Bale Agricultural Development Enterprise, a state enterprise supervised by the Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervisory Agency (PPESA). The land given to Djibouti, free of any payment, was transferred from the enterprise by the order of the PPESA in June 2009. It was in keeping with a promise the government made during a visit of President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti and his wife to Ethiopia in July 2008, which included a meeting with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
Source:jimmatimes.com/
Draft resolution calls for sanctions on Eritrea
A proposed U.N. resolution is calling for an arms embargo and other tough sanctions against Eritrea for supplying arms to opponents of the Somali government and refusing to resolve a border dispute with Djibouti.
Uganda has circulated the draft to the 14 other members of the United Nations Security Council but diplomats said Friday no experts meeting has been scheduled to discuss it.
Some council members are privately concerned that the proposed resolution, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, is too tough and might make it even more difficult to deal with the tiny Red Sea nation of Eritrea.
It would impose an arms embargo, call on U.N. member states to inspect all suspect cargo between Eritrea and Somalia, and impose a travel ban and asset freeze on Eritrea's political and military leadership. It would also freeze the assets of government and private companies that violate the arms embargo.
The draft resolution also calls for financial and travel sanctions against any Eritrean individuals or entities that support Somalia's armed opposition, obstruct implementation of a council resolution demanding that Eritrea pull its troops back from the Djibouti border, or support acts of violence or terrorist acts in the region.
Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year guerrilla war. It has been feuding over its border with Ethiopia ever since, and uncertainty over its border with the tiny port nation of Djibouti led to hostilities between the two countries twice in the 1990s.
In June 2008, the Security Council condemned Eritrea for launching an attack against Djibouti, a key U.S. ally in the Horn of Africa, which the U.S. said left 44 Djiboutian soldiers dead and many more missing. The council called for a cease-fire and urged the two countries to withdraw their forces from the border, which overlooks key Red Sea shipping lanes. Djibouti did, but Eritrea has not.
The U.S. and Britain have also accused Eritrea of supplying weapons to opponents of Somalia's Western-backed transitional government in violation of a U.N. arms embargo.
Last month, Britain called for sanctions against Eritrea for supplying arms to Somalia's opponents. The African Union has also asked the Security Council to impose sanctions on Eritrea.
The draft resolution demands that Eritrea comply with the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia and withdraw its forces from the Djibouti border.
Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991 when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other, plunging the country into chaos and anarchy. The fragile U.N.-backed government and an undermanned, poorly resourced African Union peacekeeping force have struggled to defend government buildings, the port and airport in the capital, Mogadishu _ most recently rebuffing an offensive by Al-Shabab and the allied Islamic Party.
The Islamist militia group was designated a terrorist group by Washington in 2008 and has been trying to topple the transitional government.
The draft resolution demands that Eritrea stop all assistance to Al-Shabab and other militias trying to destabilize Somalia and incite "violence and civil strife in Djibouti, including the issuance of passports to non-Eritrean nationals.
Source:etaiwannews.com/
Uganda has circulated the draft to the 14 other members of the United Nations Security Council but diplomats said Friday no experts meeting has been scheduled to discuss it.
Some council members are privately concerned that the proposed resolution, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, is too tough and might make it even more difficult to deal with the tiny Red Sea nation of Eritrea.
It would impose an arms embargo, call on U.N. member states to inspect all suspect cargo between Eritrea and Somalia, and impose a travel ban and asset freeze on Eritrea's political and military leadership. It would also freeze the assets of government and private companies that violate the arms embargo.
The draft resolution also calls for financial and travel sanctions against any Eritrean individuals or entities that support Somalia's armed opposition, obstruct implementation of a council resolution demanding that Eritrea pull its troops back from the Djibouti border, or support acts of violence or terrorist acts in the region.
Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year guerrilla war. It has been feuding over its border with Ethiopia ever since, and uncertainty over its border with the tiny port nation of Djibouti led to hostilities between the two countries twice in the 1990s.
In June 2008, the Security Council condemned Eritrea for launching an attack against Djibouti, a key U.S. ally in the Horn of Africa, which the U.S. said left 44 Djiboutian soldiers dead and many more missing. The council called for a cease-fire and urged the two countries to withdraw their forces from the border, which overlooks key Red Sea shipping lanes. Djibouti did, but Eritrea has not.
The U.S. and Britain have also accused Eritrea of supplying weapons to opponents of Somalia's Western-backed transitional government in violation of a U.N. arms embargo.
Last month, Britain called for sanctions against Eritrea for supplying arms to Somalia's opponents. The African Union has also asked the Security Council to impose sanctions on Eritrea.
The draft resolution demands that Eritrea comply with the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia and withdraw its forces from the Djibouti border.
Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991 when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other, plunging the country into chaos and anarchy. The fragile U.N.-backed government and an undermanned, poorly resourced African Union peacekeeping force have struggled to defend government buildings, the port and airport in the capital, Mogadishu _ most recently rebuffing an offensive by Al-Shabab and the allied Islamic Party.
The Islamist militia group was designated a terrorist group by Washington in 2008 and has been trying to topple the transitional government.
The draft resolution demands that Eritrea stop all assistance to Al-Shabab and other militias trying to destabilize Somalia and incite "violence and civil strife in Djibouti, including the issuance of passports to non-Eritrean nationals.
Source:etaiwannews.com/
Team Djibouti ‘sandstorms’ Flatland Freezer
What’s the best way to celebrate one’s first-ever tournament championship in his new-found sport?
Option A is to shake hands with the opposing players and then take a team picture to remember the victory.
Option B is to run around like headless chickens before ending up in a pile, yelling and screaming in excitement.
Option C is for the real “party animals.” It would include drinking heavy amounts of alcohol and trying to remember what happened when they woke up the next morning.
Answer is D: none of the above.
That individual does shake hands with his opponents and gathers up his belongings. Then he cranks up the team’s techno anthem and dances wildly in the car with a trio of his teammates.
Da Rude’s “Sandstorm” became the weekend anthem for the team better known as Annexation of Djibouti. If you’re scratching your head or your face is stuck in a “confused” expression, let me explain.
Several weeks ago, I agreed to participate in an ultimate Frisbee tournament in McPherson, called the Flatland Freezer. It was my fourth such event since picking the sport back up as a hobby in the fall of 2008.
I became part of a so-called “rag-tag” team that consisted of random players from across the Midwest, most of whom have played on a team together at some point. However, there was one guy from Nebraska, another from Wisconsin and one who hadn’t ever played.
Yet, we combined for an eight-man roster that was set on having fun and winning. Needless to say, we did plenty of both during the weekend. With only a single substitute during each game, we also got a wee bit tired playing seven games.
Our team name was partly in honor of a fallen comrade. One of guys who runs the Baker University ultimate Frisbee club injured his knee about a month ago. If he were healthy, he would have played with us last weekend.
In his honor, we borrowed his Djibouti flag and changed our team name Friday night. I can’t honestly explain the entire team name, but I loved it. Regardless, Annexation of Djibouti was born.
We took the field Saturday morning against the team we thought to be our top competitor. We were correct, as we rematched them in the championship. In the opening game, we took a 7-4 lead into halftime (13 points were needed to win).
The Wichita State team rallied and took a 9-8 lead late in the game. However, we fought back and tied the game. Next point won the match — we scored it to open the tournament with a solid 10-9 victory.
Our next three matches of the day can be summed up quickly. We dominated younger and inexperienced teams. Each contest was won in a rout, 13-1. Now it was time to eat and relax in the hot tub — our muscles needed the soak.
All I remember from Saturday night is crashing before 9 p.m. It was the first time I’ve done that in years. Exhaustion will do that to you.
Sunday morning came early, but we carried on where we left off Saturday. We won 13-2 to open the bracket round. In the semifinal round, we fell behind 2-1 before rallying to win 13-4 over the hometown team, McPherson Mudhuckers.
Then came the rematch with our opening opponent. It was a fairly close game, but we opened it up late to win 13-8. We simply had more energy and speed than our older foes.
It wasn’t just my first ultimate Frisbee tournament championship, but several others, including a few veteran players. The chilly, windy conditions were worth the battle.
Highlight of the tournament came against the Emporia State University squad. ESU turned the disc over at their own goal line. We reached deep into the playbook and called for the “cheeseburger.”
To execute, the thrower simply fakes an over the head toss (hammer), then drops the disc behind the defenders’ back. Another offensive player is standing there to catch it off the defender’s back.
We pulled it against a guy we knew from pick-up games in Olathe. He also went to high school with a few of my teammates. We loved it. He didn’t.
If you’re still wondering about our team anthem, well, that’s something I can’t reveal. It just became our song for the weekend.
All I know is we “sandstorm’d” the Flatland Freezer.
Source:signal.baldwincity.com/
Option A is to shake hands with the opposing players and then take a team picture to remember the victory.
Option B is to run around like headless chickens before ending up in a pile, yelling and screaming in excitement.
Option C is for the real “party animals.” It would include drinking heavy amounts of alcohol and trying to remember what happened when they woke up the next morning.
Answer is D: none of the above.
That individual does shake hands with his opponents and gathers up his belongings. Then he cranks up the team’s techno anthem and dances wildly in the car with a trio of his teammates.
Da Rude’s “Sandstorm” became the weekend anthem for the team better known as Annexation of Djibouti. If you’re scratching your head or your face is stuck in a “confused” expression, let me explain.
Several weeks ago, I agreed to participate in an ultimate Frisbee tournament in McPherson, called the Flatland Freezer. It was my fourth such event since picking the sport back up as a hobby in the fall of 2008.
I became part of a so-called “rag-tag” team that consisted of random players from across the Midwest, most of whom have played on a team together at some point. However, there was one guy from Nebraska, another from Wisconsin and one who hadn’t ever played.
Yet, we combined for an eight-man roster that was set on having fun and winning. Needless to say, we did plenty of both during the weekend. With only a single substitute during each game, we also got a wee bit tired playing seven games.
Our team name was partly in honor of a fallen comrade. One of guys who runs the Baker University ultimate Frisbee club injured his knee about a month ago. If he were healthy, he would have played with us last weekend.
In his honor, we borrowed his Djibouti flag and changed our team name Friday night. I can’t honestly explain the entire team name, but I loved it. Regardless, Annexation of Djibouti was born.
We took the field Saturday morning against the team we thought to be our top competitor. We were correct, as we rematched them in the championship. In the opening game, we took a 7-4 lead into halftime (13 points were needed to win).
The Wichita State team rallied and took a 9-8 lead late in the game. However, we fought back and tied the game. Next point won the match — we scored it to open the tournament with a solid 10-9 victory.
Our next three matches of the day can be summed up quickly. We dominated younger and inexperienced teams. Each contest was won in a rout, 13-1. Now it was time to eat and relax in the hot tub — our muscles needed the soak.
All I remember from Saturday night is crashing before 9 p.m. It was the first time I’ve done that in years. Exhaustion will do that to you.
Sunday morning came early, but we carried on where we left off Saturday. We won 13-2 to open the bracket round. In the semifinal round, we fell behind 2-1 before rallying to win 13-4 over the hometown team, McPherson Mudhuckers.
Then came the rematch with our opening opponent. It was a fairly close game, but we opened it up late to win 13-8. We simply had more energy and speed than our older foes.
It wasn’t just my first ultimate Frisbee tournament championship, but several others, including a few veteran players. The chilly, windy conditions were worth the battle.
Highlight of the tournament came against the Emporia State University squad. ESU turned the disc over at their own goal line. We reached deep into the playbook and called for the “cheeseburger.”
To execute, the thrower simply fakes an over the head toss (hammer), then drops the disc behind the defenders’ back. Another offensive player is standing there to catch it off the defender’s back.
We pulled it against a guy we knew from pick-up games in Olathe. He also went to high school with a few of my teammates. We loved it. He didn’t.
If you’re still wondering about our team anthem, well, that’s something I can’t reveal. It just became our song for the weekend.
All I know is we “sandstorm’d” the Flatland Freezer.
Source:signal.baldwincity.com/
Americans bear witness to Djibouti's potential
DJIBOUTI CITY, DJIBOUTI -- For many Americans on the U.S. base here, helping Djiboutians is not just official duty.
It's a personal mission.
Several sailors, airwomen and soldiers fill two SUVs with boxes before heading to a school in Hayabley, a nearby village.
Lt. Cmdr. Vinh Mai, a doctor from Falls Church, Va., collected the boxes of sweaters, children's clothes, English-language books, shoes and pens. The Vietnamese-American Medical Association of Northern Virginia donated the items, says Mai, 33, an endocrinologist with the 14th Expeditionary Medical Facility.
Twenty students, ages 7 to 18 -- the boys in jeans and T-shirts, the girls in colorful dresses and headscarves -- sit on well-worn wooden desks, smiling and greeting Mai as he walks around saying, "Hello! Hello!" He shakes each boy's hand, to more big smiles.
Abdel Kareem Moussa, 18, says he hopes to travel to America. "I want to become a pilot," the tall, lanky student says.
Moussa, who is fluent in French and Somali, explains in perfect English that whenever the soldiers visit, "we try to speak English with them; and it's good, it's practice."
Mai volunteers at several English-language schools "to learn about their culture and help them learn English."
"I think Djibouti has a lot of potential," he says. "The people are very eager to learn and move forward."
Other soldiers and sailors volunteer at a local orphanage run by a stout French nun. They often find 62 crying babies on the floor, some trying to stand; they hold the youngsters and play with them.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Valentin Olmeda of San Juan finishes feeding and cleaning an infant, then puts him in a crib.
"I like to work with the babies. I work in some orphanages in Puerto Rico," says Olmeda, 52, of 1st Battalion, 65th Infantry Regiment, 92nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Puerto Rican National Guard.
Making his eighth visit to the orphanage, Capt. Justin DeVanna, 32, of Wooster, Ohio, describes it as "an opportunity. They don't have anybody."
"I thought it would replace my son," confides the veterinarian of the 14th Expeditionary Medical Facility. "It doesn't.
"I'm watching him grow up on computer."
Source:pittsburghlive.com/
It's a personal mission.
Several sailors, airwomen and soldiers fill two SUVs with boxes before heading to a school in Hayabley, a nearby village.
Lt. Cmdr. Vinh Mai, a doctor from Falls Church, Va., collected the boxes of sweaters, children's clothes, English-language books, shoes and pens. The Vietnamese-American Medical Association of Northern Virginia donated the items, says Mai, 33, an endocrinologist with the 14th Expeditionary Medical Facility.
Twenty students, ages 7 to 18 -- the boys in jeans and T-shirts, the girls in colorful dresses and headscarves -- sit on well-worn wooden desks, smiling and greeting Mai as he walks around saying, "Hello! Hello!" He shakes each boy's hand, to more big smiles.
Abdel Kareem Moussa, 18, says he hopes to travel to America. "I want to become a pilot," the tall, lanky student says.
Moussa, who is fluent in French and Somali, explains in perfect English that whenever the soldiers visit, "we try to speak English with them; and it's good, it's practice."
Mai volunteers at several English-language schools "to learn about their culture and help them learn English."
"I think Djibouti has a lot of potential," he says. "The people are very eager to learn and move forward."
Other soldiers and sailors volunteer at a local orphanage run by a stout French nun. They often find 62 crying babies on the floor, some trying to stand; they hold the youngsters and play with them.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Valentin Olmeda of San Juan finishes feeding and cleaning an infant, then puts him in a crib.
"I like to work with the babies. I work in some orphanages in Puerto Rico," says Olmeda, 52, of 1st Battalion, 65th Infantry Regiment, 92nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team of the Puerto Rican National Guard.
Making his eighth visit to the orphanage, Capt. Justin DeVanna, 32, of Wooster, Ohio, describes it as "an opportunity. They don't have anybody."
"I thought it would replace my son," confides the veterinarian of the 14th Expeditionary Medical Facility. "It doesn't.
"I'm watching him grow up on computer."
Source:pittsburghlive.com/
A Fishing War Off Somalia?
Despite some successes in thwarting Somali pirates, itchy trigger fingers may serve no one's interests except for private security agencies.
When pirates attacked the Maersk Alabama for a second time this year on Nov. 18, a private security team fought them off. The reaction in the American press was instant. "Lesson from foiled pirate attack on the Maersk Alabama?" wrote the Christian Science Monitor. "Fire back."
Some observers fell over themselves advising Spain to arm its fishing boats, because a Spanish tuna trawler, the Alakrana, had just been released a day earlier for a reported (and record-breaking) ransom of $3.3 million. The Spanish government had already changed its law in October to allow fishing vessels to carry weapons. And on Sunday another Spanish trawler was attacked by two persistent pirate skiffs. The Ortube Berria had an armed team aboard and shook the pirates only with gunfire.
"They would not give up. They would simply not give up," the trawler's captain said. "If we had not been armed, they would have caught us."
The kneejerk response is: So what? It's a dangerous world, and if ship owners and their crews want to risk an escalation with pirates by hiring private gunmen, well, firms like Xe (formerly Blackwater) are here to help.
But hiring armed teams to defend fishing boats is a delicate matter. European trawlers like the Ortube Berria and the Alakrana have been unwelcome off Somalia for years because in the absence of a strong Somali government, they've been known to help themselves to the fish. These fishing disputes, from some Somalis' point of view, led to piracy in the first place.
"And now foreign fishermen are hiring private security, which is a little scary," said Stig Jarle Hansen, a Horn of Africa expert at the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research. "Some of these companies I don't trust. And now they will go into Somali waters," he predicted, "and there you can have increased armed clashes not just between pirates and private security but even between full-time fishermen and private security."
One reason for the fishing chaos off Somalia is not just a lack of local enforcement, but a failure by the Somali government to assert its "economic zone" in the water - conventionally a 200-mile band of control. Territorial waters reach 12 miles out to sea, but since a U.N. agreement in 1982, a nation's "exclusive economic zone," or EEZ, can extend 200 miles before the ocean becomes a free-for-all.
Like a lot of African countries, said Hansen, the Somalis never formally claimed an EEZ. "So the argument amongst some of the illegal fishermen is that this zone has not been declared. That's why they say it's possible to go in and fish."
But legal experts say the argument is weak, since the international precedent of a 200-mile EEZ is so well established. The U.N. declared it enforceable as part of its 1994 Convention of the Law of the Sea.
America, at first glance, has no dog in this race. But the conflict between Somali and European fishermen is a precise echo of the so-called "tuna war" off Ecuador in the 1960s and '70s, when Ecuador, Chile and Peru were trying to assert a 200-mile fishing zone for themselves. American tuna boats recognized a 3-mile limit. When Ecuador seized and fined an American vessel in 1963, a series of escalations - seizures, warning shots, formal trade sanctions — continued for at least eight years, until governments in the Western Hemisphere came to an informal agreement on 200-mile zones. That agreement set the precedent for the U.N.'s 1982 convention.
Europe and Africa are engaged in a similar struggle now: Illegal foreign fishing is a problem up and down the African coast. But fishermen in the Americas waged this war without large-scale piracy, without rocket-propelled grenades and without private commando teams on their tuna trawlers. The Somali situation is at risk of becoming entrenched.
"A whole entire business has grown out of piracy," said Hansen — and not just among Somali pirate masters. "You have a lot of private security consultants, who do pirate negotiations, risk management and so on. It's a big industry on the Western side of things, with a big interest in keeping things going."
Source:miller-mccune.com/
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