____________________________________________________________________ S O M A L I A N E W S U P D A T E ____________________________________________________________________ No 35 November 14, 1992. ISSN 1103-1999 ____________________________________________________________________ Somalia News Update is published irregularly via electronic mail and fax. Questions can be directed to antbh@strix.udac.uu.se or to fax number +46-18-151160. All material is free to quote as long as the source is stated. ____________________________________________________________________ In this issue: NEWS DROUGHT MOGADISHU: BUSINESS AS USUAL SNA ALLIANCE UNDER RECONSIDERATION? NOTHING NEW ABOUT SOMALIA? I am extremely concerned with the fact that over the past two weeks close to nothing about Somalia has appeared from the major news agencies. Although IPS have kindly consented to let me forward their wires free of charge, that is of little help when there are no news to forward. I have been in touch with all my contacts in the Swedish media and they all confirm that there has been scarcely any news feed "since Sahnoun resigned", as one of my journalist friends put it. Another journalist, at the Swedish Television, said "it's crazy! We know that terrible things are happening but we don't get a single fax about it. We were about to send one man to Hargeysa but then this thing in Angola happened... ". It seems like Somalia, once more, is loosing ground to other, more interesting news. At the same time the events during this summer proved an important point: donor's commitment to Somalia depends to a scaringly large extent on the media coverage. Why don't we all do like Dorothy Morse, the heroic Texan Somalia activist: call our local paper! One most urgent thing to campaign for right now concerns the imminent closure of the US air lift. Since late August, 13 leased Hercules air crafts have been shuttling food from Kenya to areas of Somalia that are difficult or dangerous to reach with land-based transports. The US State Department recently announced that flights will be decreased as from December due to the high costs involved. Each flight costs approximately US$ 7000 and can carry less than 20 tons of cargo, a rate US officials compare with the several times less expensive shipments with boats. Bernhard Helander MOGADISHU: BUSINESS AS USUAL (SNU, Uppsala, November 14). Thursday a convoy of 27 lorries carrying food from the port in Mogadishu to the town of Baydhabo was looted. The convoy was organized by Care. Only one vehicle is said to have reached its destination. The convoy was the first in several months of attempting to travel the dangerous road between Mogadishu and Baydhabo. Previously all food for Baydhabo has been delivered by air. However, due to the expected decrease of the air-shuttle several agencies plan to open land-based transfer of food to the worst affected areas of Somalia. 20 UN employees on their way to the Gesiira beach south of Mogadishu, on Friday were attacked by looters apparently seeking to get hold of the three vehicles the UN staff were travelling in. One of the UN workers was injured. On Friday General Aydiid reiterated UNC's refusal to allow more than the 500 UN troops in Mogadishu. According the BBC World Service Aydiid was also highly critical of the fact that the Pakistan UN troops have now taken control of the airport. SNA ALLIANCE UNDER RECONSIDERATION? (SNU, Uppsala, November 12) Since August the civil war in southern Somalia has been waged between awkward alliances. The USC, consisting chiefly of the Hawiye Habar Gedir clan and headed by General Aydiid, then entered into a formal alliance with the Daarood Ogadeen clan in the SPM movement under the leadership of Omar Jees under the name of Somali National Alliance (SNA). On the other side, the self- proclaimed president of Somalia, Ali Mahdi, has been seeking to join his Hawiye Abgaal clans with the Daarood Majertayn clan in the Northeast. Ali Mahdi has sought the support of the Marehaan too, but apparently with little result. Few observers have expected these alliances to last very long. There are now some signs that the alliances are reformating closer in agreement with the clan divisions. There have been several recent contacts between the SPM (Daarood Ogadeen) and the Daarood Marehan forces in Gedo region. Another sign is the recent deal struck between the Hawiye Hawaadle clan and Ali Mahdi's Hawiye Abgaal. The Hawaadle appear until recently not to have chosen side between Ali Mahdi and Aydiid. However, following recent talks between Hawaadle and Ali Mahdi, Hawaadle "technicals" have been sighted by aid workers in the Karan part of Mogadishu controlled by Ali Mahdi. A rumour actually has it that the Hawaadle were bribed off to abandon their control of the airport to provide an initial "victory" for the new UN special envoy for Somalia. Simultaneously Aydiid have suffered a humiliating defeat by Daarood forces in the town of Baardheere along the Jubba river. His clan are also reported to have been recently defeated again by Daarood Majertayn forces in the vicinity of Hobbya in the Northeast. In a copy of a letter that has been circulating among Somalis in Sweden during the past days Aydiid mentions Ali Mahdi as his "walaal" (brother). It would not be surprising should this turn out to be an attempt to reconsolidate his forces with those of Ali Mahdi. ________________________________________________________________ Posted by Bernhard Helander in Uppsala, Sweden.