UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The U.N. Security Council should consider lifting an arms embargo on Somalia to help rebuild the country’s security forces and consolidate military gains against al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon suggested in a report Friday.
The council imposed the embargo in 1992 to cut the flow of arms to feuding warlords, who a year earlier ousted dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and plunged Somalia into civil war. Council diplomats said the arms embargo was “under discussion” as the delegations have not reached a final agreement.
Somalia’s president and prime minister were elected last year in the country’s first national vote since 1991.
“Enhanced efforts are … urgently needed to develop the Somali National Security Forces,” Ban said in the report to the 15-member council. “In this regard, the Security Council may wish to consider the repeated request by the government for lifting the arms embargo.”
Somalia wants help strengthening its poorly equipped and often ill-disciplined military that is more of a loosely affiliated umbrella group of rival militias than a cohesive fighting force loyal to a single president.
There are 17,600 U.N.-mandated African Union peacekeepers helping battle the Islamist rebels in Somalia. The African Union has also appealed to the Security Council to review the arms embargo on Somalia.
“Although security has improved considerably in Somalia, the struggle is far from over. The insurgents continue to carry out their attacks using terrorist attacks and targeted assassinations,” Ban said.
“These spoilers will seize any opportunity to reverse the gains,” he said. “We must continue to stay alert and deny them the space they seek. We should continue to explore the measures already identified, such as travel bans and asset freezes, as we determine when and to whom these must be applied.”
Ban also recommended in the report that a new U.N. assistance mission to deliver political and peacebuilding support be established in Somalia and that the Security Council consider a U.N. or joint U.N.-AU peacekeeping mission once the combat operations against Al-Shabaab come to an end.
He said planning for the deployment of the new U.N. assistance mission should take place as soon as possible and that it be based in Somalia instead of neighboring Kenya, now that security has improved.
The Security Council needs to renew the mandate for the AU peacekeeping force in Somalia, known as AMISOM, by early March.
The council is also considering a call to permit the export of stocks of charcoal. It banned the sale abroad of Somali charcoal in last February in an attempt to cut off al Shabaab’s funding.
The Security Council’s Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, an independent panel that reports on compliance with U.N. sanctions, says charcoal exports from southern Somalia in 2011 generated over $25 million for al Shabaab.
Source: Reuters

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

1 COMMENT

  1. I have never seen Somalia websites making news about seccecionists. But i ALWAYS see seccceionist talking about Somalia.

    A couple of days ago, siilanyo said "somalia is not my country". Why is this news site reporting about What ban kii moon said about Somalia?

    Very strange SNM terrorists, they cant decide anything like they are on their periods like little girls!

    • Why do you daroods come on this website even though you hate somaliland.so why do you come here

      I like how it is only daroods who hate the great SNM while real somalis love them. The SNM stopped your afwayne from spoon feeding you at the expense of issaq and hawiye.

  3. Haha the spoilers didn't believe me but now they can see it with their own eyes. If there was £ pound £ for everything i have said so far i would of been a millionaire.

  4. Lift the arms embargo so we can all go back to Somalia and defend the blue flag, Strong army is needed to defend Somalia's sovereignty. SNA used to be one of the strongest army in East Africa.

    • You always make me giggle reading your obessions regarding the SNM. Btw i respect you for not having
      too many names? Kayse dissident stooge would never give you real peace in Somalia?
      You should know that Hawiye is worst than the SNM??? Hargeisa and Mogadiscio are the superpowers
      and everything else remains majorpowers. Without either of them making you superpower under
      control..don't ever dream of getting through that easy. SNA would never invade Somaliland you know it.
      Cheers.

  6. Lift the arms embargo now. Somalia can not defeat the scourge of Al-shabab terrorism with foreign armies/AMISOM and will not be able to secure its territorial boundaries without an effective and strong Somali national army.

      • If they can Afford it that is….. but then Somalia might embose an arms embargo and it sure as hell has the power to. any way only the F.Goverment in Xamar can buy/request weapons.

  7. samale..

    Your not reading the artical very well, it says it will look into arm embargo lifting it could take four to five years, and even if it does. FIRST, IC will create two division which is almost 20,000 selected all parts of somalia . will become indirectly under their control same as ALPHA group in mogadishu,QRU in Puntland. take it from me, i have inside info.

    • I seriously hope its not just reer konfur Army like the barre era. An arms embargo could be lifted within days if you work/used to work for the UN you would know that. I know Russia,China,USA and France would want to arm the Federal Goverment in Mogadishu.

      • Non-Permanent members such as Australia,Pakistan?Argentina and South Korea wouldnt really care but if japan was in the non permant section they would be the 1st,or 2nd country to Arm Somalia.

    • Agree with "Anonymous". arm embargo will not be lifted easy, your comment is logic.

      kfc, lifting arm embargo it does not need big security council meeting once US,EU including UK approve then in no time arm embargo will go,but the six figure question is will these countries allow. if they do then expect long proceses, they will not put the army under one clan as hassan shiekh wishes.

  8. Clanism vs Militarism.

    Since in somalia clanism has proven to be manifestly stronger than nationalism, the establishment of a national army is therefore incompatible with the somali clanish reality. i see no way around this, either the loyalty to the clan or armed forces, one of these two has to go.

    A good analogy for this proof is like trying to violate the law of physics by attempting to make petrol and fire coexist peacefully in a bottle. to make matters worse Culusow already have conflict with Jubbaland folks,Puntland, somaliland.

  9. Separatists in northern Somalia, Puntlanders and Rasmabooni hooligans are the ones who oppose restoration of Somali National Army. These parties have taken advantage of the vacuum created by the lack of central government in Somalia either to carve up the country into fiefdoms or to raid other peoples’ lands by brute force. Raskamboni who today create a big problem in Kismayo are mostly from NFD and Ethiopian occupied Western Somalia. Few of them settle in Afmadow and Dooblay in Juba region. People who migrated from Galcaio and Abud Waaq yesterday are claiming that they hail from Kismayo and are denying the rights of the original inhabitants of the region.

    We all know who comes from what region in Somalia. If Raskamboni and Puntlanders cannot live in peace with others, they should be returned to their little corner and camel wells. Grabbing someone’s land by force and in the process creating instability in Somalia because of tribal agenda is wrong. Separatists want to hijack everyone in northern Somalia to force others who do not see a good reason to dismember Somalia. Restoration of strong and effective army in Somalia is very necessary. Unity is strength. Separatism and division weakens our society.

    • I thought you said you never bad mouthed tribes?typical somali wallahi,calling ogaden refugees, i do agree that Raskamboni are an issue to the development of kismayo

      • kfc,

        Brother, if you read my comments again, I still don't use tribal names. The tribal names you give here are in your words not mine. Also, I put the blame where it lies. We have to call a spade even if our comments will anger most Somali groups just because none of them can remove themselves from tribalism.

        You cannot convince me that Farole and Ahmed Islam (Madoobe) have business in the affairs of Kismayo; the agenda of men like these is is as bad as that of the separatists if not worse. Ahmed Madobe was not even born in Somali Republic.

        • kfc.

          It's just moryan lyrick "Ahmed Madoobe was not born in somali republic" it seems your information does not add up at all. did you know Barre was born ethiopia, did you know Tarzan current mogadishu mayor was born Mustaxiil ethiopia. i hope this info helps you, take this nonsense somewhere else. what is next prof Gandi was not in somalia.

  10. Allemagan.

    Let's not talk false information,we know who are real inhabitant upper jubba,middle Jubba and lower Jubba. somalis are not seventy million but only ten million. all this fake unrealistic lies will come to end soon and folks who think they can hold the majority in Jubbaland then you need to realize time is up.

    The original inhabitants are the one who controling Jubbaland. ppl in Jubbaland they don't need ghost inhabitant created by few twisted mind individuals. the reality will surface soon

    ppl who grow up in somalia aware who realy belongs to mogadishu. today folks from caliyaale,guriceel,galgaduud claim mogadishu. it's better ppl look own backyard (maybe this is not tribal issue).

    Genuine SNA can only be created when 90% somalis are happy with their goverment and regional semi-autonomous states. collection of few clans can not represent SNA.

    • No sxb thats too long to wait, because you have to do the consensus and somalia must have a elected president. As somalia is a clan based society i think for the short term solution each tribe should be able to contribute forces. Remember thats just the short term solution so in 10years i would say your ideas would be perfect but not now Especially because the threat of Ashaydan.

  11. The separatists led by Dhiigshiil gang and their al Shabab cousin chiefs do not want to see the army being restored in the country because chaos in Somalia is what drives them. Every morning they get up thinking of how to destabilize the Somali state….they now busy crying blocking the lift but what they don't understand is once Somali government receives the seal of approval from USA, the UN is the next to follow.

    Now its not a matter of if they will lifted but when and I can assure you it's not long wait.

    The first guns from Turkey will be tested on your al Shabab cousins and if you continue with your kidnapping of northern parts of Somalia….Dulcaad and Harta Sheikh might be your home once again. Don't put away your tents yet.