Day: July 13, 2019

Somalia’s security forces Saturday ended an overnight attack by the al Shabab Islamist militant group on a hotel in the southern port city of Kismayu that killed at least 13, a police officer said.

“The operation is over,” police officer Major Mohamed Abdi told Reuters by telephone from Kismayu. “So far we know 13 people died. Many people have been rescued. The four attackers were shot dead.”

Members of the al-Qaida-linked group stormed the hotel after targeting it with a car bomb Friday while local elders and lawmakers were meeting to discuss approaching regional elections.

A second witness put the death toll at 14.

“The operation was concluded at 7 a.m. We know at least 14 people died including journalists and (local election) candidates. These are the prominent people. The death toll is sure to rise,” local elder Ahmed Abdulle told Reuters.

A journalists’ group had confirmed Friday that two journalists were among the dead; Somali-Canadian journalist Hodan Naleyah, the founder of Integration TV, and Mohamed Sahal Omar, reporter of SBC TV in Kismayu.

Separately, Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimuu, general secretary of the Federation of Somali Journalists, said in a statement: “We are saddened and outraged by this loss of life, and condemn in the strongest possible terms this appalling massacre.”

Al Shabab was ejected from Mogadishu in 2011 and has since been driven from most of its other strongholds.

It was driven out of Kismayu in 2012. The city’s port had been a major source of revenue for the group from taxes, charcoal exports and levies on arms and other illegal imports.

Kismayu is the commercial capital of Jubbaland, a region of southern Somalia still partly controlled by al Shabaab.

Al Shabaab remains a major security threat, with fighters frequently carrying out bombings in Somalia and neighboring Kenya, whose troops form part of the African Union-mandated peacekeeping force that helps defend the Somali government.
 

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As Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters vow to keep up their fight, churches remain on the front lines. Christian groups hold regular public gatherings and sing hymns at demonstrations, both as a way to protest and to de-escalate clashes between police and more aggressive protesters. As VOA’s Bill Gallo reports, many churches in Hong Kong fear a crackdown on religion as China expands its influence.

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As the world celebrates the 50th anniversary of the historic mission to land humans on the surface of the moon, VOA’s Kane Farabaugh presents this reflection of the monumental achievement through the eyes of the NASA astronauts themselves. In exclusive interviews Farabaugh gathered, the men of the Apollo program reflect on the path to the moon, and what lies beyond.
 

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Congressional Democrats are pushing for new protections for asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border. They unveiled legislation this week that reflects the lawmakers’ increasing anger and concern over the Trump administration’s immigration policies. But Republicans accuse Democrats of refusing to acknowledge an immigration crisis exists and making the problem worse. VOA’s congressional correspondent Katherine Gypson has more from Capitol Hill.

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The latest vegetarian meat alternatives that taste and cook like real beef are all the rage in the U.S. But there’s also a market for lab grown meat, which provides all the protein without the cruelty and the carbon footprint. But it’s proving a tougher sell than plant-based alternatives. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports.
 

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