MOGADISHU: Somalia’s insurgency suffered a significant split after government officials confirmed that they had sent troops to repel militants seeking to capture one of their own commanders.
The US had offered a $5 million reward for the capture of Mukhtar Robow Abu Mansur, known universally as “Robow,” once the spokesman and deputy leader of Al-Shabab, an insurgency that wants to overthrow Somalia’s weak UN-backed government.
Robow fell out of favor with the insurgency in 2013 yet remained outwardly loyal. Earlier this month, the US quietly removed him from their list of sponsors of terror after five years.
“There was and is, negotiation going on between Mukhtar Robow and the Somali federal government but still there is no guarantee that he will defect,” Col. Aden Ahmed, an officer in the national military, told Reuters on Friday from southwestern Hudur town, near Robow’s stronghold.
A split would further weaken Al-Shabab following years where the insurgency has steadily lost ground. It withdrew from the capital in 2011 and has lost control of most of the major towns in south-central Somalia since.
It still maintains a significant presence in the countryside and the Juba region near the border with Kenya and is mounting increasingly large and deadly bombings in the capital.
If Robow defects, it would give pro-government forces more freedom to operate in the regions of Bay and Bakool, slicing Al-Shabab’s operational territory into two. Robow is from the large Rahanweyn clan, which dominates many of Somalia’s most fertile areas.
“We understand Al-Shabab fighters plan to attack and capture Robow, but this will not be easy for he has well-trained and well-armed ... fighters who will die for him. Yesterday, we prepared about 300 military soldiers with military cars to defend Robow,” Col. Ahmed said.
“Those troops are now in the outskirts of the town. We cannot send them directly for many reasons. Al-Shabab may ambush us, Robow himself may ambush our forces. We shall give reinforcement to Robow only after we confirm that fighting between Al-Shabab and Robow breaks out.”
Residents said Robow was holed up in a village with about 400 fighters about 18 km from Hudur, the capital of Bakool region in southern Somalia.
Two residents said they saw two helicopters and a drone, but it was unclear to them if the aircraft were connected to Robow.
“We understand Al-Shabab decided to disarm Robow after they heard he was removed from US wanted list,” local elder Mohamed Nur said.
Al-Shabab and Robow could not be reached for comment.
Mohamed Abdi, governor of Bakool, told Reuters that Al-Shabab fighters were advancing toward Robow.
“We have prepared many troops to reinforce Robow in case they begin fighting him. Your enemy’s enemy is your friend,” he said.
Somalia insurgency splits as loyalty of key commander wavers
Somalia insurgency splits as loyalty of key commander wavers
North Korea says record test was new Hwasong-19 intercontinental ballistic missile
- The Hwasong-19, like North Korea’s other latest ICBMs, demonstrated the range to strike nearly anywhere in the United States
- The launch drew swift condemnation from Washington and its allies in South Korea, Japan and Europe, as well as the UN chief
The launch on Thursday flew higher than any previous North Korean missile, according to the North as well as militaries in South Korea and Japan that tracked its flight deep into space before it splashed down in the ocean between Japan and Russia.
State news agency KCNA lauded it as “the world’s strongest strategic missile.”
While questions remain over North Korea’s ability to guide such a missile and protect a nuclear warhead as it reenters the atmosphere, the Hwasong-19, like North Korea’s other latest ICBMs, demonstrated the range to strike nearly anywhere in the United States.
“The new-type ICBM proved before the world that the hegemonic position we have secured in the development and manufacture of nuclear delivery means of the same kind is absolutely irreversible,” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said while overseeing the launch, KCNA reported.
The launch, days before Tuesday’s US presidential election, drew swift condemnation from Washington and its allies in South Korea, Japan and Europe, as well as the United Nations secretary-general.
“The missile continues to underwrite the growing credibility of North Korea’s strategic deterrent capabilities,” said Ankit Panda, a senior fellow at the US-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, adding that Kim appeared specifically interested in communicating that message to the United States.
HEAVIER PAYLOADS
The Hwasong-19 will deploy alongside the Hwasong-18, which was first launched last year and is also powered by solid fuel, KCNA said.
Solid-fuel missiles do not need to be fueled immediately ahead of launch, are often easier and safer to operate and require less logistical support than liquid-fuel weapons.
“It can be stored and moved anywhere, allowing for excellent mobility, stealth and survivability,” said Kim of the University of North Korean Studies.
Photos released by KCNA showed a large, multi-stage missile launched from a canister carried by a transporter-erector-launcher vehicle. The agency showed photos from cameras that appeared to be attached to the missile, taking images of stage separations and the earth.
“The increased length likely means a greater fuel capacity, which directly affects thrust and potentially increases range,” Kim said.
But North Korea’s existing missiles already had the range to reach anywhere in the United States, and the Hwasong-19’s expanded capacity combined with larger payload section is more likely designed to be able to carry heavier, and potentially multiple, nuclear warheads, he said.
“North Korea may continue testing to see if, during the final reentry phase, the warheads can separate and each head toward individual targets,” Kim added.
The Hwasong-19 flew of 1,001.2km for 85 minutes and 56 seconds before landing in the sea off the east coast of the Korean peninsula, with a maximum altitude of 7,687.5km, KCNA said.
India’s capital chokes in smog after firework ban flouted
- New Delhi’s traffic-clogged streets are home to more than 30 million people and the city regularly ranks as one of the most polluted ones
- The Indian capital is blanketed in cancer-causing acrid smog each year, primarily blamed on stubble burning by farmers in neighboring regions
NEW DELHI: India’s capital New Delhi was wreathed in poisonous smog Friday, with air pollution worsening after a fireworks ban was widely flouted for raucous celebrations for the Hindu festival of lights, Diwali.
New Delhi’s traffic-clogged streets are home to more than 30 million people, and the city is regularly ranked as one of the most polluted urban areas on the planet.
The city is blanketed in cancer-causing acrid smog each year, primarily blamed on stubble burning by farmers in neighboring regions to clear their fields for plowing, as well as factories and traffic fumes.
But air worsened Friday after a thunderous night of firecrackers lit as part of Diwali celebrations, despite city authorities last month banning their sale and use.
City police had seized nearly two tons of fireworks before Diwali, but the crackers remained readily available for sale in neighboring states.
Many residents celebrated at home, holding a family meal and lighting small candles in praise of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi and symbolising the victory of light over darkness.
Others launched firework rockets and booming crackers, rocking the densely packed city throughout the night.
Police are often reluctant to act against violators, given the strong religious sentiments attached to the crackers by Hindu devotees.
Critics say arguments between rival politicians heading neighboring states — as well as between central and state-level authorities — have compounded the problem.
India’s Supreme Court last month ruled that clean air was a fundamental human right, ordering both the central government and state-level authorities to take action.
“Delhi’s toxic air is killing us softly with its smog,” the Times of India wrote in an editorial last week, as the winter pollution returned.
“It is nothing new, but what doesn’t cease to amaze, year after year, is the state’s stilted response.”
Levels of fine particulate matter — dangerous microparticles known as PM2.5 pollutants that enter the bloodstream through the lungs — surged to more than 23 times the World Health Organization recommended daily maximum.
Soon after dawn, pollutant levels topped 345 micrograms per cubic meter, according to monitoring firm IQAir, which listed air in the sprawling megacity as “hazardous.”
It listed New Delhi as worst in the world, just above smoke-choked Lahore in neighboring Pakistan, 400 kilometers (250 miles) to the northeast.
The New Delhi government has previously sought to cut pollution by restricting vehicle traffic, including a scheme that only allowed cars with odd or even number license plates to travel on alternate days.
Authorities have also imposed seasonal bans on construction work and on diesel-powered vehicles from entering the city.
Harris warns Trump will slash Obamacare; Trump says he never mentioned it
- The 2010 Affordable Care Act provides coverage to roughly 40 million Americans as part of the country’s patchwork of health insurance programs
- A political liability for Democrats when signed into law in 2010, it is now broadly popular
PHOENIX/ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico: Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris warned voters on Thursday that Republican Donald Trump and his allies would scale back health care programs if he wins the White House and said his comments at a Wednesday rally were offensive to women.
In a brief press conference, Vice President Harris reminded voters that former President Trump had tried unsuccessfully to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, during his 2017-2021 presidency.
“Healthcare for all Americans is on the line in this election,” she told reporters in Madison, Wisconsin, before flying to Arizona and Nevada as both candidates took the campaign to the Southwest.
In response, Trump said he never wanted to get rid of the program. “I never mentioned doing that, never even thought about such a thing,” he posted on his Truth Social platform after she made the remark.
Opinion polls show a historically close contest between Harris and Trump, with the outcome of Tuesday’s US presidential election likely to be decided in seven battleground states.
Reuters/Ipsos polling in October found the race to be sharply divided along gender lines, with Harris leading among women by 12 percentage points and Trump leading among men by seven percentage points.
More than 63 million people have already voted through in-person early voting and mail-in ballots, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab.
With both candidates campaigning in the Southwest on Thursday, they made their pitches to Hispanic voters.
OBAMACARE AGAIN AT ISSUE
Once again a campaign issue, the 2010 Affordable Care Act provides coverage to roughly 40 million Americans as part of the country’s patchwork of health insurance programs. A political liability for Democrats when signed into law in 2010, it is now broadly popular.
In his 2016 campaign, Trump repeatedly vowed to repeal Obamacare and following his election, when the House voted to do just that, he welcomed Republican representatives to the White House for a celebration. But the repeal effort died in the Senate in July 2017 when the late Sen. John McCain cast the deciding vote with a thumbs-down gesture.
Trump has downplayed the issue during this campaign, though on Thursday he reiterated he would as president push insurers to cover the cost of in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments.
When asked about health care in the Sept. 10 televised debate with Harris he repeated his contention that “Obamacare was lousy health care” but acknowledged he has yet to propose a comprehensive alternative, saying he has “concepts of a plan.”
Harris has made abortion rights a cornerstone of her campaign, while Trump has vowed to dramatically scale back immigration.
Firecracker ban defiance makes New Delhi the world’s most polluted city
- The air quality index stood at 348, said Swiss firm IQ Air, taking pollution into the hazardous category
- Local government officials have banned use of firecrackers during Diwali and the winter over the last few years
NEW DELHI: New Delhi topped charts on Friday as the world’s most polluted city after revelers defying a ban on firecrackers to celebrate Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, helped drive air quality to hazardous levels.
Thick smog wreathed the Indian capital, shrouding the presidential palace in the central district and the surrounding gardens popular with joggers and cyclists, after Thursday’s celebrations.
The air quality index stood at 348, said Swiss firm IQ Air, taking pollution into the hazardous category, pushing Delhi to the top of a real-time list as the world’s most polluted city.
Local government officials have banned use of firecrackers during Diwali and the winter over the last few years, in line with Supreme Court directives, but have had difficulty enforcing the measure despite the threat of jail.
Some Hindu groups say the ban interferes with observance of the festival, a position the Delhi government has previously countered by saying the ban aims to save lives.
Friday’s smog also coincided with waste burning on farms in northern India that aggravates air quality at the beginning of winter each year as cold, heavy air traps pollutants from a variety of sources.
Four Thais killed in Israel by rocket strike from Lebanon: Thai FM
- About 30,000 Thai nationals live in Israel
- Thai nationals in Israel have been particularly hard hit since the start of the war with Hamas
Bangkok: Four Thais were killed in northern Israel by rocket fire from Lebanon, Thailand’s foreign minister said Friday.
Maris Sangiampongsa, in a post on social media platform X, said he was “deeply saddened” by the deaths close to the town of Metula on Thursday, adding another Thai citizen was injured.
The head of the regional council in Metula said late Thursday that five people had been killed in the rocket strike from Lebanon, one local farmer and four foreign farm workers.
About 30,000 Thai nationals live in Israel, where salaries are much higher than in the Southeast Asian kingdom.
Thai nationals in Israel have been particularly hard hit since the start of the war with Hamas, with at least 39 killed as a result of the October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel.
More than two dozen were believed to have been captured by militants during the attack.
During a brief November truce, 23 Thais were released from captivity.
The Israeli army has said two Thai nationals died in captivity in Gaza in May.
After more than 11 months of cross-border clashes that displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border, the Israeli army intensified air strikes against Hezbollah in mid-September and later launched limited ground operations in southern Lebanon.
Foreign Minister Maris added: “Thailand continues to strongly urge all parties to return to the path of peace, in the name of the innocent civilians gravely impacted by this prolonged and deepening conflict.”
