MN Guard, Somali leaders join forces to attract recruits

Some Somalis are touting the opportunities of military service — both for young recruits and a community that doesn’t want to be defined by the recent departures of youths to join radical Islamist militants.The Minnesota National Guard did not want to lose Mohamed Mohamud.

The high school senior was eager to enlist, but his mother, a refugee of Somalia’s brutal civil war, balked. Where Mohamud saw new experiences and money for college, his family saw danger. So the Guard took the unusual step of sending a longtime Muslim member to Mohamud’s home to address his family’s fears and secure their blessing.

Somali-Americans have enlisted in the Guard and U.S. military for years, but by all accounts, the numbers have remained low. As in Mohamud’s case, recruiters come up against concerns about balancing service and the Muslim faith, the anxiety of refugees who fled armed conflict — and, some acknowledge, their own lack of awareness of the growing community. Read More

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Somalia's Future Hinges On Its Youth

Jamel Egal was born the year it all fell apart.

1991. Somali President Siad Barre was overthrown and anarchy overtook the east African nation of Somalia. Warlords filled the void of a central government as lawlessness reigned and war became the norm.

Jamel was 8 when conflict descended on his family's home in Baidoa in south-central Somalia. "We lost everything -- our house, our cattle," he says.

Now 23 years old, Jamel is part of the generation of Somalis who know nothing but war. Yet the future of their battered country rests in their hands. Decades of conflict have robbed many of even a basic education, and few employment opportunities exist. With scarce alternatives, many young people fall into violence themselves.

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Two Teenagers Commit Suicide in Hargeisa

Hargeisa(the horn)-The lives of two innocent youths came to an abrupt end when they hanged themselves in different estates of Hargeisa city on Monday night.

The late Abdinassir Abshir Habane committed suicide in Dolodho , Kodbur district, while Shaban Abdi Noor took his life in Sinai area, Ahmed Dhagah District.

Their bodies were spotted by members of the public early on Monday morning. The inhabitants of the area were shocked as this incident rarely occurs in Somaliland. It is not yet clear why the young men resorted to suicide but it is suspected that the hard economic times ravaging the country is to blame.


Source: The Horn