Information
Additional information gathered from various sources during the week indicates that the threat level for humanitarian agencies operating in Somaliland has not fundamentally been modified despite the updated British travel alert that was issued on 27 January 2013
The "specific threat" that was mentioned in that travel alert was not directed at humanitarian agencies.
Recommendations
Precautionary measures that were suggested on 28/12 can be lifted, namely:
Avoiding sending international staffs to Somaliland for unessential missions.
Avoiding unessential movements of international staffs already in Somaliland.
However humanitarian agencies should:
Avoid concentrating international staffs - particularly American or European - in compounds with poor protection.
Review their compound protection particularly considering a generic threat of kidnapping.
Maintain a high level of vigilance and ensure all staffs report suspicious behaviour to their managers.
Additional information can be obtained on demand from NSP.
END
None of these suggestions to NGOs is new. So in other words, "Never Mind." As long as Al Shabaab is operating in the Horn of Africa, there will always be a threat to foreigners and to government officials. Nuff said.
ReplyDeleteCornering a cat has it's backlash .. Al Shabaab seems to be cornered in Somalia and have now resorted to moving to the strategic mountains of Eastern Sanaag, according to the local intelligence. They can always creep into the main cities of Puntland and Somaliland causing mayhem among the officials and the guests in these part of the Horn of Africa.
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