Friday 16, May 2025 {HMC}  Arab foreign ministers outlined the agenda for the 34th Arab League Summit set for Saturday in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, placing the Palestinian cause at the forefront of key issues and initiatives, Iraqi government spokesperson Bassem al-Awadi said Thursday.

Speaking to the official Iraqi News Agency (INA), Awadi said the ministers, meeting in a closed session, reviewed and endorsed the summit’s draft agenda and resolutions for Arab leaders to consider adopting.

The agenda includes eight main items covering joint Arab efforts, with the Palestinian issue, Arab national security and counterterrorism leading the priorities, he added.

The ministers’ proposals will be presented to heads of state and government at the 34th session of the Arab League Council at the summit level, Awadi noted.

He outlined five key files on the agenda: two reports—one on the 33rd summit’s outcomes and commitments and another on joint Arab efforts by the league’s secretary-general; the Palestinian cause and Arab-Israeli conflict, encompassing five detailed items; Arab affairs and national security, addressing 11 regional crises; climate change and shared Arab security, alongside the venue for the 35th summit; and Arab nominations for regional and international institutional roles.

Additionally, Awadi highlighted five Iraqi-led initiatives approved by the ministers, including establishing an Arab counterterrorism center, an Arab anti-narcotics center, an Arab national crime prevention center, a joint Arab security coordination chamber, and an Arab fund to support recovery and reconstruction from crises, he said.

Earlier, an Arab ministerial meeting kicked off in Baghdad to prepare for the annual Arab summit. The ministers started arriving Wednesday to participate.

This year’s annual Arab summit will be held under the theme “Dialogue, Solidarity and Development” to discuss a flurry of issues, including the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, where nearly 53,000 people have been killed since October 2023.

Laith Al Jnaidi and Mohammad Sio

Friday 16 May 2025 {HMC} – The Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, H.E. Syed Abdulsalam Abdi Ali, met today, Friday in Baghdad, with his counterpart, the Minister of Foreign affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Djibouti, H.S. Syed Abdulqader Hussein Omar, on the sidelines of the work of the 34th Ordinary Session of the Council of the Arab University on Summit level and thus the fifth session of the Arab Development Summit, scheduled to be held on May 17th.

The ministers reviewed the durable brotherly links and historical relationships that bring together the two sisterly countries and peoples, emphasizing their mutual commitment to promoting cooperation in many areas that promotes development, regional stability and common prosperity.

They also exchanged views on regional and international developments of common interest.

Friday 16 May 20225 {HMC} After three difficult years of drought, Dahir Abdullahi Ali finally found a way to support his family of nine after bringing his herd of camels from the rural area to the outskirts of Adado town and selling milk.

He is one of hundreds of pastoralists in central Somalia’s Galgadud region who have moved their livestock to urban areas in search of food and water, shifting away from traditional rural grazing practices that have become unsustainable due to climate shocks.

Dahir, 40, milks his 30 camels twice a day, collecting about 46 litres each morning and selling it in the market. After deducting the cost of feed and water, he earns at least $20, which is enough to provide for his family’s daily needs.

“This money has helped us escape the poverty we’ve endured for so long,” Dahir told Radio Ergo.

Before moving his herd in February, the family lived on one meal a day and struggled to pay bills. Now, they eat three times a day using the income from camel milk.

Dahir moved from the rural area of Do’oley, in Adado district, after hearing from residents that keeping camels in town could help prevent them from dying due to lack of pasture.

When he arrived, the animals were thin and producing no milk. But after feeding them with fodder he bought on credit for a month, they gradually began producing milk so he could earn an income.

“I’ve spent my whole life raising livestock,” Dahir said. “But this is the most profitable time I’ve ever had. This method is better for both the animals and us.”

Now that the rains have started, he has no plans to return to the countryside. He believes the camels would struggle to adapt again.

“My dream is to grow this herd to 70 camels and keep raising them here. I can’t go back to the rural land where survival is hard and these extra earnings are impossible.”

Dahir has already paid off part of a $1,000 debt he owed before starting this new lifestyle, repaying $650 using income from milk sales.

He also enrolled six of his children in school for the first time, paying $60 monthly in tuition fees.

In addition, the 60 goats his family owns are recovering from the recent drought thanks to regular feed he buys with part of his income. He no longer spends days chasing the animals across the bush, as he did in the countryside.

“This new way gives me hope for my animals’ future,” he said. “I was desperate before.”

The method has also proven successful for other herders like Kafi Abdullahi Adan, who brought 50 camels into Adado earlier this year.

Kafi sells about 27 litres of milk from 15 of his camels daily and says the income has changed his family’s life.

“Life has improved a lot. We went through very difficult times, but now things are much better. The biggest challenge now is managing the profits I get from camel milk,” he told Radio Ergo.

His current herd is all that remains of the 60 camels and 180 goats he once owned. Many were lost during the droughts of 2017 and 2021.

Kafi had been working as a daily labourer in Adado on house construction sites for $10 a day when work was available. Now, he pays for camel feed with cash rather than on credit, and has started repaying the $1,500 he owed to a local shop.

“If I hadn’t started this method my family and livestock would have been in danger. This idea came to me when I saw how desperate people were for pure camel milk. I knew there was opportunity.”

With the rainy season underway, he hopes to find more pasture nearby, which would lower costs of buying feed and increase his income.

Abdinur Hassan Osman, an economics lecturer at Galmudug University, said this shift toward urban-based livestock farming could play a major role in the regional economy.

“This practice offers a solution to the challenges caused by poor pasture and frequent droughts. It helps families survive tough times and provides stable income from milk sales.”

He added that women and non-pastoralist communities are also benefiting, especially those involved in milk trading.

“Women who sell milk earn up to $5 a day, something they couldn’t do when camels were only out in the rural areas,” he explained.

Camels, once seen as purely rural animals, are now contributing to economic growth in towns and offering new opportunities for herders and small business people alike.

“Pastoralists must adapt to climate change,” Abdinur said. “This new form of farming is proving to be one of the easiest and most profitable ways to make a living from livestock.”

 Somalia’s embattled journalists are being swept up in an intensifying crackdown by security forces, with at least 41 media workers arrested, harassed, or intimidated since mid-March—a development rights groups warn amounts to a “war on the truth,” and what the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called an “alarming escalation” in attacks on the media.

The CPJ, alongside Somali media watchdogs including the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) and the Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ), documented the incidents, most of which occurred in Mogadishu and its surrounding districts.

In nearly all cases, the reporters targeted were covering issues considered sensitive by the state—terror attacks, public criticism, protests, and intelligence agency operations.

Rights groups say the crackdown comes as the government scrambles to control both the narrative and the insurgency, as its military campaign against Al-Shabaab falters under renewed militant pressure. Following a deadly bombing near a presidential convoy and intensified fighting in central Somalia, officials have sought to limit media coverage deemed harmful to national security.

“The repression against the media and the attacks on journalists… are aimed at silencing government critics,” said Abdullahi Hassan, a researcher at Amnesty International. “It’s about controlling the narrative at all costs.”

A directive issued by Information Minister Daud Aweis Jama on March 6 banned the publication of content deemed to “threaten national security” or “distort or fabricate information.” It followed a similar 2022 edict meant to curb reporting on Al-Shabaab and has since emboldened authorities to raid newsrooms and detain journalists with little explanation.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has documented a series of arrests, detentions, and raids in Mogadishu since mid-March, illustrating a pattern of retaliation against reporters covering security matters, protests, and criticism of government institutions. CPJ compiled these cases through interviews with affected journalists, media reports, and research by Somali partner organizations, including SJS and FESOJ.

A string of arrests

Bahjo Abdullahi Salad, reporter for RTN Somali TV (Photo: Courtesy of Bahjo Abdullahi Salad)

On March 15, NISA agents raided the home of Bahjo Abdullahi Salad, a reporter for RTN Somali TV, over a TikTok video criticizing waste disposal in Mogadishu. She was detained for four hours.

March 18: Police stormed Risaala Media Corporation after it aired footage from the scene of a bombing targeting the presidential convoy. Five journalists were arrested; 17 others covering the scene were briefly detained.

Mohamed Ibrahim Osman Bulbul (Screenshot: Kaab TV/YouTube)

March 26: Officers attempted to arrest Mohamed Ibrahim Osman Bulbul, a freelance reporter affiliated with SJS, after he published interviews critical of Somalia’s intelligence agency. He has since gone into hiding.

March 28: Police detained five journalists from Himilo TV and Mustaqbal Media while covering a protest against sexual violence.

April 1: Four journalists from Five Somali TV were arrested after airing a report about missing police officers. They were released later that day.

Abuukar Mohamed Keynaan of Risaala TV (Photo: Courtesy of Abuukar Mohamed Keynaan)

April 28: Abuukar Mohamed Keynaan and Abdirashid Adow Ibrahim of Risaala TV were arrested for allegedly exaggerating details of a mortar attack. Both were released unconditionally.

Deeq Moalim Jiinow of Saab TV (Photo: Courtesy of Deeq Moalim Jiinow)

April 29: Journalists from four stations—Shabelle Media, Hiiraanweyn TV, and Saab TV—were shot at and briefly detained while interviewing displaced civilians. No injuries were reported.

Mohamed Omar Baakaay (Screenshot: Baakaay Cumar/YouTube)

May 5: In a midnight raid, NISA agents broke into the home of Mohamed Omar Baakaay, a YouTube-based journalist. While he was away, they arrested his 17-year-old brother and visiting journalist Bashir Ali Shire. Both were later released.

CPJ, SJS, and FESOJ said that messages sent to the Somali presidency, police, and the Ministry of Information have gone unanswered.

“This is a painful experience,” said Abdalle Ahmed Mumin, secretary general of SJS. “Journalists are being punished for doing their jobs, and the space for free expression is shrinking every day.”