Somali Insurgents Attack Arriving Ugandans

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NAIROBI 001127

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S FRAZER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/08/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PREF EAID ASEC MOPS SO ET UG
SUBJECT: Somali Insurgents Attack Arriving Ugandans


Classified by PolOff John O'Leary. Reason 1.4 (b) & (d).


1. (C) Summary. Mortars interrupted the welcoming
ceremony on Tuesday (3/6) for the first contingent of
arriving Ugandan troops. Ethiopian troops engaged in a
firefight with unknown gunmen the same day, and insurgents
attacked a Ugandan vehicle convoy on Wednesday (3/7). As
many as 16 Somali civilians were killed and 24 wounded in
the two incidents. There were 10 reported murders in
Mogadishu on the same two days which appear to be related
to the insurgency. There are claims that former Islamic
Courts military commanders are preparing to join the
fighting in Mogadishu. Carjacking is a growing problem in
the capital. Due to the hijacking of the M/V Rozen, the
WFP is having difficulty finding reputable ships to carry
food aid to Somalia. We should anticipate attacks on the
port when the ships bringing the Ugandans' heavy military
equipment arrive in Mogadishu. End summary.


2. (U) Around 1330 hours Tuesday afternoon (3/6),unknown
attackers lobbed between six and eight mortar rounds at the
military side of Mogadishu International Airport where a
ceremony was in progress to welcome the initial Ugandan
AMISOM contingent of 400 soldiers who had arrived several
hours earlier. Reports indicate little damage, but one
Somali was wounded by shrapnel. A neighborhood watch
contingent reportedly encountered an insurgent mortar team
and forced it to withdraw. The airport attack occurred
despite the presence of heavily armed Ethiopian troops at
the field and reported Ethiopian helicopter patrols over
the surrounding neighborhoods.


3. (U) Earlier Tuesday (3/6),an Ethiopian patrol came
under small arms and RPG fire in a Somali neighborhood.
Three civilians were reported killed and six wounded.
Accounts vary as to whether the Ethiopians were hunting
insurgents or trying to disarm local residents.


4. (U) Reports indicate that 11 other Somalis were killed
by small arms fire in four separate incidents, also on
Tuesday (3/6). A police colonel, his friend, and two
bystanders were shot in the afternoon by unknown gunmen at
a central intersection in Mogadishu. A senior Muslim
cleric and three businessmen were also shot in the
afternoon by unknown gunmen; the victims reportedly were
trying to establish a watch program to prevent insurgents
from using their neighborhood as a launching pad for mortar
attacks against the TFG and the Ethiopians. Three other
men were reported killed by unknown assailants in two
separate incidents. Motives were not readily apparent in
these last three killings, which could be due to personal
animosities or criminal pursuits as well as to insurgent
activity.


5. (U) Mogadishu was calm Tuesday night, but fighting
resumed Wednesday evening (3/7) when unknown insurgents
using RPGs and small arms attacked a Ugandan convoy in
central Mogadishu in the vicinity of the K-4 intersection.
According to reports, two Ugandans were injured and up to
13 civilians were killed and 20 injured in the crossfire.
Despite attacks, Ugandan troops continue to arrive in
Mogadishu.


6. (U) Earlier Wednesday (3/7),two police officers
searching vehicles were reported killed by unknown gunmen
using small arms, also at the K-4 intersection.


7. (U) Incidents of carjacking reportedly are increasing
in Mogadishu, forcing passenger buses to remain garaged.


8. (C) The hijacked ship, M/V Rozen remains in the hands
of pirates as ransom negotiations continue. According to
U.S. military reporting, the pirates lowered their demand
from $1 million to $150,000. The ships owners countered
with $50,000, which the pirates rejected. WFP reports that
it is having difficulty finding reputable ships to carry
additional food aid to Somalia because of the piracy.
Although the government of Puntland has vigorously
condemned the incident and has requested U.S. military
assistance to free the vessel, the TFG has not contacted us
for assistance. At our urging to speak out against the
piracy, the Somali Ambassador to Kenya used a Wednesday
press conference to issue a statement calling on the
pirates to release unconditionally the ship and its crew.


9. (U) The pro-Islamists website "Goobjoog" stated on
March 6 that former Islamic Courts militia commanders have
returned to Mogadishu where they are reconstituting their

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militias.


10. (U) In a pre-recorded audio tape played on
Mogadishu's Radio Koran, a man claiming to be al-Shabaab
leader, Aden Hashi Ayro, called on Somalis, and especially
the youth, to rise up against Ethiopian and AMISOM troops.
He claimed that loyal fighters were still present in
Somalia's major cities; but he insisted that the various
mortar attacks on government targets were launched by the
Ethiopians, not by the Islamists.


11. (C) Comment. Given the attacks on the arriving
Ugandans at Mogadishu International Airport and at the K-4
intersection, we should anticipate attacks on the port when
the DynCorp-chartered ships bearing the Ugandans' heavy
equipment arrive in Mogadishu. End comment.

Ranneberger