Worries Mount As Son Remains in Ethiopia

By REBECCA SANTANA, Associated Press Writer
Saturday, April 28, 2007

The family of a man being held in Ethiopia for alleged ties to Islamic militants is growing increasingly frustrated that he is still being detained despite reports that he would be released.

News reports, a congressman's office and U.S. officials said this month that U.S.-born Amir Mohamed Meshal, 24, would soon be freed. But no one seems to know exactly why he was not.

"It was an emotional roller-coaster for us," said his father, Mohamed Meshal, speaking from their home in Tinton Falls on the Jersey shore. "We started cooking, and marinating the meat for his homecoming and the next minute, everything collapses."

Amir Meshal was in Somalia at a time when much of the country was controlled by hard-line Islamists. Hundreds of people, including Islamist fighters, fled Somalia for Kenya in late December and January after Ethiopian troops invaded the country in support of a weak but internationally backed government.

After his arrest in Kenya, the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi asked Kenyan authorities to deport Meshal to the United States, then filed a formal protest when it learned he had been returned to Somalia and then sent to Ethiopia.

U.S. authorities in Washington have said that after interviewing Meshal in Kenya they determined he was not a threat and hadn't violated U.S. law.

Meshal is one of dozens held by Ethiopia in what human rights activists and lawyers say is an illegal detention program that violates international laws on deportations and the treatment of prisoners. Ethiopia denies the charges, saying that the detentions are part of the fight against terrorism and that it has the right to defend itself.

"I'm worried about his welfare, his safety, his security," Meshal's father said. "Why doesn't the U.S. government demand his immediate release and bring him home?"

The Meshals vehemently deny their son was a fighter, said he had been a tour guide in Dubai and didn't realize he was in Somalia until U.S. officials showed up at their door in early February.

Relatives have not been able to talk with him, although they have received written messages from him through U.S. Embassy officials in Ethiopia who visited him. He told them that he was being treated well.

Earlier this month, U.S. officials said Meshal would soon be freed.

U.S. Rep. Rush Holt, who sits on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said he has been frustrated by the often-contradictory information he has received about Meshal from U.S. government agencies. In a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Holt asked her to intervene.

Said State Department spokesman Tom Casey: "We certainly had hoped that this case would be resolved earlier. We continue to discuss this issue with the Ethiopian government."

Meanwhile, Meshal's family and a lawyer assisting them have raised questions about whether the U.S. government is doing all it can to free him.

Attorney Jonathan Hafetz said that the idea that the Ethiopian government is acting to keep Meshal without tacit U.S. approval is "ludicrous" and that the U.S. government's failure to bring him home "has caused tremendous hardship to his family and flouted the duty it owes to all American citizens."

"The United States should stop equivocating and end this ordeal now," he said.


Associated Press writer Anne Gearan in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

Ethiopian Rebels Kill 70 people at Oil Field

By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN
The New York Times

NAIROBI, Kenya, April 24 — Separatist rebels stormed a Chinese-run oil field in eastern Ethiopia on Tuesday, killing more than 70 people, including nine Chinese workers, in one of Ethiopia’s worst rebel attacks in years.

Dozens of gunmen crept up to the oil field at dawn and unleashed a barrage of machine-gun fire at Ethiopian soldiers posted outside, Chinese and Ethiopian officials said. After a fierce hourlong battle, the rebels rushed away, taking at least six Chinese hostages with them.


Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi spoke during a news conference in Addis Ababa Tuesday.
Andrew Heavens/Reuters

Ethiopia, a close ally of the United States, has been racked by separatist movements for years. But the severity of this attack seemed to unnerve Ethiopian officials, who usually minimize any threats to their control.

“It was a massacre,” Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said in a televised address on Tuesday night. “It was cold-blooded murder.”

The Ogaden National Liberation Front, a militant group fighting for control of eastern Ethiopia, immediately claimed responsibility, circulating an e-mail message that said, “We will not allow the mineral resources of our people to be exploited by this regime or any firm that it enters into an illegal contract.”

The front said that its primary target was the Ethiopian soldiers guarding the oil field and that the Chinese workers had been killed by explosions during the fighting.

Given China’s drive to extract oil wherever it can be found, Chinese workers are often dispatched to conflict zones, and several have been kidnapped in the volatile Niger Delta region of Nigeria. In other parts of Africa, like Zambia, China’s investments have brought resentment from local politicians and residents.

As for the workers kidnapped on Tuesday, the rebel group’s statement said: “O.N.L.F. forces rounding up Ethiopian military prisoners following the battle came across six Chinese workers. They have been removed from the battlefield for their own safety and are being treated well.” But the group did not say anything about releasing them.

Ethiopian officials, who confirmed that 65 government soldiers had been killed, said they were rushing reinforcements to the area and vowed to crush the rebels. But the country’s military is stretched thin.

Pennies promise poetry. Dollars deliver dreams.

Pennies promise poetry.
Dollars deliver dreams.
A buck can buy a book and books change lives.

Instead of asking "a penny for your thoughts", we're asking you to put your two cents in by donating a dollar to Ethiopia Reads during the month of May help in celebration of our fourth anniversary.

Ethiopia Reads was founded in May 2003 by Yohannes Gebregiorgis after he realized how much even one book changed his life. Our mission is to develop a reading culture in Ethiopia by connecting children with books.

Be a part of our efforts to put books into the hands of every Ethiopian child by participating in our give a buck campaign. That same dollar may not travel far here but just imagine all the stories it can tell in Ethiopia.

Thank you. "Amesegenallo."

For more information: visit www.EthiopiaReads.org.

You can donate to Ethiopia Reads and its’ current and future projects by visiting the EthiopiaReads.org website and donating through Paypal.
The Paypal button is on the left side of the page. Your donation will be secure and is tax-deductible as allowed by law.

If you prefer you can mail your donation to:
Ethiopia Reads
50 South Steele Street, Suite 325
Denver, Colorado 80209

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact Katie Douglas at katie@ethiopiareads.org or Catie Dupont at catie@ethiopiareads.org.

Ethiopian hostages freed after 52 days

Addis Ababa, April 23, 2007 (Addis Ababa)

Security forces in Afar State said the Ethiopian hostages abducted by kidnappers backed by the Eritrean government were set free and entered to Ethiopia after being held for 52 days.

The security forces told Ethiopian News Agency late on Sunday that the Ethiopians, abducted along with five Europeans on March 1, 2007 in a locality called Hamed-Illa, were released due to the immense pressure exerted by Ethiopians residing here and abroad, particularly the Afari elderly.

The Europeans kidnapped along the Ethiopians were set free on March 12, 2007 due to the pressure the international community put on the Eritrean government.

However, the Ethiopians remained hostages under the control of the Eritrean government for 40 additional days after the release of the Europeans abductees.

The security forces said they would exert efforts to disclose detail information about the current condition of the Ethiopians hostages.

Traveling to Ethiopia? Join the TAKE ONE BOOK Campaign

Take One Book Literacy Campaign for Ethiopia

One book can change a life. That is what Ethiopia Reads founder Yohannes Gebregiorgis discovered at 19 years of age when he held his first book. Now you have the opportunity to change a life through Ethiopia Reads’ “TAKE ONE BOOK” campaign. In recognition of the Millenium celebration in Ethiopia this year we are committed to donating at least 2,000 books to children in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia Reads, founded in 2003, works to improve literacy and create a culture of reading in Ethiopia. We do this by planting libraries and publishing books in local languages as well as offering continuing education programs to help educators in Ethiopia nurture a love of reading.

Since Ethiopia Reads opened Ethiopia’s first free children’s library in 2003, thousands of children have experienced the joy of reading. The library received 60,000 visits to the library in 2006. Ethiopia Reads sees first hand the difference that one library, ONE BOOK, and one story can make in the life of a child.

If you or someone you know is traveling to Ethiopia during 2007, Ethiopia Reads challenges you to TAKE ONE BOOK with you, because we believe that education is hope and books can change lives. Books can be dropped off at the Shola Children’s Library in Addis Ababa. Shola is located in Beklo-Bet, behind the Dashen Bank off of Debre Zeit road.

If you are not traveling this year but want to make a difference in Ethiopia, we are collecting books in Washington, DC to send over with other travellers. Books can be dropped at Zethiopia’s office at 11th and U Street, NW.

For more information on the TAKE ONE BOOK campaign, please contact Catie Dupont at catie@ethiopiareads.org or Katie Douglas at katie@ethiopiareads.org.

WILL YOU TAKE ONE BOOK?

Suggested book list:

1. Any type of non-fiction books are appreciated. The kids wear out the Dorling Kindersley type books with nicely detailed pictures.

2. Suggested fiction titles:

· Baby Baboon
· Crafty Chameleon
· Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears, by Verna Aardema
· Bringing the Rain to Kaputi Plain
· Anansi Does the Impossible
· Kaldi and the Dancing Goats, the story of Ethiopian Coffee
· Anansi and the Talking Melon
· Anansi the Spider
· Babu’s Song
· Fatuma’s New Cloth
· My Rows and Piles of Coins
· Once Upon a Time
· What’s Cooking Jamela
· The Day Gogo Went to Vote
· Silly Mammo
· Aida
· Kings and Queens of West Africa
· Sundiata: The Lion King
· Seven Spools of Thread
· Journey to Jo’Burg
· Saba: Under the Hyena’s Foot
· Storytellers’ Beads
· Moonlight Bride
· The Dark Child: The Autobiography of an African Child
· The Other Side of Truth
· Out of Bounds: Seven Stories of Conflict and Hope
· Weep not Child
· Song of Lawino, Song of Ocol
· Purple Hibiscus
· So Long a Letter
· Nervous Conditions
· No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
· The Magic Gourd
· Bintou’s Braids
· My Great Grandmother’s Gourd
· Tutankhamen’s Gift
· No Turning Back
· Hatshepsut: His Majesty Herself
· Year of No Rain
· Many Stones
· The Ugly Goddess
· Beduin’s Gazelle
· Mother to Mother
· Midaq Alley
· Dreams of Trespass

Ambo Deforestation Puts Mineral Water Factory at Risk

The Daily Monitor (Addis Ababa)
NEWS
April 23, 2007
By Endale Assefa

The Ambo Mineral water factory which is entirely dependent on Ambo spring water resources for its production is at risk as a result of uncontrolled use of trees for fuel and overgrazing, a research by a senior academic has shown.

According to the research, Podocalpus falcatus (called in Amharic Zigba); an indigenous tree which used to cover the locality has now been destroyed.

The pictorial illustration of the researcher shows the locality was covered with the stated trees.

"Podocalpus tree is capable of facilitating capillarity of ground water to the layers by providing pores to the ground. That is why shores of ponds are mostly found nearby these indigenous trees," Proffessor Legesse heads Indigenous trees research activities at the Addis Ababa University.

"Losing such trees means aggravating percolation of waters down ward." The professor made the remarks while presenting the results of his research conducted on the lose of the indigenous trees and the impact resulting upon the mineral water fountain.

The symposium, which was held at the Addis Ababa City Hall, was organized by the Save Nature Ethiopia, a local NGO working on environmental conservation.

Even if no study has been conducted to prove it, the amount of mineral water yield will decrease in the future and surely, it has already decreased, the researcher noted.

Moreover, pressure on farmland has forced local farmers to plough very close to the main spring area, aggravating the problem, according to the professor.

Professor Legesse said he had discussed the matter with the General Manager of the factory who he said agreed to take measures in an effort to restore the lost biodiversity, such as planting the indigenous trees.

The researcher also talked of the nearby Guder locality where he said there were signs of desertification as a result of intensive agricultural practice using fertilizers.

He said "that part of the land needs to rest and revive, despite the country's food security problem; because, the long term impacts would be relatively worse." Explaining the need for restoring indigenous trees Vis a Vis the comparative disadvantage of foreign trees, Professor Legesse recommended adaptation in relation to the fertility of the land.

"Indigenous trees are the result of evolutionary lines exceeding millions of years hence are very much adapted to the ecosystem of the country," he noted.

"On the other hand, foreign trees are not, let alone the soil degradation resulting by some of them such as the Eucalyptus which aggravate leaching of the soil," he explained.

He said the lose link among similar institutions in the country was a barrier in the efforts to restore the lost heritages of these indigenous trees.

"Thirteen years have passed since AAU started propagating indigenous trees; yet no institution in the country is prepared to learn how we are doing the propagation in the laboratory" the professor said.

Proffessor Legesse Negash pressed the mostly young members of Save Nature Ethiopia said they have now finalized preparations to plant million trees for the millennium.

"Plant Podocarpus falcatus trees," he informed the youngsters.

"This tree lives for more than thousand years-meaning until the next Ethiopian millennium. This could be your gift to the generation to come, though we inherited you a degrading land and hostile environment." Accacia Abyssinia (Girar), Prunus Africana (Tikur Inchet) and Podocarpus Falcatus (Zigba) are among the precious species of indigenous trees on the verge of extinction according to the professor.

USAID/CJTF-HOA Improvements to Abiot Ermija Primary School

On April 18 U.S. Ambassador Don Yamamoto visited the site of a school renovation project at Abiot Ermija Primary School in Kirkos sub-city, Addis Ababa. A U.S. military Civil Affairs Team from the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) is working with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to renovate administrative buildings, and construct a new library facility, latrines, playground and community hall. The Ambassador told journalists invited to join the visit that the U. S. government supports community centered development work in Addis Ababa and elsewhere in Ethiopia. An example of this, he added, is the joint work being carried out at Abiot Ermija Primary School by CJTF-HOA and USAID.

USAID/Ethiopia Mission Director, Glenn Anders, said USAID will furnish the school with computers, books, teaching aids and other supplies. Similar projects are planned for schools in Dire Dawa and Debre Zeit. Nine Naval engineers (also known as “Seabees” from CJTF-HOA are working at the construction site, which will be finalized in September 2007.

Fighting rages in Somali capital as bodies rot in streets

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) -- Heavy shelling and tank fire rocked Mogadishu Monday, the sixth straight day of raging battles in the capital that have plunged the country deeper into chaos and left more than 200 people dead.

Masked Islamic insurgents clashed with Ethiopian troops backing the fragile Somali government's forces in the southern part of the battle-scarred coastal city, pounding each other with machine-gun fire, mortars, tank shells and heavy artillery.

At least four people were killed in Monday's fighting, said Khadija Farah, who saw a shell hit a residential area north of the city and kill three men and a women. Farah added a six-month-old baby was wounded.

The United Nations said the fighting had sparked the worst humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged country's recent history, with many of the city's residents trapped because roads out of Mogadishu were blocked.

Rotting bodies have been left on the streets for days, witnesses said, as it is too dangerous to try to retrieve them. At least six people were wounded early Monday, said Medina Hospital director Dahir Dhere, but he expected fatalities.

Halime Ibrahim, who fled from south of the city, which saw the worst fighting for more than 15 years, said she had seen 11 bodies. "I even failed to recognize if they were men or women," she told The Associated Press.

"Masked Somali fighters who dug in near my house are in an intensive fight with Ethiopian and Somali troops since early morning," said Hassan Mohamed Ali lives in Tawfiq neighborhood and opted to remain behind to look after his family's house. From time to time, Ali was checking the fighting from his window.

The latest fighting flared after Ethiopian and Somali government troops made a final military push to try to wipe out the insurgency, Western diplomatic and Somali government sources told the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The government and its Ethiopian backers were facing international pressure over the mounting death toll and appeared determined to bring order before a planned national reconciliation conference.

Ethiopian troops opened fire with tank shells and artillery from the presidential palace early Monday at insurgent positions in the south, said resident Osman Ali Yusuf who said one of the shells hit near his house. Yusuf, who monitors the fighting from his rooftop, said he had seen two tanks stationed at the strategic Tawfiq junction that divides the south from the north of Mogadishu where the two sides are facing off.

Ethiopians are in the north. The insurgency they are trying to end and which emerged after the defeat of the Council of Islamic Courts is operating from the south of the city of 2 million people. Clan and warlord militia have also joined the fight against the Ethiopians and government forces.

A bid earlier this month to wipe out the insurgency left more than 1,000 people dead, many of them civilians. More than 320,000 people have fled the fighting.

Elman Human Rights Organization that records casualties in the capital, said six insurgents and 41 civilians died on Sunday alone. They did not have any casualty figures for either Ethiopian or Somali government soldiers.

"The killing of civilians like this is a crime against humanity," said Sudan Ali Ahmed, the chairman of the group. "We urge the international community to send a team to investigate these crimes. They are war crimes."

The new tallies bring the death toll in five days of fighting in Mogadishu to at least 212, with more than 291 wounded, according to the human rights group.

A Somali government official warned on Sunday that his government planned a major offensive against the insurgents soon and wanted residents of the capital to move from insurgent strongholds.

"People in Mogadishu should vacate their homes that are located near the strongholds of terrorists, and we will crack down on insurgents and terrorists very soon," said Deputy Defense Minister Salad Ali Jelle.

In a separate development that could increase tension in the Horn of

Africa, Eritrea suspended its membership in a regional body that mediated the Somali conflict Saturday.

The region is already tense because of the unresolved border dispute between Eritrea and Ethiopia that has seen the two countries go to war in the past. In recent months, the Somalia conflict has also been seen as a proxy war between the two, with each backing rival sides.

U.S. officials have named Eritrea as a supporter the months-old insurgency in Mogadishu, something Eritrea has denied.

Somalia has not had an effective national government since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on one another, throwing the country into anarchy.

The transitional government was formed in 2004 with U.N. help, but has struggled to extend its control over the country.