Armed Somali militants attacked a United Nations base 250 miles outside of the capital, Mogadishu.  U.N. security forces, however, retaliated, killing three of the militants. They had attacked the Wajid compound, which the U.N. uses to store aid supplies. “We don’t know what they had planned, but we think they wanted to take over the whole compound and kidnap foreign aid workers,” a U.N. official told Reuters. Estimates say that about 30 percent of the nation depends of food aid, the BBC reports. Militants often target humanitarian workers and many agencies have pulled back their work in the nation.

Charity Workers Kidnapped in Somalia Freed
The six charity aid workers kidnapped nine months ago in Somalia have been freed, according to Action Against Hunger, a French charity. The group, which included two Kenyan pilots, two French women, on Bulgarian woman and one Belgian man, were released after an intervention involving “government officials, businessmen, clan elders and religious leaders,” the nation’s Security Minister Abdullahi Mohamed Ali said, reports the BBC. The workers are “in good health” and “they’ll have medical check-ups,” said a statement from the charity. They were kidnapped from an airstrip late last year by insurgents; charity workers are often target in the nation. There was no ransom paid for the release, as far as the government knows, Ali told The Associated Press.

Drought Hits Jamaica
The drought that has recently hit communities in Jamaica is getting worse, the BBC reports. Temperatures in the Caribbean island have been above average for two months now, due to El Nino, according to a UK weather official. In addition, the weather has resulted in a shrinking water supply and the nation’s agriculture industry could take a hit. Water has to be rationed so that the reservoirs are not over taxed, the National Water Commission told the BBC.

Rise in Piracy off Somalia Expecte
Following the region’s monsoon season, piracy off of the Somali coast is expected to rise, says the Combined Maritime Forces. The group told sea crews to actively use safety measures by using certain routes and letting the European Union’s security center know when they’re traveling, CNN reports. “The prior preparation and vigilance of merchant mariners at all times of day and night is more important now than ever,” an official from the task force said. “While our ability to deter and disrupt attacks has improved over time, we are constantly adapting the way we do our business as the pirates adapt and modify their tactics.” Security forces from all over the world are patrolling the waters and will assist in battling pirates, CNN reports. In recent months pirates in the region have been kidnapping crews and demanding ransoms at an alarming rate.
 
Guyanan Authorities Bring Arson Charges
Two people have been charged in connection with a fire that destroyed Guyana’s health ministry building, the BBC reports. The arson, which occurred earlier this month, was planned by a group of people who are anti-government, according to the police commissioner, though no particular group has been named. Health records and important offices were ruined in the blaze. Two other people, possibly connected to the arson, escaped from custody. An officer was arrested as a result of the incident.

Fighting in Nigeria Kills at Least 39
Fighting between armed forces and Islamist militants killed at least 39 people in Nigeria, the BBC reports. Men from the militant group, Boko Haram (“Western education prohibited,” translated in English), attacked a Bauchi police station with guns and explosives, and security forces fought back by attacking a nearby settlement, according to reports. The militants attacked the station because of the arrest of some of the group’s leaders, one Boko Haram member told Reuters. The group wishes to “clean the system, which is polluted by Western education and uphold Sharia [Islamic law] all over the country,” he said. As a result of the conflict, police say that more than 150 people have been arrested.

Truce Called in a Violent Nigerian Region Rebels in an oil-rich region of Nigeria, a place that has often been the scene of violent clashes, have decided to declare a 60-day ceasefire, the BBC reports. The group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), declared the ceasefire after one its leaders was released from a Nigerian jail. MEND militants have been fighting government forces in the region for a fair share of the area’s oil wealth by allegedly kidnapping oil workers and stealing oil. Government officials see the period as an opportunity to bring peace to the troubled region. “That’s a good time for us to work with them [MEND], chat with them and come out with some conclusions,” minister for the delta region, Ufot Ekaette told the BBC. But, not too long after the ceasefire was declared, members of MEND accused government forces of moving towards one of their camps. “Barely 12 hours into our ceasefire, the military Joint Task Force (JTF) has dispatched seven gunboats with heavily armed troops from Warri and are headed towards one of our camps…If this information from a very reliable source within the JTF happens to be true, the ceasefire will be called off with immediate effect,” a statement from the group said. Government officials deny MEND’s claim, but did say that the military will continue to escort oil workers in the region, reports the BBC.

Somali Gunmen Kidnap French Advisers Somali gunmen kidnapped two French advisers from a Mogadishu hotel earlier this week, reports CNN. The two advisers were in the country assisting Somalia’s government with security, the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement. About 10 gunmen pushed their way into the Sahafi hotel Tuesday morning – a hotel that serves many international visitors – and walked the two hostages (who were blindfolded and bound) from the hotel to an insurgent stronghold, CNN reports. The east African nation has been without a stable government since the early 1990s. Islamist insurgency has been rampant in the nation and clashes between insurgents and pro-government forces have led to many Somalis fleeing the capital, Mogadishu.

After weeks of mounting violence in the east African nation, Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has declared a state of emergency, the BBC reports. “As of today, the country is under a state of emergency,” Ahmed told reporters in the nation’s capital city, Mogadishu, according to AFP. Fighting between militants (who control part of the nation) and pro-government forces has cost the lives of many. Last week, a suicide car bombing killed the country’s Security Minister Omar Hashi Aden and at least more than 30 others. Somali, which has not had a stable government since 1991, currently has about 4,300 peacekeepers in the capital. However they are not allowed to attack militants unless they are defending themselves. Neighboring country Ethiopia had troops in Somalia for two years but withdrew them in January following a United Nations peace deal. “Any further actions from Ethiopia regarding Somalia will be done according to international community decision,” Bereket Simon, Ethiopia’s information minister said. The BBC reports that, according to agencies, about four million Somalis are in need of food aid.

Zimbabweans Denied Medical Care in S.A. Zimbabweans, many of whom fled their homeland because of the poor economy and rights violations, are not getting needed medical care in neighboring country, South Africa, according to Doctors Without Borders. Many of the injured are charged astronomical fees by hospitals or are just being flat out rejected. About 25 percent of Zimbabwe’s population (three million people) has migrated to South Africa, reports the BBC. And while the country’s government announced that they would be giving out permits to Zimbabweans, which would allow them to stay in the nation for six month and receive employment and healthcare, they are still “treated very poorly,” the nonprofit claims. “Our medical teams see a shocking array of illnesses and they hear stories from our patients which are quite horrifying,” a representative told the BBC. “We are witnessing daily a kind of failure of the South African government, and also United Nations agencies that do have a mandate to protect refugees, asylum seekers and so forth.” Children traveling alone across the border also rises concern because they are exposed to all kinds of danger.

Somalia Experiencing Worst Crisis in Africa The humanitarian crisis in Somalia is the worst in Africa, according to representative from Oxfam International. There are currently 1 million displaced Somalis (many of whom are surviving with limited food or water) and 3.2 million residents are in need of food aid. “I have seen the situation in Darfur, northern Uganda, some parts of Congo, but what is actually happening now in Somalia is indeed the worse kind of humanitarian in Africa in many years,” Oxfam’s Somalia coordinator, Hassan Noor, told the BBC.  ”There are hundreds of children all over the area with tubes on their faces and [saline] drips on their hands. Some of them are actually unconscious and suffering from all sorts of diseases, mainly acute diarrhea and cholera.” Many of the displaced were driven away by severe fighting between pro-government and guerrilla forces. The east African nation has not had a stable government since 1991. There are currently 4,300 African Union peacekeepers in the capital, Mogadishu, but they don’t have permission to go after insurgents, the news service reports.

Obama to Burma: Let Opposition Leader Go! Myanmar, the Asian nation formerly known as Burma, has no legal justification for detaining opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, President Obama said Tuesday in calling for her immediate, unconditional release. “I strongly condemn her house arrest and detention, which have also been condemned around the world,” Obama said in a statement. “Aung San Suu Kyi’s continued detention, isolation and show trial, based on spurious charges, cast serious doubt on the Burmese regime’s willingness to be a responsible member of the international community,” he said. “This is an important opportunity for the government in Burma to demonstrate that it respects its own laws and its own people.” In 1989, the nation’s military junta, which has been in power since 1962, changed the English translation of the country’s name from Burma to Myanmar. The United States is one of several countries to still use the former name. Jared Genser, Suu Kyi’s U.S.-based lawyer, expressed delight that Obama took a stand on the situation. He urged the world community to continue pressing this “threat to international peace and security posed by the ongoing actions of the Burmese junta.”

Somalis Flee Violence Some 67,000 Somalis in and around the capital city of Mogadishu have fled amid increased fighting between government forces and Islamist militias over the past three weeks, CNN reports. Those seeking to escape the violence are seeking shelter along the Afgooye corridor – a 19-mile stretch of shanties – outside the capital. The area already is home to nearly a half-million displaced Somalis, occupying homes built of twigs and branches. Clinics are overflowing with sick and starving children, and there is far too little medicine and food to accommodate them. Somalia’s transitional president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, is begging the international community “to help Somalia defend against foreign militants who have invaded the country,” according to CNN. He told journalists Monday that he feared his nation would become another Iraq or Afghanistan, where U.S.-led forces are fighting Islamic extremist groups. “We are starting today the distribution of aid for some 50,000 people in Afgooye corridor through our local partners in Somalia,” the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement Tuesday. “Today’s distribution will include cooking sets, plastic sheeting, blankets and mats.”

Obama to Burma: Let Opposition Leader Go!
Myanmar, the Asian nation formerly known as Burma, has no legal justification for detaining opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, President Obama said Tuesday in calling for her immediate, unconditional release. “I strongly condemn her house arrest and detention, which have also been condemned around the world,” Obama said in a statement. “Aung San Suu Kyi’s continued detention, isolation and show trial, based on spurious charges, cast serious doubt on the Burmese regime’s willingness to be a responsible member of the international community,” he said. “This is an important opportunity for the government in Burma to demonstrate that it respects its own laws and its own people.” In 1989, the nation’s military junta, which has been in power since 1962, changed the English translation of the country’s name from Burma to Myanmar. The United States is one of several countries to still use the former name. Jared Genser, Suu Kyi’s U.S.-based lawyer, expressed delight that Obama took a stand on the situation. He urged the world community to continue pressing this “threat to international peace and security posed by the ongoing actions of the Burmese junta.”

Somalis Flee Violenc
Some 67,000 Somalis in and around the capital city of Mogadishu have fled amid increased fighting between government forces and Islamist militias over the past three weeks, CNN reports. Those seeking to escape the violence are seeking shelter along the Afgooye corridor – a 19-mile stretch of shanties – outside the capital. The area already is home to nearly a half-million displaced Somalis, occupying homes built of twigs and branches. Clinics are overflowing with sick and starving children, and there is far too little medicine and food to accommodate them. Somalia’s transitional president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, is begging the international community “to help Somalia defend against foreign militants who have invaded the country,” according to CNN. He told journalists Monday that he feared his nation would become another Iraq or Afghanistan, where U.S.-led forces are fighting Islamic extremist groups. “We are starting today the distribution of aid for some 50,000 people in Afgooye corridor through our local partners in Somalia,” the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement Tuesday. “Today’s distribution will include cooking sets, plastic sheeting, blankets and mats.”

Obama Will Visit Ghana in the Summer
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama are scheduled to visit Africa in June and July. After the president attends the G-8 summit in Italy, the Obamas will visit Accra, Ghana, July 10 and July 11. “The President and Mrs. Obama look forward to strengthening the U.S. relationship with one of our most trusted partners in sub-Saharan Africa, and to highlighting the critical role that sound governance and civil society play in promoting lasting development,” the White House said in a statement. Obama is also set to visit Egypt in early June to give a speech about America and the Muslim world, reports CNN. 
 

Militants Take Over Somali City
Following a fight with government forces, Islamic militant group Al-Shabab took over the Somali city of Jowhar Sunday. Jowhar, which is 55 miles from Mogadishu, is the hometown of Somali President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. The takeover essentially has shut down the city. “All businesses are closed, and residents already are fleeing, while Al-Shabab are roaming the streets,” a journalist in Somalia told the news service. The rebels conducted “search operations in the police station and the provincial headquarters of the town” after seizing the city, the journalist said. Fighting between the group (which the United States claims has ties to al-Qaeda) and the nation’s transitional government has intensified in recent days. On Sunday, mortars hit a Mogadishu police academy killing one person and wounding 15. Violence between the government and Al-Shabab has killed 103 people and wounded 420, CNN reports, citing

Somalia’s Parliament Hit With Deadly Mortar Attack A mortar attack this weekend on Somalia’s parliament killed at least six and injured 15, reports CNN. The attack occurred in Mogadishu while members of the body were having a meeting, according to an official. “While we concluded our session, the prime minister and the House speaker were leaving from the venue when mortars started landing around the building,” said the deputy speaker of parliament, Osman Elmibogore. A soldier and three children were killed when the mortars hit a school in the vicinity. No parliament members were injured in the attack, according to authorities. Hussein Osman Dhumal, Mogadishu’s police spokesman said the attacked was perpetrated by people “who oppose peace in Somalia,” reports the news service.

Tourism Down in Caribbean Region The global recession has hit the Caribbean’s tourism industry hard, with some nations reporting a double-digit decline visits, reports the BBC. Tourism across the region is down except in Jamaica, Cuba and Mexico’s Cancun region, the Caribbean Tourism Organization said.  Anguilla has been hit the hardest with an 18.8 percent drop in tourism; Antigua, St. Lucia, Montserrat and the Cayman Islands saw tourism drops between 11 and 14 percent, while the Virgin Islands had a 6.1 percent drop and Puerto Rico saw a 4.7 percent drop in tourism, according to CTO.