Official: Somali state minister for defense kidnapped in Uganda

October 6th, 2009 Somali defense minister kidnapped in UgandaMOGADISHU, Somalia — An official says Somalia's defense minister has been kidnapped in Uganda's capital. A Somali government spokesman says Defense Minister Yusuf Mohamed Siad was abducted Tuesday as he walked out of a mosque in the Ugandan capital, Kampala.

September 9th, 2009 Ugandan army rescues 100 kidnapped childrenKAMPALA, Uganda — An army spokesman says Ugandan forces have rescued 100 kidnapped children and young adults during an operation against a brutal Ugandan rebel group in neighboring Central African Republic. Lt. Col. Felix Kulaigye says Ugandan forces also captured a senior commander from the Lord's Resistance Army.

August 11th, 2009 Somali pirates make expense claim for holding shipNAIROBI, Kenya — A Somali governor says no ransom was paid for the release of an Italian tug boat that pirates held for four months. But Sanag Governor Mohamed Said Nur told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the pirates were paid $270,000 for food and other supplies used to sustain the 16-member crew of the Buccaneer since April.

July 18th, 2009 Official: 3 aide workers kidnapped in KenyaNAIROBI, Kenya — Gunmen have seized three foreign aid workers in northern Kenya and taken them across the border into Somalia, a security official said Saturday. Roughly 10 gunmen arrived late on Friday night at a house in the border town of Mandera where the workers were staying, shot the watchman in the head and kidnapped the three, the official said, speaking anonymously because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

July 18th, 2009 Official: 3 aid workers kidnapped in KenyaNAIROBI, Kenya — Gunmen have seized three foreign aid workers in northern Kenya and taken them across the border into Somalia, a security official said Saturday. Roughly 10 gunmen arrived late Friday night at a house in the border town of Mandera where the workers were staying, shot the watchman in the head and kidnapped the three, the official said, speaking anonymously because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

July 16th, 2009 Somali minister: Gov't in talks with kidnappersPARIS — The Somali government is negotiating with the kidnappers of two French security advisers taken hostage in Mogadishu earlier this week, a Somali minister told French TV. Social Affairs Minister Mohammed Ali Ibrahim said the two men, abducted Tuesday from their hotel, had been separated and were being held by two different groups.

July 15th, 2009 Somali DM: Arrests made in French advisers kidnapMOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia's defense minister tells French radio that authorities have arrested suspects in the kidnapping of two French security advisers in the Somali capital. Defense Minister Mohamed Abdi Ghandi said on France's RFI radio Wednesday that troops also have gone to areas where the hostages might be.

July 15th, 2009 Somalia reports arrests in French advisers' kidnapMOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali authorities have arrested suspects in the kidnapping of two French security advisers in the Somali capital, Somalia's defense minister told French radio Wednesday. Defense Minister Mohamed Abdi Ghandi said on RFI radio that troops also have gone to areas where the hostages might be.

July 14th, 2009 2 French security advisers seized at Somali hotelNAIROBI, Kenya — Two French security advisers on a mission to train Somali forces were kidnapped Tuesday at a hotel where they had checked in as journalists, officials and witnesses said. About 10 gunmen arrived at the Sahafi Hotel in a small car and a pickup truck mounted with machine guns before several of the men disarmed the guards and stormed inside, said Abdi Mohamed Ahmed, a witness who runs a tea shop nearby.

July 13th, 2009 Uganda willing to arrest al-Bashir for war crimesKAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda said Monday it would arrest Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir if he enters the country, an unusual stance after a summit of African leaders denounced the international arrest warrant against al-Bashir. Henry Oryem Okello, Uganda's minister for international affairs, spoke after meeting with the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, in Kampala.

June 29th, 2009 Somali rebels threaten violent response to US armsMOGADISHU, Somalia — A radical Islamic group in Somalia has threatened to seize weapons and ammunition the U.S. has supplied to the nation's embattled government.

June 25th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has sought details of request made by Uganda for training its police officials in ballistic, according to an official release. During a meeting with visiting Ugandan Minister of Internal Affairs Matia Kasaija here Thursday, Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Maken asked Uganda to furnish a detailed proposal for training its police personnel.

June 23rd, 2009 MOGADISHU - The Somali government has declared a state of emergency in the war torn country as government forces battled insurgents. "The Somali government decided to impose a state of emergency on the country so that we can overcome the difficult situation the country is going through," President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed said at a press conference in Mogadishu.

May 8th, 2009 Father, daughter among those kidnapped by piratesCONSTANTA, Romania — The wife and mother of two Romanian sailors kidnapped by Somali pirates has made an emotional plea for their safety. Elena Sarchizian told Associated Press Television News that she would give "my heart and soul" to have her husband and daughter safely returned.

January 23rd, 2009 MOGADISHU - A car bomb attack in this Somali capital killed at least 14 civilians Saturday, according to agencies' reports. The attack took place near a base of African Union peacekeepers.