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John Drysdale (historian)
John Gordon Stewart Drysdale (21 May 1925 – 10 July 2016), also known as Abbas Idriss, was a British-born army officer, diplomat, writer, historian, publisher, and businessman. Drysdale, who spent much of his career in Singapore, Somalia and Somaliland, founded several important academic journals and publications, including the '' Africa Research Bulletin'', the ''Asia Research Bulletin'', and the ''Asean Economic Quarterly''. Drysdale served in the British Army during World War II and later became an army officer. He first visited the then-protectorate of British Somaliland in 1943 as a teenage member of the British Army. During World War II, he served with Somali and British Somaliland soldiers during the Burma Campaign and Singapore. Drysdale joined the British Colonial Service and its successor, the Foreign Service, following the end of World War II, which allowed him to return to postings in Africa. He served in the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) and the former Italian Som ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Army Officer
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent contextual qualification, the term typically refers only to a force's ''commissioned officers'', the more senior members who derive their authority from a commission from the head of state. Numbers The proportion of officers varies greatly. Commissioned officers typically make up between an eighth and a fifth of modern armed forces personnel. In 2013, officers were the senior 17% of the British armed forces, and the senior 13.7% of the French armed forces. In 2012, officers made up about 18% of the German armed forces, and about 17.2% of the United States armed forces. Historically, however, armed forces have generally had much lower proportions of officers. During the First World War, fewer than 5% of British soldiers were officers (partly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and north-west of mainland Australia. Southeast Asia is bordered to the north by East Asia, to the west by South Asia and the Bay of Bengal, to the east by Oceania and the Pacific Ocean, and to the south by Australia (continent), Australia and the Indian Ocean. Apart from the British Indian Ocean Territory and two out of atolls of Maldives, 26 atolls of Maldives in South Asia, Maritime Southeast Asia is the only other subregion of Asia that lies partly within the Southern Hemisphere. Mainland Southeast Asia is completely in the Northern Hemisphere. East Timor and the southern portion of Indonesia are the only parts that are south of the Equator. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Mogadishu (1993)
The Battle of Mogadishu ( so, Maalintii Rangers, translation=Day of the Rangers), also known as the Black Hawk Down incident, was part of Operation Gothic Serpent. It was fought on 3–4 October 1993, in Mogadishu, Somalia, between forces of the United States—supported by UNOSOM II—against the forces of the Somali National Alliance (SNA) and citizens of south Mogadishu. The battle was part of the broader Somali Civil War that had begun in 1991. The United Nations had initially become involved to provide food aid to alleviate starvation in the south of the country, but in the months preceding the battle, had shifted the mission to establishing democracy and restoring a central government. Seven months after the deployment of U.S. troops to Somalia, on June 5, 1993, the U.N. would suffer the worst loss of its peacekeepers in decades when the Pakistani contingent was attacked while inspecting an SNA weapons storage site. Mohammed Farah Aidid, head of the SNA, would bec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somali National Alliance
The Somali National Alliance (abbreviated SNA) was a political alliance formed on 16 June 1992 by four different rebel groups that had been in opposition to the regime of Somali President Siad Barre. They would represent one of the major factions involved in Somali Civil War and would most famously face off against UNOSOM II during the summer and fall of 1993. Following the 1991 split in the ''United Somali Congress'' (USC) between Mohamed Farah Aidid and Ali Mahdi, along with the later routing of Barres forces out of Somalia and into Kenya in 1992, a tentative military coalition that had existed between different rebel organizations would morph into the political organization known as the SNA. The alliance would include Aidids wing of the USC, the ''Somali Patriotic Movement'' (SPM), the '' Somali Southern National Movement'' (SSNM) and ''Somali Democratic Movement'' (SDM). The SNA claimed to possess the goal of working toward forming a national reconciliation government and an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
June 1993 Attack On Pakistani Military In Somalia
The June 5th 1993 attack on Pakistanis was a major confrontation that occurred concurrently in different parts of the Somali capital of Mogadishu, between Somali citizens & militias against the Pakistani peacekeeping contingent of UNOSOM II. The event marked a seminal moment for the United Nations operation in Somalia. It was the deadliest loss of UN peacekeepers since the Congo in 1961 and would consequently lead to UNOSOM II being primarily characterized by the hunt for General Mohammed Farah Aidid. This would result in an escalating cycle of violence which led to the 13 June 1993 killings of Somali protestors by Pakistani troops, the 12 July 1993 Bloody Monday raid and 3-4 October 1993 Battle of Mogadishu. Background and rationale for inspection An agreement had been previously signed between the warring Somali factions and UNOSOM to store heavy weaponry in ''"Authorized Weapons Storage Sites"'' (AWSS)'','' which would be subject to UN inspections. June 5th, 1993, woul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mohamed Farrah Aidid
Mohamed Farrah Hassan Aidid ( so, Maxamed Faarax Xasan Caydiid; ar, محمد فرح حسن عيديد; 15 December 1934 – 1 August 1996) was a Somali general and diplomat. Educated in both Rome and Moscow, he served as a chief in the Italian colonial police force and later as a brigadier general in the Somali National Army. He would eventually became chairman of the United Somali Congress (USC), and soon after the Somali National Alliance (SNA). Along with other armed opposition groups, he succeeded in toppling President Siad Barre's 22 year old regime following the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991. Aidid possessed aspirations for presidency of the new Somali government, and would begin to seek alliances and unions with other politico-military organizations in order to form a national government. Following the June 5, 1993 attack on the Pakistanis, the SNA - and by extension Aidid, would be blamed for the death of 25 UNOSOM II peacekeepers, causing him to become one ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Nations Operation In Somalia II
United Nations Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II) was the second phase of the United Nations intervention in Somalia and took place from March 1993 until March 1995, following the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991. UNOSOM II carried on from the United States-controlled (UN-sanctioned) Unified Task Force (UNITAF). It had been active for a transition period when United Nations Operation in Somalia I (UNOSOM I) mission proved to be ineffectual. All three of these interventions were intended to establish a secure enough environment for humanitarian operations to be carried out. Four months into its mandate, UNOSOM II would shift into a military campaign as it became embroiled in conflict, primarily against the Somali National Alliance led by Gen. Mohammed Farah Aidid. The infamous Battle of Mogadishu would take place during UNOSOM II, signifying the end of the hunt for Aidid and major operations in Somalia. The United Nations would pull out of Somalia one year later, mark ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somalian Literature
Somali literature is the literature used by the ethnic Somalis of Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Yemen, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Somali poetry Nation of Bards Due to the Somali people's passionate love for and facility with poetry, Somalia has also been called by, among others, the Canadian novelist and scholar Margaret Laurence, a "Nation of Poets" and a "Nation of Bards". The 19th-century British explorer Richard Francis Burton, who visited the Somali Peninsula, similarly recounts in his book ''First Footsteps in East Africa'' how: According to Canadian novelist and scholar Margaret Laurence, who originally coined the term "Nation of Poets" to describe the Somali Peninsular, the Eidagale sub-section of the Garhajis clan were viewed as "the recognized experts in the composition of poetry" by their fellow Somali contemporaries: Structure There is a crucial distinction between the different forms of Somali poetry. The forms differ by number of syllables in each verse o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
History Of Somalia
Somalia ( so, Soomaaliya; ), officially the Federal Republic of Somalia ( so, Jamhuuriyadda Federaalka Soomaaliya, ) and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. The country was an important centre for commerce with the rest of the ancient world, and according to most scholars, it is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt.Christine El Mahdy, ''Egypt : 3000 Years of Civilization Brought to Life'', (Raincoast Books: 2005), p.297.Stefan Goodwin, ''Africa's legacies of urbanization: unfolding saga of a continent'', (Lexington Books: 2006), p. 48. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali states and port towns dominated the regional trade, the Mogadishu Sultanate and Ajuran Sultanate both centered around the port town Mogadishu, but also the port towns of Barawe and Merca. In the late 19th century, through a succession of treaties with these kingdoms, the Italian colonial empire gained control of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somali Culture
The culture of Somalia is an amalgamation of traditions in that were developed independently since the Proto-Somali era. The hypernym of the term ''Somali'' from a geopolitical sense is ''Horner'' and from an ethnic sense, it is '' Cushite''. Overview The cultural diffusion of Somali commercial enterprise can be detected in its exotic cuisine, which contains Southeast Asian influences. Due to the Somali people's for and facility with poetry, Somalia has often been referred to as a "Nation of Poets" and a "Nation of Bards", as, for example, by the Canadian novelist Margaret Laurence. Somalis have a story-telling tradition. According to Canadian novelist and scholar Margaret Laurence, who originally coined the term "Nation of Poets" to describe the Somali Peninsular, the Eidagale clan were viewed as "the recognized experts in the composition of poetry" by their fellow Somali contemporaries: Among the tribes, the Eidagalla are the recognized experts in the composition of poetry. O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somali Language
Somali (Latin script: ; Wadaad writing, Wadaad: ; Osmanya: 𐒖𐒍 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘 ) is an Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language belonging to the Cushitic languages, Cushitic branch. It is spoken as a mother tongue by Somalis in Greater Somalia and the Somali diaspora. Somali is an official language in Somalia and Ethiopia, and a national language in Djibouti as well as in northeastern Kenya. The Somali language is written officially with the Somali Latin alphabet, Latin alphabet although the Arabic alphabet and several Somali scripts like Osmanya script, Osmanya, Kaddare script, Kaddare and the Gadabuursi Somali Script, Borama script are informally used.Lewis, I.M. (1958)The Gadabuursi Somali Script ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies'', University of London, Vol. 21, pp. 134–156. Classification Somali is classified within the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic family, specifically, Lowland East Cushitic languages, Lowland East Cushitic in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prime Ministers Of Somalia
This is a list of prime ministers of Somalia. The prime minister of Somalia ( so, Ra'iisul wasaaraha Soomaaliya) is the head of government of Somalia. There have been 22 official prime ministers since the office was created in 1956. The first prime minister was Abdullahi Issa, who served prior to independence in the Trust Territory of Somaliland. The current prime minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia is Hamza Abdi Barre, approved by the House of the People on 25 June 2022. List Somali prime ministers are given a new number even when they are reappointed. For example, former prime minister Omar Sharmarke wrote on his Twitter page, "13th and 18th Prime Minister of Somalia." The seat had long been vacant since Umar Ghalib stepped down as prime minister, but Ali Khalif Galaydh became the eighth in August 2000. The acting prime minister is not numbered. For example, Osman Jama Ali was acting prime minister between Ali Khalif Galaydh, the eighth, and Hassan Abshir Farah, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
