Somalia

The Barakaat Telecommunications Company, the largest in Somalia, has closed down its international telephone services throughout Somalia, after its British and American business partners terminated their relationship with the Al-Barakaat group, a senior company official told IRIN. The move has greatly limited telephone contact between the country and the outside world.

Somalis from every walk of life have been reacting with dismay, anger and fear to the decision last week by the US government to order the closure the Al-Barakaat money transfer company, one of Somalia's biggest, which is also the only source of income for tens of thousands of destitute Somalis.

Armed militia are still denying entry into the conference hall of the general congress of the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland, northeastern Somalia, a local journalist told IRIN on Monday.

The president of the Transitional National Government (TNG), of Somalia, Abdiqassim Salad Hassan, on Monday announced the appointment of Hasan Abshir Farah as his new prime minister, the TNG director of information told IRIN.

Thousands of Somali refugees were repatriated from camps in neighbouring Ethiopia last month, bringing the total of returnees for this year to more than 43,000.

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