Libya dismisses 2 security officers in Banghazi

 

Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie (L) hosts a welcoming ceremony for U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 18, 2012. Liang Guanglie held talks with Leon Panetta in Beijing on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

 Libya's interior minister has dismissed two security chief officers, a move obviously related to last week's attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi.
The two sacked officials are Wanis al-Sharef, deputy interior minister in charge of Libya's eastern region, and Hussein Bou Hmida, chief of national security for Benghazi, according to Libyan interior ministry's documents obtained by Xinhua on Monday.
Angered by an alleged U.S.-made movie that insults Prophet Mohammed, hundreds of protesters broke into the U.S. consulate building in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi on Sept. 11, resulting in the death of U.S. ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other Americans
Meanwhile humanitarian and development organization, African Development Solution (Adeso) said on Monday it has launched a new project in the Puntland State of Somalia aimed at strengthening women's political participation.
   Adeso said the peace building activities will target over 300 Somali councillors and civil society organizations as well as the Puntland Ministry of Women Development and Family Affairs (MOWDAFA) .
   "This project will provide consistent capacity development over a period of two years through technical support, institutional capacity building, and training on various thematic areas, including: policy and advocacy, conflict resolution," Adeso said in a statement issued in Nairobi on Monday.
   The initiative, which will run over a period of two years, intends to promote gender equality and women's empowerment and political participation in Somalia to foster the development of an inclusive, transparent and accountable society.
   The initiative comes a day after the Horn of Africa nation inaugurated President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud, marking the end of the transitional period and the beginning of a "new era" for a country that has seen tremendous strife over the past several decades.
   The election and subsequent inauguration of the leadership in Somalia marked the culmination of a series of landmark steps to bring an end to the country's 8-year political transition that also included the adoption of Somalia's provisional constitution, the establishment of the New Federal Parliament and the appointment of that body's Speaker.
   According to Adeso, despite the crucial role they play within society, Somali women are still not adequately involved in political decision-making, and are sidelined in their efforts to meaningfully participate in political processes.
   The organization said women have consistently been excluded from key discussions and have little or no say in what is effectively the creation of a new vision of Somali society.
   "Against this background, this initiative intends to improve women civil society representatives and councillors' ability to contribute to, and implement, peace and development policies and monitoring and evaluation," it said.
   It is expected that by the end of this project there will be an increase in the number of women engaged in governance and peace processes.
   Adeso said continuous engagement with the Ministry over a period of two years will further allow them to effectively implement and monitor their strategic plan and gender strategy, and develop an action plan to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1325 which deals with women's participation in peace negotiations and in post-conflict reconstruction.
   In addition, it said 100 men will also receive training on inclusion of women in local governance issues, decision making and peace processes in order to make more space for women's participation in political and civil processes. (Xinhua)