A CLOSER LOOK
Emergency declared: The United Nations has declared a wide swath of central Somalia a humanitarian emergency, the final stage before a full-blown famine. But Christian Balslev-Olesen, the head of UNICEF operations in Somalia, said the situation was likely to become a famine in the coming weeks.
Key indicators: Famine is defined by several criteria, including malnutrition, mortality, food and water scarcity, and destruction of livelihood. Some of those factors, like an acute malnutrition rate of 24 percent in some areas of Somalia, have already soared past emergency thresholds.
Projections: The United Nations says 2.6 million Somalis need assistance and the number could soon swell to 3.5 million, nearly half the estimated population. If there is excellent rain or a sudden outbreak of peace, the crisis may ease. But weather projections and even the rosiest political forecasts don't predict that.
THE LATEST
Aid organization leader killed: Ahmed Bariyow, the director of Somalia's Horn Relief organization, was shot and killed as he was walking home Saturday night in Kismayo by masked gunmen, a relative said. His cousin, Ahmed Yonis, said he was walking behind Bariyow when three masked men armed with pistols suddenly appeared, stopped him and fired repeated shots into his chest and head. The reason for the assassination is not known.
Humanitarian aid seized: Somali pirates on Saturday hijacked a Jordanian ship carrying humanitarian aid to Mogadishu, in the latest attack off the lawless Somali coast. About a dozen crew members from Pakistan, India, Tanzania and Bangladesh were on board the ship, according to Jordan's official Petra news agency.
Islamists take town: Islamic insurgents seized the town of Jilib, a major Somalia agricultural center, sending hundreds of people fleeing Saturday, a human rights leader said. The attack underscored the government's vulnerabilities, as U.N.-sponsored peace talks stalled in neighboring Djibouti. Two militiamen were killed and three others were wounded, said Ali Bashi, of the Fanole rights group. The town is in a volatile area where two foreign U.N. contractors were abducted months ago and are still missing.
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