Garowe Online (Garowe)

Somalia PM Lands in Merka, Meets Local Community

31 January 2013

Merka — Somalia's Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon landed in the southern town of Merka on Thursday, Garowe Online reports.

Prime Minister Shirdon's delegation included Cabinet ministers for Interior, Information, Finance, and Defense, Members of Parliament, as well as senior military officials.

The Prime Minister, who travelled from Mogadishu to Merka by heli copter, held meetings with local government officials and communities in Merka and Shalambood districts, of Lower Shabelle region.

Merka is a small port town located 90km south of Mogadishu and was formerly a stronghold for Al Shabaab militants, until Somali government forces aided by African troops (AMISOM) seized the town in 2012.

It is Prime Minister Shirdon's first visit to Merka since President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud appointed him as the country's Prime Minister in Oct. 2012.

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