UN Envoy deeply concerned by murder of Somali MPs following the death of fifth MP

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia (SRSG), Nicholas Kay, has condemned the murder today of Sheikh Aden Madeer, a Member of the Somali Federal Parliament, and expressed his concern over the continued attacks on MPs.

Mr. Madeer was killed inMogadishu. He served as Chairperson of the Finance Committee of the Federal Parliament of Somalia. Mr. Madeer is the fifth MP to be assassinated in 2014.

“The assassination of Sheikh Aden Madeer is an appalling act,” SRSG Kay said. “The murder of MPs is an attempt to intimidate and undermine those working to build a better Somalia. Their killers will not achieve that objective.

“I commend Somalia’s MPs for their courage and dedication in the face of continued attacks against them. The UN is committed to supporting the important work of the Federal Parliament,” he added. “Urgent action is needed to bring the perpetrators to justice.”

SRSG Kay offers his sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Madeer, as well as to the Federal Parliament of Somalia.

Meanwhile Somalia Parliament Speaker Mohamed Osman Jawari and Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed condemned the attack calling the security forces to immediately investigate the killing.

The Al Qaeda-linked militant group Al Shabab took credit of the assassination of the MP. The group’s spokesman Sheikh Abdiasis abu Musab vowed that they will continue killing MPs as they were those approved the African Union forces to intervene Somalia.