Annalena was still in the hospital compound when two men approached her, and one of them shot her twice in the head, at a close range, around 8:30 pm. She was rushed to Borama General Hospital where doctors tried to save her life. But by 9:15 Annalena was pronounced dead.

15 minutes after Annalena was shot, Mustafa Mohamed Yusuf (31) known as Ail, and Abi-Bakar Mohamed Ismail were arrested by the Borama police in connection with her killing.

According to police sources, Mustafa M. Yusuf was heard in the afternoon before the killing threatening Annalena that she would be in trouble if she didn’t give him the job of a driver of a vehicle that was to be purchased for the TB hospital. Police sources said there were good reasons to suspect that Mustafa had allegedly carried out the murder in collaboration with Abi-baker M. Ismail, who worked as a free-lance translator for the hospital. Both men are related through their mothers.

The next Monday morning, police arrested two more suspects: Ahmed Hassan Nur (21) and Abdulkader Hussein Rabile (35). How these two arrests were related to the killing was still unknown.

Last Wednesday, the police detained what were believed to be major eyewitnesses to the murder. Ahmed Mussa Yaab-arag (32) and Koos Nur Abdi (25) were taken in police custody for long interrogations. According to police sources, both men were present in the hospital compound at the time Annalena was allegedly shot by the prime suspect, Mustafa M. Yusuf.

Though government officials tend to believe that Annalena’s killing was most likely an isolated case, they are not ruling out the possibility of other motives being involved. As published in our sister newspaper, Haatuf, last September, stone-throwing kids had on a number of occasions in the past, waged mob demonstrations around Annalena’s project sites. It was not known who was behind those actions.

Yesterday, Imams in over 30 Mosques in Borama, took the opportunity of the Juma (Friday) prayers, to express their condolences to the family and friends of Annalena. They condemned her killing, and talked about the good work she had done for the people of Borama.

On Tuesday morning a rally held in Borama in honor of Annalena was attended by about 5 thousand people. The rally was addressed by the Awdal Region's Governor, Mohamed Abdillahi, and Borama's Mayor, Abdulrahman Omer. The mayor told the crowd that his council took the decision of naming the Borama TB Hospital and a main street in the town after Annalena Tonelli.

A lawyer by training, Annalena who came from Forli’, northern Italy, had worked with Somalis in the Somali-inhabited northeastern parts of Kenya, Somalia and Somaliland for 33 years. Ms. Tonelli arrived in Somaliland in 1996. With donations from friends and family, she established a 200-bed hospital for tuberculosis patients in Borama. A new two story ward for the hospital was supposed to be inaugurated on Monday. She had also set up a school for the deaf, and planned to turn it into an integrated school for the deaf and blind. Ms Tonelli also used to sponsor, twice every year, visits to Borama by surgeons from a German Charity who had successfully restored vision to around 4000 people, at an estimated market cost value of USD 20 million.

The assassination of Annalena Tonelli was a terrible shock for the people of Somaliland. In the capital city, Hargeisa, a memorial service was held in honor. The ceremony was attended by the Vice President, Ahmed Yusuf Yasin, and the Chair of the powerful House of Elders (upper House of Parliament), Sheikh Ibrahim, Minister of Interior Ismail A. Osman, and representatives of international organizations such as UNHCR, UNICEF, UNDP and others.

In the town of Forli’, Annalena’s birthplace, a square and a public garden were dedicated to Annalena Tonelli. According to Roberta Invidia, an Italian journalist who works for “La Voce di Romagna”, a Forli’-based daily, Annalena became very popular in Italy after she was awarded the Nansen prize last April. “Many young people came to see her when she came back to Forli’, her birth place, last June,” Invidia said.

On how Annalena’s death was received in Italy, Roberta Invidia said, “The killing was on the first pages of all the major newspapers and on the TV news. The President of the Italian Republic, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi gave a touching speech in memory of Annalena, and the Foreign minister Frattini spoke of a hateful murder.”

Many people in Italy believe that her killing had something to do with her involvement in the fight against Aids and FGM. Unconfirmed reports said Annalena Tonelli’s funeral had already taken place at Wajeer, Kenya. The funeral ceremony was private, and was attended by Annalena’s brother Bruno and his wife, the reports added.

Women in the small town of Dar-al-Salam, 40km north of Hargeisa, observed a one-day food fast, in honor of Annalena. She visited the town once, for collecting blood samples, for Malaria tests, and promised to come back to the town, which Annalena said, reminded her of Forli’.



 

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