Somalia’s Foreign Minister Yusuf Garaad in a letter to the United States has requested for immediate military assistance to prevent Al Shabaab from mining and supplying Uranium to Iran. The letter said that the militants have captured a region with uranium deposits and have been strip mining the components.
Somalia is said to have the potential for uranium, according to past findings by the International Atomic Energy Agency, but this has not been developed. While the claims by the minister have not been substantiated, word in the US is that the letter has been received and the allegations yet to be proved.
Iran and the US have been in a tussle over the development of nuclear weapons by the former. If the claims are true, the al Shabaab will find a new source of income after their charcoal business was ruined by the AU forces deployed in Somalia. Moreover, Iran would be in direct violation of the nuclear deal and as such risk more sanctions as well as other intricate measures.
