Highlight
The president of the Federal Government of Somalia HE Hassan Sheikh Mohamud addressing the ongoing war on Al Shabaab in Somalia pledged the group’s days in the country are numbered.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Wednesday 30th September 2015 addressed the ongoing Leaders’ Summit on Countering ISIL and Violent Extremism, hosted by US President Barack Obama, on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Summary
During the global counter terror summit, major blows dealt against the Harakat Al Shabaab Al Mujahideen (HSM) were revealed. the offensives were dealt by the AU backed Somali National Army that have rendered the Al Qaeda affiliate in East Africa deteriorate drastically.
Once HSM is defeated after decades of crippling Somalia’s development, the country will emerge as the first ever to defeat an international terror network on its soil, with committed support of regional and international aid.
Analysts have concluded that the terror group which once controlled swathes of regions within Somali, and still afforded to operate cells across its borders, has been in the recent past been reduced to operating within temporary makeshift tents which continue to be hit by AMISOM troops and SNA at every opportunity.
Over the past three years, FGS has regained key towns and infrastructure. Al-Shabaab has lost more than 80 percent of its territory. These measures, by Somali and AMISOM forces, have revealed that al- Shabaab is vulnerable to coordinated military action.
Taking from her neighbor Kenya, Somalia has adopted the powerful community policing tool that has opened civilian participation in Somalia, countering recruitment and radicalization. These were tools that made the terror group thrive.
Recent Strategies against Al Shabaab
- AMISOM troops are committed to increase offensives to wear out the militant group
- International body deploying more troops to win war alongside the AU mandate
- Most of the bases the Al Shabaab controlled for years have been cleared off the militants.
- There is a more energized Somali National Army. Volunteers recently trained by the Ethiopian forces will ensure the future of Somalia relies on an able defense body
With AU and global support, Somalia is committed towards defeating Al Shabaab, consolidating liberation gains, and investing in reconciliation processes to extend governance in newly recovered areas so that militants do not find it relevant to fill any gaps.
