Somalia PM: Stop clan conflicts, Al-Shabaab is our enemy

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Prime Minister Hamsa Abdi Barre has rallied Somalis to stop fuelling clan conflicts which have severely affected the fight against Al-Shabaab militants, who control large swathes of rural central and southern regions of the country.

Somalis, he says, should unite and shun tribal differences for the sake of assisting the fight against Al-Shabaab militants. The Al-Shabaab have often explored differences among clans to continue pushing for their agenda in Somalia.

Barre insisted Al-Shabaab takes advantage of clan differences to inflict pain on innocent civilians and security officers. The group has been fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia for the last two decades.

Barre promised that the federal government would take firm action against anyone who is found to be involved in working clan feuds. Inter-clan conflicts are synonymous with Somalia's politics.

“Many of the troops that we would have sent to other jobs are busy bringing peaceful dialogue between the Somali community and the enemy is the source of the conflicts, the Somali people are required to make a firm decision and grow from clan politics, he said.

Hamsa Abdi Barre said that Somali people should not be shedding their blood in political or communal wars that can be resolved through a ceasefire urge the community to back the country in liberating the country from Al-Shabab.

The al-Shabaab militants have suffered casualties in recent months, losing strategic towns in central and southern regions in the process. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud pledged to eliminate the militants by the end of 2024.

GAROWE ONLINE