Somalia: Joint command to regulate operations against Al-Shabaab

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The federal government of Somalia will establish a Joint Command in operations against Al-Shabaab militants, the National Consultative Council [NCC] has said, noting that there is hope the group will be defeated in coming months once military activities are activated.

Somalia held the first phase of operations against Al-Shabaab moments after President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was reelected in June 2022, and the exercise left over 3,000 fighters dead. According to reports, over 3,500 others were critically injured in the operations.

The Joint Command Structure, it emerged, would bring together members of the Somali National Army [SNA], the US Africa Command, and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS]. The three teams have been cooperating in the fight against Al-Shabaab.

Early this year, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud confirmed that Kenya, Djibouti, and Ethiopia had agreed to deploy non-ATMIS troops to the country to assist those on the frontlines. However, the three countries are yet to confirm participation in the second phase of operations against the group.

The second phase is set to focus on Jubaland and Southwest states where Al-Shabaab has been dominant for ages and already, hundreds of soldiers have been dispatched ahead of military activities. The Al-Shabaab group has also been waging retaliatory attacks in different parts of Somalia.

For instance, after losing control of Oswein village last week, the Al-Shabaab militants returned and inflicted losses on the Somali National Army over the weekend, triggering massive debate on the preparedness of the local army in the operations. The foreign military has been exquisite in both aerial surveillance and ground combat.

During the NCC meeting, participants agreed to align the current operations to the national counter-terrorism strategy. In the second phase of the operations, the NCC agreed to ‘accelerate preparations’ for the offensive which will move south to the west, parts of HirShabelle and Jubaland states.

Top commanders from the Kenya Defence Forces who spoke with Voice of America claimed the KDF is ready to join operations in Jubaland, which at times acts as a buffer zone in the Al-Shabaab war. Kenya has been for a long time worked closely with Jubaland in the Al-Shabaab war.

GAROWE ONLINE