Study al-Shabaab beast well

Friday, September 3 2010 at 00:00

We have seen that al-Shabaab is a group of terrorists that needs urgent attention before causing another loss of lives on African soil. Before the Kampala bombing, which killed over 76 innocent people, no body could believe their capacity to strike beyond Somalia.It appears that the command system of al-Shabaab might have been decentralised and the group broken down into cells to give the regional al-Shabaab commanders greater autonomy to carry out attacks whenever and wherever they felt like. This extremist group has gone to the extent of sending its terror actions to the Kenyan border with Somalia. During the IGAD military chief’s forum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, delegates agreed to take the battle to al-Shabaab. However, this needs to be done with great caution. Lessons from other battles against terrorist groups suggest that increasing the number of soldiers is not the only solution. Rallying the local population to appreciate the threat of these terrorist groups to the region and economic development is of cardinal importance. I am sure it will be an up-hill task for the peacekeepers from the African Union Mission to Somalia to uproot this group.What the force should be doing in its initial stages is to help the Somalia government to strengthen its political institutions to deal with terrorist threats. What Somalia needs is a strong, legitimate government, development and smart counter insurgency. It may not be easy to imagine for a country that has not had an effective government since the overthrow of Siad Barre in 1991, but if implemented in the long-run, it may benefit the region and the world in general. The joint force may succeed in eliminating this group, but what will happen when the African Union force withdraws from Somalia? We need coordinated efforts to fight this terrorist group. Today is Uganda but tomorrow the group may plan to hit other countries within and out side East Africa.

Meanwhile, hijacking of ships has become a major global concern. Security experts fear that the ransom money the pirates are receiving will allow this terrorist group to buy better equipments and weapons.
Al-shabab’s ability to strike in Uganda –which does not border Somalia, is an indication that it has grown in both size and financial ability. In order to reduce its power, there is a need for the African Union force to deny them access to the seaport of Kismayu and air fields and at the same time, monitor waters in the gulf of Eden.
Festus Ngamije, Kigali Daily Nation