Tag Archives: Somalia

Ethiopian troops attacked Shabaab forces in the town of Beledweyne; Shabaab claimed their forces repelled the assault. A clan in Puntland blamed Shabaab for killing a prominent cleric.

The Kenyan military denied Shabaab’s claim that 11 of its troops were killed during fighting near Qooqani. The Kenyan military said only one of its soldiers were killed, while five Shabaab fighters were also killed.

Heavy clashes between Shabaab and AMISOM peacekeepers erupted in Mogadishu, resulting in casualties to both sides. A disgruntled former employee shot at least two international workers from the aid group Doctors Without Borders in Mogadishu. Somali pirates are steering the hijacked Italian vessel Enrico Levoli toward the Somali coast.

At least 10 Shabaab fighters were killed by Somali and Kenyan forces during a clash in the Burgabo village of Lower Jubba province. Somali officials said cutting off remittance flows could further destabilize the country. Somali pirates have hijacked an Italian cargo ship and its 18 employees and are holding them for ransom.

Shabaab has aggressively recruited children as young as eight in southern Somalia to fight government and African Union forces. A member of parliament, Hassan Ali Adan, was shot in Mogadishu. The Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama’a militia has rejected a power-sharing agreement with Somalia’s political leaders.

One person was killed during fighting between Somali and Shabaab forces in Mogadishu. Helicopters launched attacks on the island of Kudhaa. Shabaab arrested 14 businessmen in Beledweyne for displaying non-Islamic signs.

Somali authorities arrested the suspected gunman who killed local journalist Abdisalan Sheik Hassan on Dec. 18. A prominent Shabaab leader known as Sheikh Muktar Abdirahman has vowed “not to give up” in the attempt to implement Sharia law in Somalia.

A resident of a refugee camp in Matabaan shot and killed three aid workers. Somali soldiers shot and killed a civilian in Mogadishu. The British government is considering providing direct military assistance to international troops fighting Shabaab in Somalia.

A possible rift among Shabaab fighters fractured the militia into smaller groups in the Bay and Bakool regions. Shabaab has threatened to kill at least two Somali Members of Parliament. Two Shabaab assassins were sent to Kenya to kill senior government officials.

Kenyan fighter planes killed 11 people during airstrikes on Shabaab fighters in Hosingow near the southern border. Five people were killed during fighting in the Daynile district in Mogadishu.

Over 200 Djiboutian troops arrived in Mogadishu to join the African Union force. Residents of Kismayo, a Shabaab stronghold, are facing a severe food shortage. Officials warned that the Tanzania-Kenya border post of Namanga could be easily infiltrated by Shabaab.

Shabaab fighters beheaded three men they accused of spying in the Lower Jubba region. Clashes between Ahlu Sunnah militiamen and armed government supporters in Galgudud province left at least 10 dead. A local journalist was killed in Mogadishu by a man in a Somali government uniform.

Shabaab fighters blocked two International Committee of the Red Cross convoys carrying emergency food aid. Aid worker sources said Shabaab wanted to check “the quality” of the food. The Somali Peace Alliance has welcomed Djiboutian peacekeeping forces to help stabilize Somalia.