President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has expressed confidence that his new military offensive against Al-Shabaab will “defeat” the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamist group that has long terrorized the Horn of Africa. However, he acknowledges that negotiations with the group may not be feasible at this time.
Speaking to the Financial Times, the president said his ultimate aim was to back the militant group into such a tight corner that it had no option but to talk peace. “Al-Shabaab still feels it can survive, and we also believe the opportunity for negotiations is not yet mature. But in the end, this will end up with negotiations,” Mohamud stated.
The country’s forces have been gaining ground against the militants since August after launching the most significant campaign against Al-Shabaab since their emergence.
Territorial gains, mostly in the central parts of the country, have been backed by a financial crackdown that has led to the freezing of hundreds of bank and mobile money accounts, holding large amounts of funds. A drive to convince clerics to condemn Al-Shabaab as “anti-Islamic” has also helped in bringing down the terrorist group.
Two things are there to defeat Al-Shabaab: one is military, another is ideological. The ideological war will continue for some time but, in the military one, I believe we’ll defeat them.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
However, Al-Shabaab is not yet ready for talks, according to the president. The group still believes it can mount resistance in parts of central Somalia. Fighting Al-Shabaab in its southern strongholds will also probably be a tough endeavor according to Omar Mahmood, the senior analyst at the Crisis Group think-tank.
“Al-Shabaab continues to mount resistance in parts of central Somalia and fighting Al-Shabaab in its southern strongholds will probably be a tougher slog,” said Mahmood. “The next, more difficult, phase will seek to reconquer territory in Jubaland and South West state, the militants’ heartland.”
To double down on the jihadist group, the government has enlisted military support from neighboring countries namely Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya.
“We’ll have more forces and more capability right now than we had in the previous phase,” President Mohamud declared.
