Somalia is at war with a group of international terrorists who are cruel, and moral and it is unacceptable to live in our country and our people and work with their perverted ideas.
If we don’t get rid of this group that is harassing and harassing our society, they are determined to destroy future generations. They have caused enough trouble to the people of Somalia Al-Shabaab has been accused of killing, maiming, extorting, and robbing the Somali people and used to take their property by force. It is the enemy and the biggest threat that the Somali nation has. In this difficult period of humanitarian and economic problems in Somalia, this group of terrorists blew up water wells that Somali people and livestock were drinking from and burned down areas where Somali people lived.
They forcefully take the animals that the people keep, and they extort money from businesses and other individuals. This group is a Cancer among us and we must join forces together to save our religion, our people, and our country. If we do not do this, the future of our country and the generations will be dark. I applaud the bravery shown by our resilient Somali people who came together in support of their security forces to protest against the atrocities and massacres of the Al-Shabaab. This group is against our people and our nation. Somali People should be united in fighting this extremist group
What Does Al-Shabaab Want in Somalia?
Al-Shabaab’s primary objective has been to set up an Islamist state in the Horn of Africa governed by Sharia law, and get rid of secular and foreign influence, including through violent means. It wants to create a society based on its rigid interpretation of Shariah law. Its members espouse an offensive jihadist delineating Somalia as a country to be defended from Western dominance, poor governance, and politics. But over time, the group and its leadership have articulated both local and global ambitions. While it aims to unite Somali areas in East Africa under an Islamic government, it has also voiced support for global jihadist purposes in solidarity with other groups such as Al-Qaida and Boko Haram. To cement its footprints in the country, the group created a nationalistic ideology that went beyond clan rivalries. Its unity of purpose at the executive leadership level has allowed it to operate in a unified manner to unite Somalia. It has also taken advantage of Somalia’s weak religious education system to indoctrinate the Somalis that they are the ultimate authority to govern and bring development to Somalia. Al-Shabab used to function as an insurgency, but since it started losing its power and territories, it started behaving like a terror group. Due to defects, inadequate finances, and the ability to carry out heavy assaults on its targets, it has lost its valour and has resorted to desperate actions such as violence. It now prides its operations on terror. The group’s deliberate terror activities are directed to the following enemies: Western forces, the African Union, the Somalia government, and its civilians. It wages a war of destabilization and harassment, using improvised explosive devices, VBIEDs, commando raids, and assassinations as a way of affirming that they are still powerful. Within Al-Shabaab are two groups: Somali and non-Somali Al-Shabaab. The Somali Al-Shabaab do not know their goals and what they want to achieve. This group is easy to handle because if they don’t know what they are doing, they will do what they don’t know. They can be easily persuaded to quit the insurgency and integrate with society. The non-Somali group consists of the criminal people responsible for spearheading the Al-Shabaab agenda. They feed their agenda to the Somali members and use them to get what they want. This group hates to see a Somali elite such as the academicians (professors or a doctor), the educated or knowledgeable Somalis because they are likely to create awareness of the Somali society. They know that once the consciousness of Somali people is awoken, they will not have a space to carry out their hidden agenda. They appreciate a chaotic Somali country as it favours their personal agenda.
Conclusion
Al-Shabaab has been trying to appeal to Somalis by questioning the legitimacy of the government. But for the government to win the war against the Al-Shabaab, it first needs to organize its leadership to be stable, streamline the security sector, engage in civic education, and show by actions that they are a government that the common people can believe in. Once they gain acceptance from the people; they can now forcefully or diplomatically engage Al-Shabaab and push them to negotiate for the sake of the country’s future
By
Mohameddeq Ali Abdi
