AMISOM troops in fierce battles with Al Shabab
By George Murumba
23rd January 2012:
Uganda's AMISOM troops prepare for war
Ugandan troops who are part of the AMISOM peacekeeping mission in Somalia launched a fierce offensive over the weekend to dislodge the insurgent Al Shabab militants from the outskirts of the war-torn Somali capital Mogadishu.
According to reports coming out of Mogadishu, the AMISOM troops faced tough resistance from Al Shabab as they bravely ventured into the militant’s strongholds in the outskirts of Mogadishu for the very first time. Residents of Heliwa, a northern neighbourhood of Mogadishu, woke up to the sound of heavy gunfire on Saturday 21st as the two sides fought.
Lieutenant Colonel Paddy Ankunda, the Ugandan spokesman for AMISOM said it was the first time AU forces had moved outside of Mogadishu. “…We are moving out of the city now so we can defend the city from outside. Our troops have captured strategic bases from al-Shabab,” Ankunda said.
In the previous years, the 10,000 strong AMISOM force had been confined to small parts of Mogadishu around the airport and key government installations. Although Somali troops are involved in the war against Al Shabab, most of the successes registered in the last year have been down to the battle-hardened Ugandan and Burundian troops.
Kenya’s recent entry into the war has also provided a massive boost to the AMISOM troops. That notwithstanding, Al Shabab militants have still been able to carry out suicide attacks and deadly ambushes against AMISOM troops. Earlier in the week, there were reports suggesting that at least six people had been killed by Al Shabab bombs. It was clear whether the dead were civilians or AMISOM troops.
Somalia has not had a functioning government for more than 20 years. The current Transitional Federal Government [TFG] is woefully weak and it is dogged by constant internal political squabbles for power and influence. The TFG’s mandate was extended for a year at a summit in Kampala last year.
If its mandate is not renewed again, then it only has until August this year to get to grips with the task of ruling Somalia, a country that has also been intermittently plagued by drought and famine over the last twenty years. END: Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.
