Defense ministers of Djbouti, Kenya and Ethiopia arrive in Somalia
Djibouti Defense Minister Hassan Omar Mohamed received at Mogadishu Airport on Monday by his Somali counterpart Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur
The defense ministers of Djbouti, Kenya and Ethiopia, accompanied by their respective army commanders, are in Mogadishu for talks with Somali authorities on the fight against Al-Shabaab.
Knowns as ‘frontline states’ for bordering Somalia, the three countries have troops in Somalia under the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) whose mandate is set to end in December 2024.
In a statement, Somalia’s information ministry said the meeting will discuss “finalizing operations to liberate territories still under Khawarij (a derogatory way of referring to Al-Shabaab) … and discuss the frontline states’ support towards these offensives ahead of a summit for heads of states of the frontline states tomorrow (Wednesday) in Mogadishu led by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of the Federal Republic of Somalia.”
Following his election in May last year, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud announced an “all-out war” against Al-Shabaab militants which saw the Somali army leading offensives against Al-Shabaab that have led to the liberation of vast territories from the group in south and central Somalia.
Besides fighting the group militarily, the government also laid plans to fight it on the ideological and financial fronts.
