Somalia Conflict: Shabab War (2006-Present)
The Somali Civil War is a decades-long, complex conflict that has drawn in numerous foreign nations and has featured shifting alliances among the Somalis. The current phase of the Somalia Conflict can be called the Shabab War, in which the al-Shabab militia, which is a militant Islamic group, is battling against the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and its foreign allies.
Somalia Map
The Shabab War Began: 2006
The Shabab War Ended: Continuing
The Shabab War Involves: Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG), Uganda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, and the United States vs. al-Shabab rebels and al-Qaida
The Shabab War Also Involves: Eritrea and Somaliland are alleged to be providers of military aid to al-Shabab . Various Somali militias also fight against Shabab when it suits them.
After the disintigration of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) after the U.S.-aided Ethiopian Invasion of 2006, the al-Shabab militia became the leading Islamist military group. In 2007, Shabab publicly aligned itself with al-Qaida, and has waged a bloody guerrilla war against the TFG government forces and the African Union troops (primarily troops from Uganda and Burundi), in Mogadishu and in southern Somalia. Al-Shabab is considered a terrorist group by Australia, Canada, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. (see also U.S. Special Forces Attack on al-Qaida in Somalia (September, 2009)
Al-Shabab Attacks Neighboring Countries
Shabab engaged in a terrorist attack in Uganda in 2010, and in the autumn of 2011, Shabab militants kidnapped several foreigners from Kenyan soil, prompting a Kenyan military intervention in southern Somalia to battle the Shabab fighters. Kenyan government sources claimed that the goal of their invasion was to end the Shabab presence in the southern Somali city of Kismayo.
Witnesses reported seeing 25Kenyan armoured vehicles carrying Kenyan soldiers passing through the Somali town of Dhobley, and there were reports of warplanes bombing two Shabab bases near the border.
According to the BBC, Somali government troops are acting in conjunction with the Kenyan forces ito attack the al-Shabab-controlled areas in southern Somalia. The third day of the Kenyan offensive featured a slowing down of Kenyan forces due to heavy rain and mud in a region with few paved roads.
In February of 2012, Mukhtar Abu al Zubayr the leader of Shabab, pledged Shabab’s allegiance to al-Qaeda. Ayman al Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaeda following the death of Osama bin Laden, accepted Shabab as a part of al-Qaida.
The war between the Somali governement, and allies against Al-Shabab continues. As of 2023, African forces (African Union Mission to Somalia or AMISOM) on the ground allied to the Somali governement include troops from Kenya, Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Sierra Leone. In addition, United States military personnel are active in training and supporting the Somali military and the AMISOM forces. At times, both Kenyan and Ethiopian forces have acted independently of AMISOM, as al-Shabab has undertaken operations on both Kenyan and Ethiopian territory.
In addition to training, U.S. forces at times conduct special forces operations on the ground, airstrikes, and drone strikes against al-Shabab, ISIS, and al-Qaida forces in Somalia.
Links and Sources on the Somalia Shabab Conflict:
Shabaab formally joins al Qaeda–Long War Journal, Feb. 9, 2012
Following Troops, Kenyan Officials Go to Somalia–New York Times, Oct. 18, 2011
Kenya troops ‘advance into Somalia near Afmadow’–BBC, Oct. 18, 2011
Kenyan Forces Enter Somalia to Battle Militants–New York Times, Oct. 16, 2011
As an Enemy Retreats, Clans Carve Up Somalia–New York Times, Sept. 09, 2011
Islamists Claim Attack in Uganda–New York Times, July 13, 2010
Al-Shabab Asks Foreign Fighters to Come to Somalia–Voice of America, Sept. 16, 2009
US Special Forces Targeted al-Qaida in Somalia–New York Times, September 15, 2009
U.S. Says Raid in Somalia Killed Terrorist With Links to Al-Qaeda–Washington Post, September 15, 2009
