Clashes benefit Al-Shabaab

RECENT clashes in Somalia’s semi-au- tonomous Jubaland region are alarm- ing experts, exposing cracks in the country’s federal system and creating an opening for extremist militant group Al-Shabaab to gain ground.

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Following years of conflict, Somalia is a loose federation of five semi-autonomous member states — Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West — that maintain often fractious relations with the central government in the capital, Mogadishu.

But ahead of elections next year, Somalia has sought to assert control over its member states, which security analysts said has created gaps for Al-Shabaab infiltration.

Last week, two Somali soldiers were killed in clashes between pro-government forces and Jubaland loyalists, days after both sides called for mobilisation in the area. Five Somali soldiers had already died in July.

The Horn of Africa nation has battled Al-Shabaab since the mid-2000s, with its fortunes rising and falling over the years. This year, the Al-Qaeda-linked group has won back major towns.

“Once the attention shifted from the fight against Al-Shabaab to politics, we started seeing losses and setbacks in the battlefield,” said Samira Gaid, a security analyst in the Horn of Africa.