Page 22 - Nile Explorer Issue 006

The official justification for the military Support for Jubaland In 2011, he struck another deal, this
intervention was the pursuit of Alongside the military intervention, time with Nairobi, and the following
al-Shabab members who allegedly Kenya has also involved itself in the year, his militia, backed by Kenyan
abducted aid workers in northern maelstrom of Somali domestic politics. troops, managed to expel al-Shabab
Kenya and kidnapped tourists along the from Jubaland's capital, Kismayo, which
coast. Its principal vehicle of involvement in is also a strategic port city.
Somalia is Sheikh Ahmed Mohamed
The intervention has since degenerated Islam, also known as Madobe, an Over the next two years, Madobe
into an occupation. Currently, there are Islamist militia commander from the presided over clan reconciliation and in
more than 3,600 Kenyan troops in Somali Ogaden clan. 2015, with Kenyan backing, he was
Somalia, primarily deployed in the elected president of Jubaland. In the
semi-autonomous southern Somali Madobe is seen as a rather controversial 2019 presidential election in the
region of Jubaland. figure, having switched sides in Soma- semi-autonomous state, Nairobi again
lia's civil war multiple times. He was supported his candidacy, despite the fact
Over the past eight years, the Kenyan part of various Islamist armed groups that the Somali government opposed it.
forces have been accused of committing since the 1990s. He has fought against
various human rights violations against the government in Mogadishu as an ally Kenya's backing for Madobe has
civilians and being involved in illicit of al-Shabab for years and was involved revealed that all along it was not only
smuggling activities. The Somali with militants seen as supportive of the interested in containing al-Shabab, but
government has demanded that Kenyan Ogaden National Liberation Front in establishing a "sphere of influence"
troops leave, but it has not followed up (ONLF), a separatist group who has through Jubaland - a satellite statelet,
with any serious effort to expel them, fought for Somali self-determination in remote-controlled from Nairobi.
given its own limited capacity to eastern Ethiopia.
provide security. This misguided support for Jubaland,
In 2007, a year after Ethiopia sent however, is something anyone with a
At the same time, the Kenyan military troops to Somalia to back the TFG basic understanding of the dynamic in
presence has done little to secure Kenya against the Islamist insurgency, Madobe the Horn of Africa would have coun-
from al-Shabab's attacks or Somalia was hit by a US bombing and captured selled against. For the fragile govern-
itself for that matter. In fact, violence by the Ethiopians, who offered him a ment in Mogadishu, the strengthening
has escalated since the intervention. political deal. He accepted to join the of Jubaland means the weakening of its
TFG in 2009, but shortly after he powers.
Kenya has witnessed a number of deserted his new post and with his Ras
large-scale al-Shabab operations, like Kamboni militia joined al-Shabab in For Ethiopia, Kenya's interference in a
the ones in Westgate Mall in 2013, and their fight against government and region predominantly populated by the
the Garissa University in 2015, which African Union troops.
took the lives of hundreds of civilians, as
well as numerous low-grade and low
casualty ones.

Since October, there have been on
average two al-Shabab attacks every
week in Kenya and Somalia. In the first
half of this month alone, the armed
group raided a military camp used by
Kenyan and US soldiers in southern
Kenya and then launched four other
attacks, killing 10 civilians.

The intervention has revealed the
underbelly of Kenya's security policy, its
failed military strategy and the inability
to police its own borders.

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