Page 44 - An Illusion of Complicity: Terrorism and the Illegal Ivory Trade in East Africa

Tom Maguire and Cathy Haenlein 31

Alongside this, the relevance of the import/export trade to Al-Shabaab cannot be ignored. Here,
greater engagement with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as the primary regional trading hubs for
charcoal and sugar, should be prioritised.57 The UN’s Implementation Assistance Notice, as well
as UN Security Council Resolution 2182, reiterate the need for the international community and
the Federal Government of Somalia to pursue the genuine commitment of the UAE and Saudi
Arabia in supporting the restriction of Al-Shabaab’s trade-based financing. Concerted efforts
to do so must continue. These must be accompanied by support for the implementation of
Resolution 2182’s widened terms of reference for Combined Task Forces 150 and 151. To ensure
success, ongoing efforts to resolve legal and jurisdictional issues with regard to inspections and
seizures on the high seas must be similarly prioritised.

Addressing these challenges entails concerted effort by international organisations and
governments in East Africa and beyond. Constructive engagement will require all stakeholders to
provide the long-term commitment required to address the complexity of Al-Shabaab’s financial
strategy. With attention required on so many fronts, the ivory–terrorism narrative serves as
nothing more than a distraction from the urgency of the core tasks at hand in the fight against
Al-Shabaab financing.

57. Keatinge, ‘The Role of Finance in Defeating Al-Shabaab’.