Somalia: AU Reinforces to go for Al Shabaab; the Continuous Headache of Africa

Somalia could rightly be termed as the United States Vietnam in Africa and can also be compared to Soviet's Afghanistan because the US left amid humiliation after Aideed and his men disgraced American soldiers. An African quote from Nigeria says: 'The rain did not say it will not bring down a house, it is the owner that will strive to prevent such an occurrence.' Another says: 'The owner of the house cannot be around and weed will design his house'.

After the Kenyan Westgate attack, al Shabaab came under the scrutiny of Africa and the leaders have cogently beam continuous searchlight of solutions on Somalia. Al Shabaab now appears to threaten the African continent at large because the hand of terrorism is unseen. If it had threatened the horn centrally; most especially Kenya and Ethiopia long before now, it could go beyond that as it now seems to have real existential disaffection for the AU troops.

The African Union backed a call to boost by about a third the number of troops in an African peacekeeping force in Somalia to reinforce a campaign against the Islamist militants there who attacked the Nairobi shopping mall last month. The union's Peace and Security Council said 6,235 soldiers and police should be added to the AMISOM peacekeeping force to take its total strength to 23,966 uniformed personnel for a limited period of 18 to 24 months.

The decision needs the approval of the UN Security Council. AMISOM is made up of troops mainly from Kenya, Uganda and Burundi. Ethiopia has also sent in soldiers, but they are not under AMISOM command. Sierra Leone is having around 800 soldiers too among the AU forces. The AU council emphasizes on the need for renewed efforts to degrade the capabilities of al Shabaab, in view of the continued threat it poses both within Somalia and in the region.

The United States recently launched an attack to capture the supposed leader of al Shabaab that led the Kenyan Westgate attack but failed. Al Shabaab quickly responded by deploying around 200 fighters to the town of Barawe where the manhunt took place. Another of such was carried out in Libya and was successful.

The only sorrowful part is that African leaders continuously refused to learn by calling on the West for help. Those who turned Libya into what it is today and failed in Somalia, rather caused more division cannot do anything concrete to favour Africa. If they can end insurgencies, with the massive firepower employed in Somalia by the Clinton-led administration in the 90s, al Shabaab should not be breathing today.

It was the combined efforts of Kenya and Ethiopia that brought mild sanity back to Somalia; hence, Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn made an aberration calling on foreign powers to interfere in Somalia again. One wonders when Africans will take their destinies in their hands and stop the moronic act of begging all over the globe.