Al-Shabaab militants detonated an improvised explosive device and opened fire on a Kenyan patrol vehicle near the Kenya-Somalia border in a coordinated assault that killed five security officers (Reuters).
Nairobi has since launched a manhunt to track down the attackers and secure the area; al-Shabaab has conducted a string of attacks in recent weeks across northeastern Kenya (Africa News).
Kenyan Troops Kill Al-Shabaab Militants in Border Raid
Kenyan Special Operations forces killed at least eleven suspected al-Shabaab militants and wounded seven others near the Kenya-Somalia border; Kenyan security officials report the fighters had planned to attack villages in northeastern Kenya (Garowe Online)
Separately, Saudi Arabia and Somalia operationalized a February defense cooperation agreement under which five thousand Somali troops will receive training from foreign instructors at two Somali military bases (Garowe Online)
United States to Stop UN Funding for Somalia
In a diplomatic cable to the African Union, the United States announced it will prevent the United Nations from funding AUSSOM next year, arguing that international support for Mogadishu should be suspended until the Somali leadership ends political infighting and collaborates on governance and security issues (Reuters)
AUSSOM plays a critical role in backing the government in Mogadishu and supporting counterterrorism operations against Al-Shabaab (Africa News)
Joint Somali-Turkish Airstrikes Target Al-Shabaab
According to the Somali Ministry of Defense, the Somali National Army collaborated with the Turkish Armed Forces to launch a series of airstrikes on southern Somalia; the Ministry reported that the strikes killed thirty-five al-Shabaab militants, injured twenty other fighters, and destroyed caches of explosives and weapons (APA News)
Security, Cooperation Top Mogadishu’s Agenda
Two weeks after Somali forces took control of a semi-autonomous region’s capital amid political controversy, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud traveled to South West state in an attempt to diffuse tensions (Garowe)
The move comes as Somalia inaugurated its first offshore drilling program in collaboration with Turkey—a nation seeking to expand its own footprint in the Horn of Africa (Semafor)
Mogadishu Targets Terror Officials
Somali intelligence said its forces killed nine al-Shabaab militants, including technical experts in charge of explosives and logistics (Anadolu Agency)
Observers warned that increased cooperation between al-Shabaab and Yemen’s Houthis, which includes logistics and intelligence sharing, could soon expand to weapons acquisition and training, including drones, which have proven particularly deadly in nearby Sudan’s brutal civil war (Africa Defense Forum)
After Loss in Court, White House Pivots
Though the Trump administration continues to argue that safety concerns have abated in Somalia, a federal judge ruled against an attempt to end security-based deportation protections for Somali asylum seekers—a move some immigration attorneys said is being met with a coordinated federal response to fast-track, and ultimately deny, Somali migrants’ applications through regular legal channels (AP)
Beijing to Offer Security Support
China said it would expand its existing cooperation with Somalia’s military—which currently includes technical and logistical support—in a bid to curb al-Shabaab’s continued extremist threat (Garowe)
Somali Troops Capture Al-Shabaab “Safe Haven”
Somalia’s armed forces said they gained further ground against al-Shabaab in the country’s southern Middle Shabelle region, where Mogadishu seized one of the terrorist group’s strategic holdouts (Anadolu Agency)
Somalia, Uganda Mobilize Against Al-Shabaab
The Somali National Army targeted al-Shabaab forces in the country’s south through Operation Rolling Thunder, a joint tactical operation between government forces and Uganda’s African Union troops (Anadolu Agency)
According to Mogadishu’s Defense Ministry, the effort reportedly succeeded in regaining territory and shutting down al-Shabaab’s insurgent hideouts and parallel judicial system (Anadolu Agency)
Citing Gains, Somalia Turns to Amnesty Strategy
As Somalia’s government continues to promise amnesty to al-Shabaab militants who renounce their ties to the terror organization, Mogadishu said it has killed over a dozen of the group’s senior leaders in the past six months (Anadolu Agency).
Nairobi Intercepts Ramadan Plot
Amid an effort by Kenyan authorities to step up anti-terrorism surveillance efforts, Nairobi’s Counter Terrorism Policing Unit announced it had intercepted an alleged terror plot to target civilians in Nairobi during the holy month of Ramadan (Hiiraan)
United States Bolsters Somalia’s Anti-Terror Efforts
Though the al-Shabaab forces that once held vast swaths of central Somalia remain a threat, analysts say a recent surge in American support for Mogadishu’s campaign against the terror group has helped consolidate government control across the country (AP)
Kenya-Somalia Border Reopening
The countries will reopen their border in April, almost fifteen years after it was closed due to regional attacks by militant group al-Shabaab, Kenyan President William Ruto announced; Ruto said his country would deploy troops alongside the border opening for extra security, as Somalia-based al-Shabaab remains active in Kenya (BBC)
Somali Forces Kill Senior Al-Shabaab Commander
Military leaders said a drone strike in Somalia’s southern Middle Juba region successfully eliminated an unnamed leader amid wider government attacks on al-Shabaab’s leadership (Shabelle Media Network)
United States Sends Weapons Amid Government Crackdown
Mogadishu said it killed seven al-Shabaab militants and destroyed weapons stockpiles at one of the group’s strongholds in coastal southern Somalia (Dawan Africa)
The news comes as the Somali government announced a U.S. weapons delivery of undisclosed value (Dawan Africa)
Turkey Deploys F-16 Jets
Turkey deployed three F-16 fighter jets to Mogadishu to strengthen its military presence in Somalia as Ankara plans to conduct offshore oil exploration; Ankara has already provided Somalia with T129 attack helicopters and armed drones (Hiiraan)
U.S. Forces Strike Al-Shabaab Militants
U.S. Africa Command and the Federal Government of Somalia conducted an airstrike targeting al-Shabaab militants fifty-six kilometers southwest of Mogadishu (AFRICOM)
Al-Shabaab Attack in Northeastern Kenya Kills Local Officials
Al-Shabaab militants killed a local chief and a teacher in northeastern Kenya in a cross-border attack (Reuters)
Experts say the cross-border attack is meant to force Nairobi’s hand as al-Shabaab seeks the Kenyan government’s withdrawal from ongoing peacekeeping missions in Somalia (Reuters)
Somali Forces Kill 250 Al-Shabaab Fighters
Somali government and allied forces repelled an al-Shabaab assault on Kudhaa in Lower Juba, killing about 250 militants, capturing fighters, and destroying vehicles (Hiiraan)
Somali Army Kills Over 130 Al-Shabaab Militants
A multi-day operation to repel an al-Shabaab offensive in the Lower Juba region resulted in the deaths of roughly 130 al-Shabaab militants at the hands of Somali National Army forces (Hiiraan)
The operation comes as part of a broader effort to curb al-Shabaab’s influence in Somalia’s strategic southern coastal region (Hiiraan)
Somali Army Foils Al-Shabaab Attack on Middle Shabelle Bases
Somali National Army forces prevented an attack on military bases in Middle Shabelle after a suspected suicide bombing (Hiiraan)
Somali Security Forces Kill Militants in Lower Shabelle
Somali National Army forces, working with African Union troops, Ugandan forces, and international partners, killed more than thirty al-Shabaab militants in a joint ground-and-air operation near Bulunagaad Base in Lower Shabelle (AUSSOM)
Separately, Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency carried out a targeted operation near Afgooye that killed a senior al-Shabaab operative responsible for planting landmines (Hiiraan)
DHS Targets Somali Migrant Status
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem cited “improved” conditions in Somalia as a rationale for ending deportation protections in place for Somali nationals in the United States (Reuters)
Barring judicial intervention, the move will force Somalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to leave the United States by March (ABC)