On June 8, al-Shabaab ambushed U.S. Special forces who were building a command outpost with 800 combined Kenyan and Somali forces north of Kismayo. The group did not claim to inflict mass casualties on a scale of other high-profile attacks,… Read More ›

Kismayo
Clan Tensions in Kismayo Simmer a Year after Violent Battles
Kismayo continues to be the site of contentious clan dynamics almost a year after violent battles among clan militias supporting or contesting Ras Kamboni leader Ahmed Madobe and the formation of his “Jubaland” administration. It has also been more than six… Read More ›
Somalia’s Federalism Woes Challenge Stability Amid Military Offensive
Federalism was supposed to help decentralize power from the Somali federal government (SFG) in order to give more authority to potentially more effective local administrations. So far, the process has led to a fight among local and foreign elites over… Read More ›
Somalia Seeks Weapons Amid Gun-less Training In Kismayo and Clan Fighting
Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud recently revealed the government bought weapons to bolster domestic forces and also asked for an extension to the one year partial relaxation of the 1992 arms embargo issued by the UN Security Council in March 2013. Some steps… Read More ›
Jubaland Reborn: A Look at Jubba and Somalia Post-Addis Agreement
The Somalia Federal Government (SFG) led by State Minister for the Presidency Farah Sheikh Abdulkadir and the Jubba delegation headed by Ras Kamboni leader Ahmed Madobe recently concluded a deal that on paper was one step intended to resolve the… Read More ›
Mohamud’s U.S. Visit Foreshadows Federalism Debate
One issue that stuck out during President Mohamud’s largely successful first visit to the United States was the future of federalism in Somalia. After a warm reception in the Washington, D.C. area, Mohamud encountered significant protests in his subsequent visit to… Read More ›
Jubaland Close to Becoming Somalia’s Next State
Brief Background on Jubaland Jubaland historically comprised of Lower and Middle Juba states. But military dictatator and ex-President Siad Barre split up the region in 1975, adding Gedo (created as an enclave for Barre’s Darod-Marehan clan members), Bay, and Bakool… Read More ›
2013 in Somalia: A Look at Security
This is the first in a multi-part series about Somalia in 2013. In 2012, the Somali National Army and its partners in AMISOM and Ethiopia retook major al-Shabaab strongholds–including the lucrative port of Kismayo–and essentially confined al-Shabaab to the southern… Read More ›
AMISOM Still Working to Counter al-Shabaab Threat in Kismayo
AMISOM, the Somali National Army (SNA), and Ras Kamboni formally ousted al-Shabaab from its lucrative hub in Kismayo in early October 2012, but al-Shabaab has maintained a heavy informal influence in the port city. The group has carried out improvised… Read More ›
Uganda Withdrawal Threat A Reality Check for Somali Security
Uganda’s Security Minister Muruli Mukasa has stated that the country intends to withdraw its troops from Somalia and other conflict hotspots in response to the UN’s allegation that Uganda is supporting M23 rebels in DRC. Ugandan forces in Somalia—estimated to be at… Read More ›
In Somalia, Kenya Must Avoid Political Landmines
Three days after al-Shabaab’s most significant “tactical withdrawal” to date, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), its counterparts in AMISOM, Ras Kamboni, and the Somali National Army (SNA) finally entered the port city in the first week of October to fill… Read More ›
Al-Shabaab, Jubbaland, and the Future of Kismayo
A flurry of reports are filling news outlets on the ongoing advance of Somali government troops and international forces toward the port of Kismayo, as they move to oust the Islamic militant group al-Shabaab from its most lucrative source of… Read More ›
Al-Shabaab Sack Kismayo Administrator, May Add to Tensions among Leaders
In January 2012, Somalia Report reported that al-Shabaab had sacked its Kismayo administrator, Sheikh Hassan Yacqub, but it was unclear at that time who was to take his place. New reports indicate that al-Shabaab have appointed Sheikh Abu Habeeb to… Read More ›