Somalia: 10,000 flee conflict uptick in south

Some 10,000 Somalis from lower and middle regions of southern Somalia have been displaced this month, the Anadolu Agency reported.

The mass displacement has occurred as a result of fierce fighting between the Al-Shabaab armed group and government forces.

“We’re seeing a spike in families fleeing fighting that are arriving in overcrowded camps in Mogadishu. The camps are already overfilled with drought-stricken people barely surviving in flimsy shelters,” Norwegian Refugee Council Country Director in Somalia Victor Moses said in a statement.

“The double shock to people fleeing both conflict and drought means that they have to endure multiple crises at once, and this can push them over the brink,” Moses added.

The statement added that one million people have been displaced by conflict since January.

Al-Shabaab launched an offensive against a military base located in Barawe, Lower Shabelle region last week. Three fighters were killed and several others were wounded during the clash.

Last week, “more than 100” Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in a United States air strike which targeted a military camp. Somalia’s government confirmed that it requested the US strikes, whilst the Al-Shabaab group denied that its forces were killed raising suspicion that civilians had been targeted instead.

Earlier this month, the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) announced that 1,000 of its troops are to be withdrawn by the end of the year. Amid an increasing uptick in conflict with Al-Shabaab, it is unclear why AMISOM has made the decision to rescind its footprint in Somalia. Last month, a suicide truck bomber killed some 300 Somalis in the capital Mogadishu, displaying the threat of violence and lack of security in the country.

Al-Shabaab pledged allegiance to Al-Qaeda in 2012, and regularly conduct improvised explosive attacks in densely populated areas, including Mogadishu. The group seeks to dislodge the Somalia government and rule over the country with a strict version of Islamic law.

Read More: Aftermath of Somalia’s 9/11: counter-terrorism quandary