MOGADISHU — Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has acknowledged that the battle against Al-Shabaab may continue for some time, but said the Islamist militant group will not be able to reclaim control of the country as it once did.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Hassan said Somalia’s security landscape had undergone a major shift, citing advances made in the government’s campaign against the Al-Qaeda-linked group. His term ended in May this year.
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“The war may continue for a little longer, but there is no possibility that Al-Shabaab can once again take control of the entire country,” Hassan said.
He recalled a period when Al-Shabaab controlled or influenced extensive areas of Somalia and could launch attacks near the presidential compound in Mogadishu. The group, he said, has since been driven hundreds of kilometres away from the capital.
Hassan attributed the change to progress by Somali security forces and their international partners during operations against Al-Shabaab. He did not identify the specific areas involved or offer a timeframe for bringing the conflict to an end.
Al-Shabaab has waged an insurgency in Somalia for more than 15 years. Linked to Al-Qaeda, the group has carried out deadly attacks in Mogadishu and elsewhere, and remains active in rural parts of the country despite losing several key towns and areas during recent government offensives.
The president also dismissed the possibility that Somalia could again descend into the prolonged civil wars, clan-based fighting and political violence that have shaped parts of its past.
“Al-Shabaab coming back is not possible, and it is also not possible for the country to return to civil war, clan warfare or political conflict,” he said.
His comments came as Somalia confronts a separate political dispute involving elections, constitutional reforms and the future structure of its federal system. Opposition figures have cautioned that continued divisions among Somali political leaders could give Al-Shabaab an opportunity to expand its influence and undermine international engagement with Somalia after more than three decades of foreign support.
The government continues to place the campaign against Al-Shabaab at the centre of its national agenda while seeking to transfer greater responsibility to Somali forces as international military assistance changes.
Hassan’s assessment projected confidence in Somalia’s security direction, although Al-Shabaab still has the ability to carry out attacks and maintain operations in parts of the country. He said the campaign would require more time but insisted that the group no longer has the strength to restore its nationwide control.
AXADLETM
