Another car bomb attack took place in Mogadishu (November 25th). The target of the attack was a private security convoy of a company based in the compound of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
A suicide bomber launched an SUV at the moving vehicles near the KM4 junction; the blast also hit a nearby school, whose walls partially collapsed. Eight people were killed and 17 wounded, among them several students and at least four members of the convoy escort; unharmed, however, were the escorted foreigners who were the target of the action, later claimed by the Al Shabaab.
This is a phase of recrudescence of the terrorist threat, with repeated lethal actions in the capital. On November 23rd the Chief of Staff, Gen. Rageh, went to Ankara for meetings with the Turkish Minister of Defence, Akar. The aim is to keep alive the thread of security cooperation, which is vital for Mogadishu in the fight against terrorism.
International assistance is also needed because of the severe drought affecting the country in recent weeks; more than two and a half million people – or about a fifth of the Somali population – is at risk. Qatar will participate in a new assistance programme launched with FAO (United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation); further assistance has also been pledged by European institutions. For their part, PM Roble and business associations have donated over 3 million dollars, while a state of humanitarian emergency has been established.
The electoral process remains more in the shadows at this stage, when compared to such urgent themes. There is a renewed push to move forward and close by December; publicity is also given to the declarations of the Federal Electoral Implementation Team (FEIT) to hear and consider any appeals – particularly those from the opposition represented by former Speaker of Parliament Jawari.
