Some of the IEDs that are used by Al Shabaab insurgents in Somalia to target Africa Union peacekeepers.
By RISDEL KASASIRA
KAMPALA-The African Union in Somalia is calling for concerted efforts to end use of roadside bombs by Al Shabaab insurgents who use the mines to target peacekeepers.
Ambassador Francisco Madeira, the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia said in a Monday statement that the Improvised Explosive Devices [IEDs] are a major threat to Somalia’s stabilisation process.
“The best way to defeat IEDs is to have our politics right. If the politics is not right, no matter how much technology we put on the ground, we may not succeed. And to have politics right, will require everyone to play his or her role,” Mr Madeira said.
He urged the military, the police and the federal government of Somalia to cooperate, in order to effectively counter the indiscriminate use of the IEDs.
Ambassador Madeira was speaking during the opening of the fourth Bi-annual Counter IED Conference in Mogadishu on Monday.
The conference convened by AMISOM and supported by Britain, seeks viable ways of building the capacity of AMISOM and Somalia’s national security forces, to effectively counter the Al-Shabaab’s weapon of choice.
Col Richard Maundrell, the Commander of the British Forces in Somalia, said increased collaboration between stakeholders and security agencies in the country will rid the country of the IED menace.
source: Daily Monitor
