The perpetrators, part of Al Qaedea’s East Africa affiliate Al Shabab, were responsible for the attack on a United Nations helicopter attempting to make an emergency landing, and the extremists were able to murder one person and capture five other hostages. Moments after the attack, the terrorists responsible confiscated anything they found to be valuable and lit the helicopter on fire to burn and disappear. Al Shabab did not immediately take responsibility for the attack; however, they have continued to attack Somali military bases after losing control of a portion of the country, as well as the current leader declaring “total war” on the fighters in Somalia. The terrorist rebel group still controls southern and central Somalia. It makes continued attacks on the nation’s capital while also obtaining more money and power through illegal means only to abuse and hurt innocent people.
There is widespread insecurity and fear in the region, which has unsettled the UN as they now only observe from the air and have no on-the-ground missions in Somalia. However, they continue to provide humanitarian assistance to the country and help those in need. The mission also included 19,000 troops in the country, and as of this moment, they have agreed to withdraw forces and leave the mission up to Somali forces, which highly renowned experts in the international community regard as not ready for the task of going against these rebel groups. While efforts have been made to address the situation in Somalia, achieving stability and a peacekeeping resolution continues to be challenging.
Somalia as a country is another that has a complex and challenging history, one with a lot of violence, human rights violations, and civil war. There are many reasons the situation has gotten to its current state, and if we dove into the details, there are a lot of layers to peel back at their history. Conflict and civil war like this are global challenges that state and international leaders must address. However, I continue to see this same pattern of countries falling into a state of civil war and lawlessness. Because of these reasons, violent factions and groups come into power and start to capture parts of the region. Global leaders and important actors on the international stage must work together and break the cycle before it begins, implementing a democratic and stable government before a violent and abusive one takes power.