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72. Should I stay or should I go? Security considerations for members leaving al-Shabaab in Somalia
- Author:
- Ingvild Magnaes Gjelsvik
- Publication Date:
- 05-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The Somali jihadi organization al-Shabaab, yet again featured in the news internationally when they attacked a business and hotel complex in Nairobi 15 January this year. This is not the first time the group carries out largescale attacks outside the Somali boarders. Other examples are the Garissa University College attack in 2015, the mass shooting at Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi in 2013 and the Kampala attacks in 2010. However, the majority of the atrocities committed by al-Shabaab take place in South Central Somalia. The Global Terrorism Index 2018 ranked Somalia as number 6 on its list of countries most impacted by terrorism in 2017.1 Al-Shabaab was behind the deadliest terrorist attack in 2017 worldwide, when a suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden truck, killing 587 people in Mogadishu. Although al-Shabaab has had several military setbacks the last few years, the group still poses a significant threat to security and stability in the region. As the name al-Shabaab (‘the youth’) indicates, young people predominate in the group. This means that thousands of individuals spend parts of their youth in al- Shabaab. The question then arises: how to best assist the ones who want to leave the group?
- Topic:
- Security, Terrorism, Violence, and Al Shabaab
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
73. The Triple Nexus in Practice: Toward a New Way of Working in Protracted and Repeated Crises
- Author:
- Leah Zamore
- Publication Date:
- 12-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
- Abstract:
- Crises In 2016, global policymakers came together to confront a critical policy dilemma: what is, or should be, the role of humanitarian action in a world beset by “permanent emergencies” that do not end, in which the root causes are overwhelmingly structural and political? One major outcome of the summit was the commitment to a “new way of working” based on linking the “triple nexus” of humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding (HDP) efforts. Our new report shares the results of a major independent review of the implementation of this process.
- Topic:
- United Nations, Fragile States, Crisis Management, and Humanitarian Crisis
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Middle East, Lebanon, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Somalia, and Chad
74. Climate-related Security Risks and Peacebuilding in Somalia
- Author:
- Karolina Eklöw and Florian Krampe
- Publication Date:
- 10-2019
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)
- Abstract:
- Climate-related security risks are transforming the security landscape in which multilateral peacebuilding efforts take place. This policy paper offers a glimpse into the future of peacebuilding in the time of climate change by providing an in-depth assessment of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM). Climate-related change in Somalia has reduced livelihood options and caused migration. It has also left significant parts of the population in a vulnerable condition. These climate-related security risks contribute to grievances and increase inequality and fragility, which in turn pose challenges to the implementation of UNSOM’s mandate. The impacts of climate change have hindered UNSOM in its work to provide peace and security in Somalia and in its efforts to establish functioning governance and judicial systems. UNSOM has responded to the growing impact of climate-related change. It has learned lessons from previous failed responses—notably the 2011 drought—and has created innovative initiatives that have been effective. While there is still room for improvement, UNSOM’s new initiatives may help to deliver a set of responses that meet the short-term need for a rapid humanitarian response and the long-term objective of achieving a sustainable and resilient society. The challenges faced by UNSOM and its responses to them have wider implications. They suggest that there is a need for synergetic policy responses that can turn the responses to climate-related security risks into opportunities for UN efforts to sustain peace.
- Topic:
- Security, Climate Change, Migration, Governance, Risk, and Peace
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
75. Making Sanctions Smarter: Safeguarding Humanitarian Action
- Author:
- Alice Debarre
- Publication Date:
- 12-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute (IPI)
- Abstract:
- In recent decades, sanctions have increasingly been used as a foreign policy tool. The UN Security Council has imposed a total of fourteen sanctions regimes alongside those imposed autonomously by the EU, the US, and other countries. Despite efforts to institute more targeted sanctions regimes, these regimes continue to impede or prevent the provision of humanitarian assistance and protection. This policy paper focuses on the impact of sanctions regimes in four countries: the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Syria, Afghanistan, and Somalia. It aims to assist the Security Council, relevant UN organs, UN member states, humanitarian actors, and other stakeholders in ensuring that humanitarian activities are safeguarded in contexts in which sanctions regimes apply. While there are no straightforward solutions, the paper offers several ways forward: Including language that safeguards humanitarian activities in sanctions regimes; Raising awareness and promoting multi-stakeholder dialogue; Conducting better, more systematic monitoring of and reporting on the impact of sanctions on humanitarian activities; Developing more and improved guidance on the scope of sanctions regimes; and Improving risk management and risk sharing. This paper is accompanied by an issue brief that provides further detail on the types of impact sanctions can have on humanitarian action.
- Topic:
- Humanitarian Aid, Sanctions, and UN Security Council
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, North Korea, Syria, Somalia, United States of America, and European Union
76. Transitioning to National Forces in Somalia: More Than an Exit for AMISOM
- Author:
- Fiona Blyth
- Publication Date:
- 04-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute (IPI)
- Abstract:
- When the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) deployed in 2007, the AU and the UN Security Council expected that the United Nations would eventually take over from the AU force. But while a UN peacekeeping operation remains a theoretical option for the council, its prospects have diminished. Instead, the focus of Somali and international efforts has shifted to planning for AMISOM to transition directly Somali security forces without an interim UN mission. This issue brief outlines the factors behind this shift in intentions, including the new Somali administration’s commitment to assuming responsibility for security, a general agreement that the time had come for an exit strategy, and the Security Council’s reduced appetite for peace operations. It also lays out the objectives, approaches, and status of implementation of the Somali Transition Plan. Despite steady progress, there is still a long way to go in implementing this plan. Reforms are encountering resistance from vested interests, and al-Shabab poses an ongoing threat. Any sustainable transition from AMISOM must be a long-term project that includes not just a military handover but also political decisions on security and the structure of the state. It also depends on aligning national priorities and international efforts and the willingness of all security actors in Somalia to work together in a pragmatic, transparent, and coordinated way.
- Topic:
- Security, United Nations, Peacekeeping, Transition, and African Union
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
77. Lessons for “Partnership Peacekeeping” from the African Union Mission in Somalia
- Author:
- Paul D. Williams
- Publication Date:
- 10-2019
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- International Peace Institute (IPI)
- Abstract:
- Deployed to Mogadishu in March 2007, the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) operates through a complicated and extensive system of partnerships. This has been referred to as the “AMISOM model” of “partnership peacekeeping.” While this specific configuration of forces and mechanisms is unlikely to be repeated, AMISOM remains the longest-standing case of a peace enforcement operation built on such international partnerships. If the AU and UN are going to continue deploying missions into such difficult environments, AMISOM’s experience offers lessons for how partnership peacekeeping can work better. This report summarizes the main operational-level lessons across seven themes: force generation, logistics, security sector reform, protection of civilians, strategic communications, stabilization, and exit strategy. Many of these lessons have not been truly learned, internalized, and acted upon by the actors and organizations in question.
- Topic:
- Security, United Nations, Peacekeeping, Reform, Partnerships, and Africa Union
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
78. Renewed Escalation: Why Does Al-Shabab Attack Kenya?
- Author:
- FARAS
- Publication Date:
- 01-2019
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
- Abstract:
- The Somali-based al-Shabab al-Mujahideen movement has stepped up its terrorist attacks on neighboring countries, chiefly Kenya. Such attacks have receded over the past three years, amid the movement’s focus on targeting police and military forces in Somalia. However, the recent terrorist operation launched by the movement’s affiliates in the capital, Nairobi, on January 15, 2018, which hit the Dusit-D2 complex, housing a hotel and offices, killing around 15 people and injuring a similar number, raises numerous questions about the motives behind targeting Kenya again. This comes at the time when numerous analysts suggest that the movement will more likely intensify internal assaults on the Somali security and military institutions with the aim of consolidating its influence and curtailing the activity of rival groups.
- Topic:
- Security, Terrorism, Violent Extremism, and Al Shabaab
- Political Geography:
- Kenya, Somalia, and Africa
79. Women and Al-Shabaab’s Insurgency
- Author:
- International Crisis Group
- Publication Date:
- 06-2019
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- Al-Shabaab, Somalia’s Islamist insurgency, is diminished but still potent. One understudied source of its resilience is the support of women, active and passive, despite the movement’s stringent gender ideology. Understanding the range of women’s relationships to Al-Shabaab is critical to countering the group going forward. What’s new? Women form an important social base for the Islamist Al-Shabaab insurgency in Somalia. Some help it recruit, generate funds and carry out operations. These understudied realities partly explain the insurgency’s resilience. Why does it matter? Understanding what Al-Shabaab offers Somali women, despite its brutal violence, patriarchal ethos and rigid gender norms, and, in turn, what women do for the movement could help the Somali government and its foreign partners develop policies to help sap support for the group. What should be done? While the insurgency persists across much of Somalia, women will likely continue to play roles within it. But the government could develop a strategy against gender-based violence that would signal it is doing what it can to improve Somali women’s plight, while integrating more women into the security forces.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Non State Actors, Violent Extremism, Women, Islamism, and Al Shabaab
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Somalia
80. Outmigration from the Horn of Africa
- Author:
- Berhane Keleta
- Publication Date:
- 07-2019
- Content Type:
- Research Paper
- Institution:
- Ìrìnkèrindò: a Journal of African Migration
- Abstract:
- The proliferation of sovereign states in the Horn of Africa has produced intra- and inter-state conflicts that have largely been induced by ethnic tensions. The conflicts resulted in the loss of millions of human lives, significant material damage, and forced people to leave their countries of origin to seek their fortune elsewhere, using a network of systems established between country of origin and destination. Some have been driven into desperation and they sought the services of human smugglers and traffickers. Geographical proximity to migration hotspots also encourages migration. This study explores immigration in the Horn of Africa countries from geographical, socio-political, and economic perspectives. The findings show mixed migration from the Horn of Africa of refugees, asylum seekers, smuggled, and trafficked persons. The last two categories are the largest number of undocumented migrants in the sub-region. They are relatively young, being primarily aged fourteen to forty. They are predominantly male, and have low educational attainment. One motivation for migration is to seek opportunities elsewhere that would facilitate ability to make remittances.
- Topic:
- Migration and Immigration
- Political Geography:
- Africa, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea, and Horn of Africa