By
Leah H. Mwainyekule
AFRICA,
especially East Africa is still healing from wounds of the Westgate attack that
happened in Kenya recently, which has killed dozens of people. This was an attack claimed to be carried out by
the al-Shabaab terrorist group as a “warning” to the Kenyan government to
remove its troops from Somalia.
A lot
has been written, a lot has been said, and a lot has been insisted on. But what I liked the most was President Uhuru
Kenyatta’s assurance that the troops in Somalia were sent there to restore
peace in the neighboring country, and until that happens, they will stay
there. He has insisted that they will
not be scared or shaken by threats from al-Shabaab, and they will remain in
Somalia until that country is calm again, with no more terrorists.
And President
Kenyatta has been very clear about this, saying that his country will continue
to fight terrorists, as al-Shabaab’s threats have only made them stronger, with
the zeal to go on with the fight.
However, one thing that amazed me was al-Shabaab itself, a
group that has emerged from nowhere and is troubling Africa’s minds. This group has its own agenda to rule Somalia,
and is now gaining the publicity that it seems to so badly want.
The al-Shabaab
terrorists have yet again threatened that they will continue to attack Kenya,
due to the fact that the government has refused to remove its troops from
Somali land.
In
their statement, al-Shabaab say that they will “continue to strike Kenyans
where it hurts the most, turn their cities into graveyards and rivers of blood
will flow in Nairobi.”
Allow
me to quote part of the statement: “Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen is fully
determined to intensify attacks inside Kenya until the last KDF boots exit
Somali soil. We have the right to fight
for our country and for our people from the clutches of the enemy. If Kenya's political leaders are still
persistent in their quest to occupy our Muslim lands and carry out heinous
atrocities against our people, then let them know that Kenyans will never find
peace and stability in their country.”
al-Shabaab’s
warning has made me think of so many things, specifically on the whole aspect
of why people kill each other like this.
Why is it that some people find pride in killing innocent citizens of
other countries in the name of “saving their land?” Why is it that some kill their fellow innocent
citizens, claiming that they are teaching them ethics? And why do others claim that there are
countries that carry out “heinous atrocities”, while they are actually the ones
doing it? I am talking about al-Shaabab.
A sentence
in their statement reads: “…If Kenya's political leaders are still persistent
in their quest to occupy our Muslim lands and carry out heinous atrocities against
our people, then let them know that Kenyans will never find peace and stability
in their country.” What bothers me are
the claims that Kenyans are the guilty party against the people of Somalia.
I have
tried to trace the emergence of al-Shabaab from different stories and various
news sources, and I have never seen a single story that says that Kenya, or any
other country for that matter, has conducted “heinous atrocities” against the
Somali people. What I know is that two
years ago Kenya invaded al-Shabaab’s stronghold in South Somali and later
joined African Union’s 17,700 military force based in that country. AU’s Force has troops from several African
countries, including Uganda and Ethiopia.
But at
the same time, al-Shabaab who claim to fight for the rights of the Somalis, are
actually the ones carrying attacks against the people of that very same
country. This is what makes me ask
myself, what exactly dos al-Shabaab have against Kenya, a country that has
joined other African countries in order to restore peace to their neighbors
Somalia?
Here
are some of the attacks that are claimed to be carried by al-Shabaab against
their fellow people, Somalis, and other countries:
2009:
February: al-Shabaab carry out a bomb attack against AU’s
base in Mogadishu, killing six peacekeepers from Burundi.
May: al-Shabaab and a group known as
Hizbul Islam carry an attack in Mogadishu with the aim of capturing the city,
ending up killing hundreds of people, injuring many and causing others to
remain homeless.
June: al-Shabaab claim to have
carried out a bomb attack in Beledweyne that kills 35 people, including Somali’s
Security Minister, Omar Hashi Aden.
September: The group claims to have
carried a bomb attack at the AU base, killing 17 peacekeepers.
October: al-Shabaab were whipping in
public all women who were wearing bras, claiming that it is against Islam to
wear a bra because it is deceiving.
December: al-Shabaab are accused of
carrying out a bomb attack at a prominent hotel, Shamo, killing 24 people that
include three ministers.
2010:
February: A suicide bomber tries to
kill Defense Minister Yusuf Mohamed Siyad, but the attempt fails and seriously
injures two of the minister’s body guards.
April: The group bans the ringing
bells at schools, claiming that it is against Islam as it is a “sign of the Christian
Churches.”
July: al-Shabaab claim to have
carried out a deadly attack in Kampala that killed 74 people who were watching
the World Cup at a prominent restaurant.
August: al-Shabaab are accused of carrying
out an attack in Somali’s capital, Mogadishu, killing more than 300 people.
October: al-Shabaab kill two teenagers in public, accusing
them of being spies. The girls were
between 17 and 18 years old.
2011:
July: al-Shabaab members ban the use of the samosa snack,
claiming that it looks Christian because of its triangle shape, symbolizing the
Holy Trinity.
October: A truck full of weapons is driven into a ministry
building in Somalia, killing 139 and injuring 93 others. Al-Shabaab claim to have carried out the
attack.
2012:
March: al-Shabaab are accused of carrying out an attack that
kills four people at a bus stand and injuring others in Nairobi, Kenya.
October: Sources from the Somali military report that General
Ibrahim Farah (Gordan) has been killed in an attack that was carried out by
al-Shaabab militants in El Waregow, near the port of Marko. al-Shabaab do not make a statement about the
attack.
Now those are some of the attacks carried out by al-Shabaab
since 2009, as reported by different news sources. These are apart from the most recent Wetgate
attack on Kenya. In short, al-Shabaab
are conducting heinous
atrocities against Somalia and other countries, and at the same time claiming
that they will continue to attack Kenya because the country is carrying heinous
atrocities against Somalis. I am still
confused.
On
the other hand, it is the same al-Shabaab who claim that Kenya is occupying
their land. At the same time, the group
has captured and is holding several towns of Somalia, and wants to capture the
whole country while Somalia has a legitimate government. But to them, the Kenyans are the bad guys and
that is why they want to make sure that they will “turn their cities into
graveyards and rivers of blood will flow in Nairobi.” Seriously?
I am
still confused and have to ask myself several questions: What exactly are
al-Shabaab looking for? What really do
they have against Kenya? Is there
something else that we do not know about?
I would love to get the answers to these questions.
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