By Juma Kwayera in Mogadishu

Kenya Defence Force (KDF), quiet for the past two months on its mission in Somalia to root out Al Shaabab insurgents, roared back into action last week ahead of the signing this weekend of a memorandum of understanding with the African Union to formally deploy troops in the lawless state.

The resumption got off with the killing of 14 militants in the key seaport of Kismayu and the capture of Afmadow town, completing a hoof-shaped attack on the Al Shabaab that also suffered losses in Afgooye under the Uganda and Burundi troops, and Baidoa under the command of Burundi.

The militia group was by end of the week circled, leaving Marka and Kismayu as their only defence lines. KDF spokesman Lt Col Felix Oguna announced on Wednesday that Kenyan troops are expected to seize Kismayu by August.

African Union Mission for Somalia (Amisom) said the indecision over the singing of the agreement had generated considerable concerns that the insurgents — now fleeing Sectors I and IV in the north where an assault on Al Shabaab resumed last week — would concentrate the militiamen in Juba Valley and Kismayu, making it difficult for Kenya soldiers to oust them from their strongholds.

In the rearranged operation to flush out the Islamic fundamentalists, Kenya has been assigned to operate in Sector II, which covers regions south of Mogadishu.

Sticky issues

The delayed MoU had reportedly been occasioned by some sticking points, which Nairobi wanted dispensed with before formally committing its 4,500 troops, which had already advanced northwards to roughly 10 kilometres outside Afmadow town.

The troops have been waiting for clearance from the command centre in Mogadishu to resume the onslaught on the insurgents. Amisom Force Commander Lt-Gen Andrew Gutti is optimistic the assault on Al Shaabab will be intensified as soon as the AU signs with Kenya the terms of engagement.

Initially, there had been concerns the delayed MoU had created an opportunity for Al Shabaab to rearm, as senior Kenya officials appeared to be in the dark about the details. When Amisom called Kenya’s ambassador to Somalia James Mutua Mulinge over the status of the MoU with the AU, the envoy would not confirm whether it had been signed.

The agreement had been set for signing at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, last week.

For the sake of coordinated operations, Amisom has ‘sectorised’ the operations, which leaves KDF in the south where it will be joined by Sierra Leone troops this month, according Lt-Gen Gutti, a Ugandan. The whole mission was designed to make use of KDF’s aerial strength to ‘soften’ the enemy before the ground force moves in.

The Kenya strategy has been hailed as key to minimising casualty levels while at the same time, inflicting heavy losses on the terror group. So far, Kenya has lost seven soldiers (minus those who died in accidents) compared to the more than 2,000 Uganda and Burundi have lost. Save for Kenya, none of the countries involved in the Somali mission own fighter jets, military experts on the front-line say.

Uganda is said to have ordered one, but does not have qualified fighter pilots. Asked about details of the sticking points, Lt-Gen Gutti declined to be drawn into the issue. But there was consensus the delay was increasingly exposing Kenya to terrorism as the insurgents flee southwards from positions they have uprooted in the Sectors III&I.

Last week, Amisom troops comprising soldiers from Uganda, Burundi and the Transitional Federal Government made a swoop on Afgooye and killed seven Al Shabaab fighters. Although Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF) denied it, The Standard On Sunday has reliably established about 10 Ugandan troops had died in the battle for key town northwest of Mogadishu.

Peace period

KDF inactivity is said to have slowed down UPDF and Burundian army in Mogadishu and its environs, where insurgents’ raids have become sporadic and far-between. In the past three months, Amisom has succeeded in extending the frontline to more than 40 kilometres from the capital, providing the longest peace period the lawless country has known in 21 years.

As Amisom gets ready to embark on the second and most decisive phase of pacification of Somalia, Deputy Special Representative of the Chairman of the African Union Commission Wafula Wamunyinyi says: “Mogadishu is enjoying the longest period of peace since the fall of Siad Barre in 1991.Ordinary people are now moving about freely and internally displaced people who had fled the city are returning.”

Wamunyinyi says the concentration of Al Shabaab in the south makes them an easy target for Amisom soldiers. He estimates the crack down on the insurgents will be over by December, providing a chance for establishing security, governance and political institutions. The envoy says the training of police, army and civil service to take over from Amisom has kicked off.

Delayed MoU

Although the top command of Amisom would not admit it, The Standard On Sunday has reliably established a misunderstanding over the structure of the command when Kenya troops are formally integrated resulted in the delayed signing of the MoU, hence the lull in operation Linda Nchi.

The recent Cabinet reshuffle that saw Sirisia MP Moses Wetangula moved from the Foreign Affairs docket to Trade has somewhat slowed the pursuit of Al Shabaab. The new Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Ongeri is yet to address himself to the issue.

Operation Linda Nchi caught the entire world by surprise, although a senior military official told The Standard On Sunday the attack had been planned for four years before execution.

The KDF rapid fire was slowed when in December the United Nations Security Council, through resolution 2036, enjoined Kenya in the fight against al Shabaab and other elements deemed harmful to security and political stability in eastern Africa.

The decision to allow Kenya a specific role is underlined by how the KDF invasion gave the Amisom forces the momentum to push back Al Shabaab, which had restricted the Uganda and Burundian troops to guarding the airport, seaport and Villa Somalia — the seat of Government.

Specific items of the MoU will become clear when Ongeri and Defence Minister Yusuf Haji travel to Addis Ababa to put pen to paper to complete the re-hatting process that has been in limbo.

KDF advance towards Afmadow and eventually Kismayu seaport — considered major supply corridors of the insurgents — was slackened following a resolution of the Security Council to enjoin it to Amisom.