United Nations official pledges support for Somalia despite election-related difficulties

Last updated on October 6th, 2024 at 02:41 pm

Speaking at a Security Council meeting on Thursday, the head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNAMA) pledged that the United Nations would stand by Somalia as the country faces challenges including upcoming elections.

His announcement was welcomed by Somalia’s Foreign Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi Ahmed, who said, ‘We look forward to working together on a new mission for the next two years, on the gradual transition to the UN Country Team and on delivering on the priorities set out in Somalia’s letter to the Council in August 2024.’

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These priorities include the fight against violent extremism. ‘ The increasing risk of infiltration and collaboration between Al-Shabaab and the Houthis constitutes a considerable security challenge, threatening regional stability in the Horn of Africa, as well as maritime navigation and shipping routes in the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Mozambique Channel,’ stressed Mohammed El-Amine Souef, Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission for Somalia and Head of the African Union Transitional Mission in Somalia.

Somalia is on the offensive against the jihadist group Al-Shabaab, which has carried out a series of bomb attacks across the country over the past 17 years. In legal terms, the group launched a car bomb attack in the capital in July, killing several people.