Ethiopia: AU workshop urges boost of troops to volatile Somalia
By Tesfa-Alem Tekle
August 21, 2011(ADDIS ABABA) – A technical workshop convened by the African Union Commission has urged a speedy deployment of troops in Somalia, to combat operations against Al-Shabab which is an al-Qaeda affiliated militant group that has recently pulled out of Mogadishu.
According to AU statement seen by Sudan Tribune, experts at the workshop have called for speedy deployment of additional troops pledged by Burundi, Uganda, Djibouti, Republic of Guinea and Sierra Leone to meet the total 12,000 troops AMISOM says it needs.
The AU already has over 9,000 troops contributed from Uganda and Burundi however the ceiling of troops for AMISOM is 12,000 to maintain the recent achievements in Mogadishu and to secure lasting peace and stability in war torn Somalia
The experts urged AU Member States and partners “to expeditiously provide the requisite support, including equipment and training, to facilitate the early deployment of the remaining 3,000 troops”
During the workshop, AMISOM indicated that its efforts in the coming months would focus on securing Mogadishu and its surrounding areas so as to create further space for reconciliation efforts and facilitate relocation and movement of international civilian staff.
The experts called for the insertion of Formed Police Units (FPUs) in Mogadishu to bolster the maintenance of law and order in the city so as to make it possible to free the military for operations on the ground.
Earlier this week, Ramtane Lamamra, AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, said peace partners for Somalia will assess the new situation based on the ongoing extension of the AMISOM’s in Mogadishu and the prospects for extension beyond the capital.
He said that this assessment would inform expanding AMISOM in terms of equipment, human resources, but also in terms of stronger interaction between the UN and the AU and the international community at large.
(ST)