Somali President H.E Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said the East African country should negotiate with al-Shabaab instead of pursuing a military-only strategy against the extremist group.
The country is not currently “in the right position” to negotiate with the al-Qaeda-linked Islamists, Mohamud said at a live-streamed event at Turkey’s Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research. “But we will at the right time negotiate with them.”
Mohamud, who was elected in May, also criticized the “militaristic” approach pursued by his predecessors, with support from the US military. “Al-Shabaab’s solution is not military only,” he said.
The group has waged war on the impoverished country since 2006.
By Mohammed Omar Ahmed
Wednesday July 6, 2022