The radical Islamic militia Al Shabab hijacked a UN helicopter in Somalia carrying two Somali citizens and seven foreigners. The spokesman for Secretary-General António Guterres, Stéphane Dujarric, confirmed the incident and assured that the international institution was developing “response efforts”, but also indicated that the United Nations would not provide further details on the incident in order to protect the security of the abductees . .
In Somalia, government sources said six of the passengers were captured, two managed to escape and one died. So far, the nationality of the foreigners has not been specified.
The incident occurred when the UN Support Office helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing in the Galgaduud region of central Somalia for unclear reasons, two senior government officials in Mogadishu, the capital of that African country, told Portal.
The UN Support Office provides logistical support to the African Union peacekeeping force in that country, which has nearly 19,000 troops. Its tasks include the supply of food and fuel as well as air and ground transport. She also takes care of evacuations if necessary.
Al Shabab is a group linked to the al-Qaeda network since 2012, but was founded in 2006 as a radical wing of the now-defunct Union of Islamic Courts of Somalia. It numbers between 7,000 and 12,000 fighters spread across the Horn of Africa, northern Mozambique and Yemen, and is one of the bloodiest terrorist organizations in Africa. Their goal is to expel foreign troops from the country and overthrow the United Nations-backed federal government under President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in order to impose sharia, Islamic law. Over the past decade, the government has had some success in recapturing areas occupied by the militia, but it still maintains control over large areas in the center and south of the country.
The deadliest attacks include the attack on Garissa University in northern Kenya in 2015, which killed 147 students, the truck bomb explosion in central Mogadishu that killed 512 people, and another car bombing in 2022, also in the capital. 100 people were killed and 300 were injured.
Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without restrictions.
Subscribe to
According to Somali news portal Garowe Online, the helicopter's capture occurred around the town of Harardhere, where government troops have taken control but Al Shabab still dominates several districts.
In fact, Guterres spoke to President Mohamud this Wednesday. They spoke about the Memorandum of Understanding between Ethiopia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland, through which Addis Ababa seeks access to the sea that it lost with Eritrea's independence. In a statement, the United Nations stressed that the Secretary-General recalled that the Security Council had repeatedly declared its respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of Somalia, which Somaliland considers to be part of its territory. Guterres also expressed his hope that all parties involved in this conflict will be able to establish a peaceful and constructive dialogue and avoid any steps that could worsen the situation.
Follow all international information on Facebook and Xor in our weekly newsletter.
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits
_