Kenya has urged the international community to hasten the listing of Al-Shabaab as a terrorist organization under the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1267 of 1999, following a terrorist attack on a popular hotel in southern Somalia.
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Monica Juma who tweeted on Saturday in reference to the Friday attack that left 26 dead among them three Kenyans said the attack is yet another reminder that much should be done to degrade the capacity of terrorist groups.
“Claimed by the Al Shabaab, this attack is another reminder to the international community of the imperative to list the Al Shabaab, like all other terrorist groups, under the UNSC resolution 1267, and strengthen collective resolve in countering terrorist actions and ideology,” she tweeted.
Juma conveyed condolences to family and friends of those who lost their lives following the attack.
“I convey my deepest condolences to the families and friends of the people that lost their lives to yesterday’s terrorist attack in Kismayo, Somalia.”
According to AFP, a suicide bomber rammed a vehicle loaded with explosives into the Medina hotel in the port town of Kismayo on Friday before several heavily armed gunmen forced their way inside, shooting indiscriminately.
Three Tanzanians, two Americans, a British and a Canadian were among foreign nationals killed in the attack.
CS Juma made a similar call on May 21 when she held talks with European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini.
“In combating global terrorism and sustaining the painful gains made, we urge you to support Kenya in listing the al-Shabaab as a terrorism organization under the UNSC 1267,” she urged.
Juma’s call for the listing of the Somali-based militant group under Resolution 1267 came against the backdrop of a multi-agency operation in search of two Cuban doctors abducted from the Mandera County Referral Hospital on April 12 by al-Shabaab militants, actions the Foreign Office termed as a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.
Resolution 1267 was adopted on October 15, 1999, following repeated acts of aggression by the Taliban and groups linked to it.
UNSC had noted a significant rise in illicit production of opium, and Taliban’s capture of the Consulate-General of the Ismaic Republic of Iran and murder of Iranian diplomats in Mazar-e-Sharif.
While responding to a $ 1.5 million ransom demand by al-Shabaab in respect to the two abducted Cuban doctors, Juma said the government will not engage the militant group in ransom talks as a matter of policy.
She however said the government will continue with a security operation to have the abductees liberated.
“We believe that we’ll secure their release in the ongoing security operation but as a matter of polity the government does not negotiate ransom. We’re hopeful that we shall retrieve the doctors safely back home,” the CS assured.
Kenya’s military is part of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), comprising of Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti, and Ethiopia.
Source:-Capital News
