Al-Shabaab has significantly increased its attacks in Mogadishu, with explosions in the Somali capital occurring on an almost daily basis in the past two months, the United Nations secretary-general said in a report issued on Wednesday.
This upsurge in bombings and mortar attacks may be an indirect result of the stepped-up US air war on Al-Shabaab targets in rural Somalia, the report implied.
“Air strikes were deemed to have degraded Al-Shabaab’s operational capability and freedom of movement,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the UN Security Council.
“They have also led, however, to increased Al-Shabaab movement into urban centres, in particular Mogadishu, where their forces are less likely to be targeted from the air.”
The greater frequency of mortar attacks is accompanied by “Al-Shabaab’s improved capacity to hit strategic targets with precision and accuracy,” he added.
