Kenya warned against courting militia

Kenya could be sucked into the Somalia conflict unless the recruitment of youths to take part in the war stops, analysts have warned.

Rashid Abdi, the Horn of Africa analyst for the International Crisis Group, told the Sunday Nation that the drive to prop up the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu risks destabilising the North Eastern Province which has enjoyed relative peace for the past 15 years.

Al Shabaab militants, who some say have links with international terrorist groups, last week threatened they would hit targets in Kenya unless the government stops supporting the TFG. A parliamentary team has been set up to investigate reports that Kenyan youths are being recruited to fight against the Islamist militia.

On Saturday, members of the Defence committee visited the Manyani training camp at the Coast where it has been reported that the youth are receiving training before being dispatched to Somalia. “There appears to have been a major security breach that has occurred on Kenyan soil,” said committee chairman Adan Keynan.

The MP for Wajir West said they had received credible reports that up to 48 youths who had been in the camp were moved out on Friday night in anticipation of the committee’s visit.

“It is becoming clear that Kenya has taken sides in this war, which is very serious for us because we are a frontline state and share a long and porous border with Somalia,” he said.

He declined to disclose preliminary findings of the investigations due to parliamentary rules that forbid divulging such information before it has been tabled in the House.

300 youths

The Nation reported on October 7 that up to 300 youths had been recruited from Garissa to take part in the war in Somalia. The story was based on witness accounts from family members and local leaders.

Garissa mayor Mohamed Gabow said he had personally seen recruiters at work. “It has been going on. The boys who have been recruited have talked to us. They say they have been promised a $600 (Sh44,000) monthly salary,” Mr Gabow said. He claimed that those carrying out the recruitment were senior Kenyan military officers, adding that the hiring was done under the cover of darkness.

Provincial administration officials have consistently denied these reports, although those denials have been contradicted by a growing body of evidence, including witness accounts and admissions by military officials in the TFG that they are receiving Kenyans into their ranks.

Mr Abdi said Kenya’s decision to become directly involved in the conflict was dangerous. “It is a foolish and potentially disastrous policy that will backfire spectacularly,” he said. “Kenya has traditionally been a neutral arbiter in the conflict and has avoided taking an interventionist approach like Ethiopia. This was a far better stance than what we are seeing now.”

Mr Abdi said the danger was that the youths being recruited to fight in Somalia would return, having acquired military skills but with no obvious alternative forms of employment into which to channel their skills. Some could also defect to fight with Al Shabaab, he said, due to the fluid nature of the Somalia conflict. Such recruits into the ranks of the Al Shabaab would pose a serious threat to the country, he said.

Bitter battle

Three separate fighting forces are currently locked in a bitter battle for the control of Somalia. The TFG, headed by Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, is propped up by African Union troops from Uganda and Burundi. Two major Islamist groups are vying to topple the TFG: the Hizb ul Islam, a group of mostly nationalist Islamists led by Sheikh Dahir Aweys, and the Al Shabaab, an extremist organisation which includes many foreign fighters.

Mr Abdi said Kenya should keep out: “The fact we are stepping in to back the TFG shows the fragile nature of the administration and might give the Al Shabaab reason to retaliate against Kenya. “It is a sign of desperation because the TFG has failed to win legitimacy from the people and faces a major challenge from the Islamists who have an advantage in the unconventional war that is the Somalia conflict.”