MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – Somalia which last year recorded the deadliest attack in the continent has been ranked sixth most terrorised country in Africa.
A report released by the Australia-based Institute for Economic and Peace, Somalia rounded up the list of countries in the countries that suffered “very high” impact of terrorism.
The Global Terrorism Index 2018 scored Somalia sixth on a list of 138 countries which have been affected by attacks carried out by terror groups.
Somalia recorded the most substantial increase in terrorism globally in 2017.
Deaths from terrorism rose by nearly 93 per cent, increasing from 762 in 2016 to 1,470 in 2017.
The number of terrorist incidents also rose significantly, rising from 248 to 369, a 49 per cent increase.
Terrorist activity in Somalia is dominated by al Shabaab, a group responsible for 92 per cent of all terror-related deaths in 2017.
The only other active terrorist group in Somalia in 2017 is Jabha East Africa, a group responsible for 25 terrorism deaths in 2017.
According to the report, the year 2017 was also Somalia’s and al Shabaab’s deadliest, with the group responsible for 95 per cent more deaths than in 2016.
The group says the Killings committed by al Shabaab have risen consistently since 2014.
Al Shabaab’s presence in Somalia is predominantly felt in the country’s lower provinces.
Of the 372 incidents committed by al Shabaab in 2017, 137 took place in the capital city of Mogadishu.
Af Urur is the second city with the highest number of terror-related deaths after Mogadishu with a total of 87 deaths in 2017.
Al-Shabaab was also responsible for the world’s deadliest terror attack in 2017, a truck bombing attack in Mogadishu that resulted in 588 deaths and more than 300 recorded injuries.
Al-Shabaab employs suicide bombings as a tactic against civilian and military targets.
According to the report, al Shabaab has seized numerous AMISOM and Somali government bases and equipment throughout 2017, controlling highways and extorting taxes from ports in major cities such as Kismayo and Mogadishu.
Despite the increase in terrorist attacks from al Shabaab, its activity has been mostly restricted to the capital, with 68 per cent of deaths occurring in Mogadishu, according to the report.
Al Shabaab has shown limited signs of scaling back its activities in Somalia and neighbouring countries like Kenya and Uganda.
Discussion about this post