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Thursday, June 25, 2015
Mast Security provided an update on the security situation in Somalia and Libya. In the Somali capital of Mogadishu, a suicide bombing near the national intelligence headquarters reportedly killed four people. Some Al-Shabaab fighters were also killed in the encounter. This was one of many attacks in a new campaign by Al-Shabaab, which purposely coincides with Ramadan.
Gerry Northwood OBE, COO of maritime security company MAST, said: “It is clear that Somalia is some way from the levels of political stability desired by the International Community ahead of elections next year, and the Federal Government lacks the ability to enforce law and order. The country remains a permissive environment for potential piracy operations into the Indian Ocean.”
In Libya, the unofficial government in Tripoli is not taking credit for airstrikes on ISIS. According to Mast, they have apparently bombed the ISIS-held town of Sirte. Benghazi has also seen several terrorist attacks in the last week with bombs and mortars targeting Libyan Army positions.
The EU is seeking a UN Security Council Resolution to take action within Libyan territorial waters against people smugglers. Both Libyan governments are keen to protect their sovereignty and the internationally recognized Libyan government, based in Tobruk, has warned the EU that it must seek permission and authority to operate inside Libyan territorial waters.
Northwood said: “There is continuing hope among the western powers that the UN sponsored talks in Tripoli will result in a unity government in Libya. Meanwhile, Libya remains a very high-risk area for commercial activity. Our recommendation is that ports controlled by ISIS should be avoided. For all other ports a full risk assessment should be carried out beforehand.”
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