Somali Civil War (2009–present) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Somali Civil War (2009–present)
Part of the Somali Civil War and the war on terror
Military situation in Somalia as of March 2023       Under control of the Somali government and allies       Under control of al-Shabaab       Under control of the Islamic State       Under control of the Khatumo State       Under control of the self-declared state of Somaliland       Disputed territory between the government of Somaliland and the Puntland State of Somalia
Date 31 January 2009 – present (15 years, 10 months, 3 weeks and 6 days) Location Somalia Status Ongoing Merger and split between/of Hizbul Islam and al-Shabaab forces. Kenyan military intervention in October 2011 Al-Shabaab becomes an official al-Qaeda affiliate in February 2012 Federal Government formed in August 2012 Formation of the Islamic State in Somalia in October 2015 The Somali Government launched a major offensive in August 2022 taking at least 1/3 of Al Shabbab's territory
Belligerents
Al-Qaeda Al-Shabaab Hizbul Islam (until 2010; 2012–2013) Allegedly supported by:  Eritrea  Iran  Islamic State (since 2015) Wilayat al Somal	Somalia Somali Armed Forces Regional forces:  Galmudug Galmudug Security Force ASWJ (until 2018) Himan and Heeb (until 2015)  Jubaland Raskamboni Movement  Puntland Puntland Security Force Southwestern Somalia ATMIS (since 2022)  Burundi  Djibouti  Ethiopia  Kenya  Uganda AMISOM (until 2022)  Burundi  Djibouti (from 2011)  Ethiopia (from 2014)  Ghana  Kenya (from 2011, officially from 2012)  Nigeria (from 2010)  Sierra Leone (from 2013)  Uganda (until 2017)  United States Supported by:  United Kingdom  Turkey  France  Italy
Commanders and leaders
Ahmad Umar (Emir of al-Shabaab) Mahad Karate Fuad Qalaf Sheikh Ali Dheere Abdukadir Mohamed Abdukadir Mohamed Mire Jehad Mostafa Hassan Afgooye Abu Musa Mombasa Casualties: Ahmed Godane  † (Former Emir of al-Shabaab) Mukhtar Robow  Mohamed Atom  Hassan Abdullah Hersi # Ibrahim Haji Jama Mee'aad  † Hassan Aweys  Abu Mansoor Al-Amriki  † Fadil Harun  † Saleh Ali Nabhan  † Abdulaziz Muhammad Saleh bin Otash  † Abdul Qadir Mumin (leader of ISS) Casualties: Mahad Maalin  † Abdihakim Mohamed Ibrahim ("Dhoqob")  †	Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (President of Somalia) Mohamed Hussein Roble Hassan Mohomed Amardanbe Odowaa Yusuf Rageh Said Abdullahi Dani Ahmed Abdi Karie Diomede Ndegeya Ahmed Mohamed Islam Mohamed Ali Hassan Abdiaziz Laftagareen Casualties: Omar Hashi Aden  † Abbas Abdullahi Sheikh Siraji  † Ali Said  † Juvenal Niyoyunguruza  † Mohamed Jimale Goobale  †
Strength
7,000–12,000 (2022) 1,200 foreign fighters (2011) 200–300	15,000 (2020) 18,000 (2022) 2,000 (2013) 1,000 (2010) ~600 (2019)
Casualties and losses
26,444 killed	23,377 killed 1,884 killed 3 killed, 2 contractors killed 5 wounded
4,365 killed (in 2015) Jan 2009 – Oct 2012: 4,093–6,310 killed 10,938 wounded Total killed: 54,687+ (as of Oct 2022, per ACLED)

The Somali Civil War is an ongoing conflict since 2009 mainly between the al-Shabaab militant group and the Somali government. It is concentrated in southern and central Somalia and parts of north eastern Kenya. It began in early February 2009 with the conflict between the forces of the Federal Government of Somalia, supported by African Union peacekeeping troops. The Islamists achieved arguably their largest success to date with the capture of Baidoa, the interim capital of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Al-Shabaab continued the conflict against the TFG and AMISOM throughout 2010, enjoying greater success when fighting the government forces. Local support for the organisation continued to grow, helped in part by the relatively successful law enforcement and justice system introduced in areas governed by al-Shabaab.

The Kenyan invasion of southern Somalia, Operation Linda Nchi, began in October 2011. The Kenyan government had become concerned by the growing refugee crisis and instability along its porous northern border, and intended to create a buffer-zone to prevent over-spill of the conflict into Kenyan territory. Al-Shabaab came under increasing pressure from the Kenyan intervention, which joined TFG and AMISOM troops in attacking the group. This combination challenged al-Shabaab's position in the south and drove the Islamists from the important port city of Kismayo. Somalia suffered a severe famine during 2011, further weakening al-Shabaab.

Despite the growing challenges, al-Shabaab still controls large swarths of territory in southern Somalia. It remains influential in many rural areas, and it now prioritizes guerrilla and terror attacks over territorial acquisitions. The Islamic State in Somalia (ISS) and Hizbul Islam have also carried out attacks against both factions. In 2013 Hizbul Islam renounced violence against the government, but as of 2022, ISS remains active in northern Somalia.

Foreign involvement

The African Union has deployed more than 16,000 soldiers to Somalia, mandated to support transitional governmental structures, implement a national security plan, train the Somali security forces, and assist in creating a secure environment for the delivery of humanitarian aid. As part of its duties, AMISOM also supports the Transitional Federal Government's forces in their battle against Al-Shabaab militants.

The United National Development Program for Somalia spends about $50 million each year, though these funds are not related to military aid. Instead these programs, such as Employment Generation for Early Recovery (EGER). As of October 2010, the U.S. State Department noted the United States directly obligated over $229 million to support AMISOM, and paid for other UN assistance for the mission indirectly through its obligations to the international body.

In January 2013, the U.S. announced that it was set to exchange diplomatic notes with the new central government of Somalia, re-establishing official ties with the country for the first time in 20 years. According to the Department of State, the decision was made in recognition of the significant progress that the Somali authorities had achieved on both the political and war fronts. The move is expected to grant the Somali government access to new sources of development funds from American agencies as well as international bodies like the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, thereby facilitating the ongoing reconstruction process. In addition to diplomatic ties; roughly 50 U.S. special operations troops operate at undisclosed locations across southern Somalia advising and assisting, Kenyan, Somali and Ugandan forces in their fight against Al-Shabaab.

The United Kingdom is also involved in combating Islamist terrorists in Somalia, since 2009, members of the Special Air Service and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment have been deployed to Camp Lemonnier to conduct counter-terrorist operations against Islamist terrorists in Somalia.

President Donald Trump ordered the Department of Defense to remove the majority of the 700 U.S. military troops in Somalia from the country in December 2020. On May 16, 2022, it was announced that President Joe Biden was reversing President Trump's withdrawal and sending up to 450 ground troops back into Somalia.

Images for kids

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  AMISOM reinforcement convoy on the Baidoa-Mogadishu road in April 2014

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  U.S. Army East African Response Force (EARF) soldiers, part of Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa, in Somalia on 21 January 2021

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  Area of Ethiopian operations in Somalia since their official withdrawal in January 2009.

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  Ethiopian troops in Somalia, 2014

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  Kenyan soldiers and fighters of the Ras Kamboni Brigades, a Somali government-allied militia, 2012

See also

In Spanish: Segunda guerra civil somalí para niños