...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful...
(AU) on Friday endorsed a move to boost its Somalia force by 35 percent to step up its fight against al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab rebels.
The AU mission in Somalia (AMISOM) will be boosted by 6,235 troops, taking the total number to 23,966, the AU's Peace and Security Council said in a statement.
The request must be approved by the U.N. Security Council before fresh forces are deployed.
The decision comes in the wake of last month's deadly attack in a Nairobi shopping center which was claimed by the Shabaab.
The AU said "renewed efforts" were needed to fight the Shabaab in Somalia, and that it was deeply concerned by "the serious threat that Al-Shabaab
... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord...
continues to pose in Somalia and in the region."
The United Nations
...an idea whose time has gone...
-funded AMISOM mission, which includes Kenyan, Ugandan and Burundian soldiers, has been in Somalia since 2007.
AMISOM troops have clocked successes in recent months, and have taken over major cities including the capital Mogadishu and the key port town Kismayo.
However,
corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds...
key Shabaab strongholds remain, including rural southern and central Somalia, while another faction has dug into remote and rugged mountains in the northern, semi-autonomous Puntland
...a region in northeastern Somalia, centered on Garowe in the Nugaal province. Its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Puntland and the equally autonomous Somaliland seem to have avoided the clan rivalries and warlordism that have typified the rest of Somalia, which puts both places high on the list for Islamic subversion...
region.
AU forces are battling alongside Æthiopian troops who invaded the country in 2011 to support Somali government troops to fight Shabaab.