Somalia President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed has told the BBC that he thinks the Islamist militant group al-Shabab can be defeated within the next two years.
Speaking on the eve of a London conference on Somalia, the president said that this goal can be met as long as there is international support and the country’s soldiers are properly trained and equipped.
He said that the army and the AU force that supports the government are preparing themselves to take on al-Shabab.
Al- Shabaab is a youth movement based in East Africa. It is estimated to have troop strength of 7,000 to 9,000 militants in 2014.
The group describes itself as waging jihad against “enemies of Islam”, and is engaged in combat against the Federal Government of Somalia and the African Union Mission to Somalia
Al-Shabaab has been designated as a terrorist organization by Australia, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States
