... Harakat ash-Shabaab al-Mujahidin aka the Mujahideen Youth Movement. It was originally the youth movement of the Islamic Courts, now pretty much all of what's left of it. They are aligned with al-Qaeda but operate more like the Afghan or Pakistani Taliban...
forces of Evil have now become part of the United Nations
...Parkinson's Law on an international scale...
-sponsored African Mission in Somalia.
It follows the unanimous vote in Parliament on Wednesday authorising the Kenya Defence Forces currently in Somalia to serve under the African Union Mission in Somalia.
Kenya is joining the force at the invitation of the African Union.
By passing the motion, MPs removed the last hurdle, which gave the conversion of the mission from a purely Kenyan affair to a UN/AU sponsored one after the Cabinet last week approved the move.
By sending troops to Somalia, Kenya provided perhaps one of the best chances of peace in Somalia in recent times.
It has created the conditions for military victory over Al-Shabaab, now being fought on three fronts, with the prospect of giving the Transitional Federal Government the room it needs to take charge of more of the lawless country.
As a purely Kenyan affair, Operation Linda Nchi was paid for solely by the Kenyan taxpayer and risks being seen as an occupation force.
As part of the AU peacekeeping mission, Kenya will still achieve the objective of ridding Somalia of Al-Shabaab without the risk of being perceived as occupying a neighbouring country. The AU also pays for the mission.
On Wednesday, even as they passed the motion, MPs cautioned against the risk of Kenya being caught up in an endless war in Somalia.
Need for exit strategy
MPs supported the government decision through a motion introduced to the House by Defence Minister Yusuf Haji, but called for caution and the need for an exit strategy.
They urged the government to look for a structure where the Kenya Defence Force enjoys some degree of command and operational independence.
The 9,000-strong Amisom forces currently operating in Mogadishu are commanded by a Ugandan general and it was not immediately clear whether this would continue to be the case when the KDF join the mission.
Defence assistant minister David Musila said it would be a grave mistake to leave the operation half-way, cautioning that this would expose Kenya to danger.