...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...
Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] has announced al-Shabaab
...... the personification of Somali state failure...'s defeat on several front lines in the ongoing offensive, a move which has triggered several deaths in central and southern Somalia where the Lions of Islam are solely in control.
For the last several months, the Somali National Army [SNA] has been partnering with ATMIS, US Africa Command, and local militia to fight al-Shabaab, a strategy that has so far worked in favor of the combined forces, as the war against al-Shabaab intensifies.
In a statement on Friday night, ATMIS confirmed that it has been directly involved in the fight against al-Shabaab, adding that the offensive in the Hiiraan region has largely borne fruit to the expectations of the military, which is working to rescue the country.
"The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] is proud to have supported the Somali National [Army] in the latest offensive in the Hiiraan region," read the statement, which comes days after the SNA and the US Africa Command confirmed the success.
"The ongoing offensive which was phase 2 of a series of planned offensives started on 15th September and has so far been of overwhelming success. ATMIS remains deeply committed to supporting the federal government of Somalia to provide increased security and stability in Somalia."
On Thursday, the US announced that it directly participated in an offensive last Sunday which helped SNA soldiers who were under siege in Buloburde district, leading to the death of over 27 al-Shabaab fighters. The fighters had surrounded the SNA soldiers ready to fire bullets.
The ATMIS team which has over 23,000 troops in the country has also been working hard to degrade al-Shabaab Lions of Islam through military actions and has largely succeeded. The Lions of Islam control huge swathes of rural central and southern Somalia according to investigations.
At the United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
General Assembly in New York, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud announced that the Lions of Islam are facing rebellion from civilians who have since decided to take arms against them. Over 200 Lions of Islam have been killed in the last month, SNA reported.