This upsurge in bombings and mortar attacks may be an indirect result of the stepped-up US air war on Al-Shabaab targets in rural Somalia, the report implied. “Air strikes were deemed to have degraded Al-Shabaab’s operational capability and freedom of movement,” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the UN Security Council. Abukar Dahir Osman, Somalia's UN ambassador, told the Security Council that significant gains have been made against Al-Shabaab in recent weeks. Their salary payments are not being made directly into their bank accounts, Mr Zenenga noted. The two incidents had disrupted Unsom's engagement with the Somali government, Mr Zenenga said.

Source: Daily Nation May 24, 2019 12:22 UTC