African Union generals have fine-tuned their plan to capture Kismayu, even as Al Shabaab leaders warned on Friday that the port city would not fall easily, and the new Somalia leadership became the target of terrorists.

The new Somalia leadership of Mr Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud — elected president on Monday — started off on shaky ground following an assassination attempt on Wednesday. His new government replaced the Somali Transitional Federal Government.

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Security experts and army sources said the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) troops had delayed the capture of Kismayu to give time to a political arrangement on how the port city would be governed after it wresting it from Al Shabaab militants.

But Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) spokesman Col Cyrus Oguna, said plans to capture were under way and were not dependant on a political process.

“Military operations are not tied to political processes and we are going ahead with our plans to liberate Kismayu from Al Shabaab,” Col Oguna said.

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This came as Sheikh Abdurahman Abu Hufayfa, the Wali (Governor) of Al Shabaab, the radical Islamist group, in the Juba regions in Southern Somalia, told a crowd on Thursday, that his movement will never let the strategic port town of Kismayu, 500km south of Mogadishu, go easily.

Sheikh Abu Hudayfa’s remarks come as an alliance composed of Somali government forces, a clan-based Ras Kamboni Brigade and Kenyan troops serving with the AU Mission in Somalia (Amisom) inch towards Kismayu.

The allies have repeatedly stated that their goal is to seize Kismayu from the fanatical fighters. They are making territorial and marine advances towards the port town in a mission occasionally supported by air operations.

Talking to hundreds of people at a square in Kismayu, Sheikh Abu Hudayfa vowed that his militants will defend the town to the last minute. “Kismayu falling to the enemy is not a prospect,” declared the sheikh.

The AU troops are massing about 40 kilometres from the port city of Kismayu from where they are planning to overrun Al Shabaab defence lines which it has fortified with underground tunnels and machine gun outposts.

Kismayu is the only remaining Al Shabaab militants stronghold in southern Somalia.

Reports indicate that Amisom troops, supported by Kenya Defence Forces attack helicopters and naval ships, have reached Harbole, a town near Kismayu.

Military sources said the Uganda and Burundi forces have already captured and occupied the strategic town of Marka and were expected to capture the town of Jawhar, to completely pacify Sector One as the allied forces, fighting alongside the Somali army, plot to remove Al-Shabaab from Kismayu.

“The Ugandans who are still doing ground work are expected to capture Jawhar in two weeks, before joining the Kenyan Forces, which are in charge of Sector II, who are facilitating the ground and naval assault,” a military official said.

The sources said the Ugandan and Burundi contingents are moving in more ground troops towards Kismayu although their capacity to move faster has been hampered by lack of the air wing, after their helicopters crashed in Kenya in August.

The allied forces have in the past three weeks attacked Al Shabaab strongholds near Kismayu forcing the Al Qaeda-linked militia to flee to other areas.

Two weeks ago the Amison commanders attended a series of meetings at Karen Staff Training College in Nairobi before flying back to Somalia to prepare their final plans on how to capture Kismayu.

British experts are said to have facilitated the meetings also attended by Amisom Commander, Lt Gen Andrew Gutti.

Amisom spokesperson Eloi Yao has said the battle for Kismayu was being delayed by the deployment of troops, a necessary step to exchange old boots with fresh men.

Kenyan troops who are in charge of Sector II include maritime, air and ground forces.

The Special Operations Regiment (SOR) that is made up of Rangers Strike Force identified as 40RSF and Special Forces (SF) known as 30SF has also been deployed.
SOR is the youngest regiment in the Kenyan military and is based in Gilgil. Although joining SOR is voluntary, owing to the extreme and dangerous nature of its training, only the best recruits are picked.

In the past few months, the Kenya Navy has attacked Kismayu in “shaping-up operations”, which are meant to soften targets and destroy key installations that the enemy forces could employ to defeat the attackers.

The Kenya Army has deployed its troops from most of its branches, which include infantrymen, armour, engineers, ordnance, medical corps, signals, transport, air calvary and artillery to ensure that the troops are self-sufficient for months.

Additional reporting by Abdulkadir Khalif