UN Security Council Reiterates Concerns Over Al-Shabaab Threat in Somalia

The UN Security Council reiterated its concerns over the threat posed by terrorist groups in Somalia, particularly Al-Shabaab, as the country’s government adopted a decision on a new electoral model.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) – Somali authorities are trying to restore peace and revive the country’s economy, which has been devastated by a conflict lasting for a quarter of a century following the toppling of Siad Barre's regime in 1991. On Thursday, the Somali cabinet made a decision on an electoral model to establish a new federal parliament.

The UN Security Council welcomed the decision, but "reiterated their strong condemnation of recent Al Shabaab attacks [in Somalia]," the council said in a Thursday statement.

The Al-Shabaab group is a particular threat to the peace and security in Somalia. It targets the government as well as neighboring countries that deploy troops in the region.

The UN Security Council called for measures to cut the financing of terrorist groups in Somalia, particularly Al-Shabaab, last week, after an attack on a hotel in the Somali capital of Mogadishu killed at least twenty people. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.

Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate, has been staging attacks in Somalia in an attempt to create an Islamic state ruled by strict Sharia law.