Description: Military troops from the Mogadishu – led government in Somalia have captured the strategically important city of Baidoa in Somalia’s South West federal state ousting former federal president, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagreen. Somalia’s South West state is one of the multiple federal states vying for independence while the central government in Mogadishu enforces elections in order to consolidate political capital and reaffirm its legitimacy as the governing force. Elections have been a disputed subject in Somalia which has been partitioned into five semi – autonomous regions, while groups such as Al – Shabab and the Islamic State also hold significant territory within these five regions.
Impact: The takeover of South West state by the Mogadishu government represents an operational and tactical victory at best and does little towards establishing widescale control or stabilization of the security and humanitarian condition in the country. Terrorist groups during last year have emerged as a primary threat, exploiting regional ambitions for independence which led to Somalia’s security disintegration where the Mogadishu government constantly struggles to ascertain control over larger territories while also clashing with terrorist groups. The situation remains extremely volatile, especially since Al Shabab’s recent attacks in the country.