MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – AMISOM to “investigate” air raids carried out by Kenya’s military in the town of El-Adde in southern Somalia’s Gedo region on Thursday, killing a woman and wounding 5 of her children.
African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia said on Saturday it will launch a probe into the alleged incident and will share findings with all relevant stakeholders.
“The mission is currently engaged in gathering information on the reported incident and we shall work closely with the Federal Government of Somalia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and all other relevant stakeholders as we investigate this matter,” AMISOM said in a statement on Saturday.
It comes after Somalia’s federal government condemned the air strike and accused Kenya’s military of indiscriminately targeting residential areas to “kill and main civilians in Somalia”.
Kenya has not yet commented on the allegation and there has been fear that the recent air raids could further aggravate an already tenuous relationship between Nairobi and Mogadishu.
“AMISOM is obliged to carry out its mandated tasks in Somalia in manners that are consistent with its Troop and Police Contributing Countries (T/PCCs) obligations under all applicable international instruments,” statement added.
“The mission is therefore committed to investigating all allegations of rights violations that are levelled against troops under its command in Somalia. Towards this end, AMISOM shall fully investigate the alleged incident and the findings shall be shared with all relevant stakeholders.”
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