Somalia

The al-Shabab militant group claimed responsibility for Saturday's truck bomb attack in Mogadishu, which killed at least 80 people and wounded 78 others.

The group suspected in a weekend attack that killed 79 people has lost territory, suffered defections and been targeted by increasing United States airstrikes. But it can still mount large attacks.

Kenya's president has said his forces will remain part of the African Union Mission in Somalia and leave the country when it's secure and stable. The president's statement came at a time Kenya's forces are facing hostility in parts of Somalia for their support of the Jubaland administration, which the Somali government has refused to recognize.

Somalia's president says his government is under constant pressure to choose from among three rival Persian Gulf countries - Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. The Somali government has tried to remain neutral, despite having a good working relationship with Qatar. Analysts warns that the rivalry and competing security interests are having a negative impact on Somalia's politics and stability.

Al-Shabab extremists in Somalia remain "a potent threat" to regional peace and are now manufacturing home-made explosives, expanding their revenue sources and infiltrating government institutions, U.N. experts say.

Deployed to Mogadishu in March 2007, the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) operates through a complicated and extensive system of partnerships. This has been referred to as the “AMISOM model” of “partnership peacekeeping.” While this specific configuration of forces and mechanisms is unlikely to be repeated, AMISOM remains the longest-standing case of a peace enforcement operation built on such international partnerships.

United Nations (UN), African Union (AU) and the United Kingdom (UK) have agreed to work on means to end the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) in Somalia. Following a two-day meeting this week which attended by Stakeholders in Somalia's security sector, the sides highlighted the need to build the capacity of Somali security forces to combat the use of IEDs.

Climate change poses serious challenges to current and future peacebuilding missions, according to a new report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) which studies the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM).

Somalia has made “enormous strides on its path to peace and stability”, and Somali women’s participation in peace and security efforts has “helped advance society towards an inclusive and peaceful future”, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said on Wednesday.