Somalia: Al-Shabaab fighters executed in Puntland

BBC News reported on 27 June 2021 that 21 men had been executed by firing squad in Somalia"s semi-autonomous state of Puntland. They were convicted of being members of al-Shabaab and sentenced by a military court in Galkayo. State radio claimed that 18 of the men had been involved in bombing attacks and similar operations over a number of years. World Watch Research analyst Yonas Dembele comments: "Al-Shabaab was formed in 2006 and has been‚  fighting against the government in Somalia ever since and has carried out attacks across the region. Although operations by government forces are weakening al-Shabaab, the group is still able to carry out suicide attacks and controls much of the country's southern and central areas. While Puntland"s execution ‚ can be viewed as a positive development in the counterterrorism fight, the Islamist group still poses a huge threat to Somalia"s stability and the safety of Christians in the region. It is also not certain that such executions will help deter recruitment or reduce the capacity of the group: Reports indicate that as the executions were being carried out, al-Shabaab fighters stormed the town of Wisil in the Mudug region and at least 20 soldiers were killed in an attack on an army base."