 |
|
Kenya's army denies it is
making money out of Somalia's charcoal (Image credits: AFP)
|
A Kenyan pressure group
says it has new evidence of the Kenyan military's involvement in the illegal
sugar and charcoal trade in Somalia. In a report, the Journalists for Justice group
says the Kenya Defence Forces, part of the African Union force in Somalia, make
about US$50m (£33m) a year from taxing charcoal as it leaves Somalia and sugar
as it comes in through the port of Kismayo.
They
also enable militant Islamist group al-Shabab to keep making money, as it too
taxes charcoal and sugar coming in and out of the areas it controls in Somalia.
BBC News report continues:
The
report says an estimated 230 trucks of sugar leave Kismayo every week bound for
Kenya, and that the smuggling routes are controlled by senior Kenyan officers.
The
report also details how Kenyan air strikes, which the military says target
al-Shabab bases, have also destroyed civilian villages, water points and
livestock.
It
says Kenya's involvement in Somalia appears to be directly opposed to the
mandate of the AU force to neutralise armed groups and disrupt
"terrorist" financing.
The Kenyan military has
denied the allegations. It says there is no way it can be involved in business
with al-Shabab, the very group it is trying to defeat.
No comments:
Post a Comment