Ethiopia Grants Amnesty to High Profile Political Detainees

 The Associated Press published on 7 January 2022 an article titled "Ethiopia Grants Amnesty to High-profile Political Detainees."

Ethiopia announced on 7 January that it had granted amnesty to opposition figures Jawar Mohammed and Eskinder Nega.  The government said several senior TPLF officials would also be released soon, taking into account their age and health condition.  This development gives some hope that a national political dialogue could follow.    

Rehabilitating Former Terrorists in Kenya

The Center for Strategic and International Studies published on 26 October 2018 a commentary titled "Kenya's Struggling Amnesty Experiment: The Policy Challenge of Rehabilitating Former Terrorists" by Richard Downie.


Kenya announced in 2015 an amnesty program for young Kenyans who had gone to neighboring Somalia to train with the terrorist group, al-Shabaab. As many as 1,500 former al-Shabaab members surrendered to Kenyan authorities by February 2016. More than three years later, however, little is heard about the amnesty program. The author identifies several reasons for the apparent failure of the program.

Former Al-Shabaab Leader Runs for Regional Presidency in Somalia

The Washington Post published on 30 October 2018 an article titled "Al-Shabab's Former No. 2 Leader Runs for Office in Somalia" by Abdi Guled and Cara Anna.

Muktar Robo, former press spokesman for al-Shabaab who defected to the government side last year, is running for the presidency of Somalia's Southwest regional state. This presents a dilemma for the Somali government, which argues that Robo is still under international sanctions and has not atoned for his support of terrorist acts by al-Shabaab.

Another Somali-Kenyan Woman Kidnapped by Al-Shabaab Speaks Out

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) published on 28 November 2017 a second interview with a woman kidnapped by al-Shabaab titled "Commanding Attention: A Female Al-Shabaab Ex-commander Speaks Out" by Cassidy Parker.

The woman, who escaped from an al-Shabaab camp in Somalia and returned to Kenya, was reluctant to describe her experience for fear of retribution by al-Shabaab or Kenyan security services. While not personally sexually abused because of her leadership position, she describes routine abuse of other women.

Amnesty or Prosecution for Al-Shabaab Leaders?

World Politics Review published on 31 August 2017 a commentary titled "Should Somalia Prosecute or Offer Amnesty to Al-Shabaab Leaders Who Surrender?" by Yasin Ahmed Ismail, head of a research and consultancy in Nairobi.

The author argues that Somalia should not give immunity from prosecution to high-level al-Shabaab terrorists who ordered the killing, maiming and torture of Somali nationals. Al-Shabaab's top leaders should be prosecuted under a new anti-terrorism law.

Amnesty Not Ending Al-Shabaab Threat in Somalia

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) published on 4 August 2017 a commentary titled "Al-Shabaab Holds Its Ground Against Somalia's Amnesty Deal" by Omar S. Mahmood, ISS Addis Ababa.

The author concludes that amnesty and dialogue have demonstrated so far that they will do little to bring about the defeat of al-Shabaab's core leadership, which remains committed to a vision of Somalia that doesn't include the federal government of Somalia.