The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, is deeply concerned at the deteriorating security and political situation in Mogadishu, which puts at risk all the gains made in Somalia in the last decade.

The Chairperson condemns all forms of violence and calls on Somali stakeholders to refrain from acts that might jeopardize peace and security in the country, and to work together to find consensual solution that will break the current political stalemate.

The Chairperson encourages the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), the Federal Member States (FMS) and other stakeholders to continue with their ongoing dialogue, guided by the spirit of compromise with a view to arriving at a consensual agreement, including on all outstanding election-related matters.

The Chairperson urges the Somali leadership and the entire Somali political class to act in the interests of Somalia as a whole, rather than narrow partisan political interests. The people of Somalia have suffered for too long, and the current violence poses a serious threat to the Somali transition plan (STP), at the precise moment it is being finalized.

The Chairperson stresses the vital importance of holding free, fair, timely and credible elections, along the lines of the 17 September Agreement and, to this end, calls on all the relevant Somali stakeholders to refrain from undertaking unilateral measures that might further deepen the current political crisis and undermine efforts to effectively confront and degrade Al Shabaab and other terrorist groups.

The Chairperson reiterates that the AU through AMISOM will continue to uphold its mandate to support the FGS and the Somali people in their quest for peace and stability.