Thoughts on Recently Trained 'Volunteers' for the al-Shabaab Militia

The pro al-Shabaab website Amiirnuur.com has just published a report in which it has claimed that hundreds of volunteers have undergone training with the al-Shabaab forces in the Hiiraan region of Somalia. To support this claim it has also published a number of photos of some of the recruits said to have undergone this training. 

There are several points regarding these photos:

1. This group clearly does not number in the hundreds and therefore, at best represents only one group of men who underwent training. Of course al-Shabaab may also be lying about the total number of men trained.
2. Many of the men in these photos are not carrying any weapons and lack camouflage uniforms. Compared to these recent photos of al-Shabaab fighters (see here and here) or even some earlier photos of the groups fighters on parade (here, here and here) these men appear quite rag-tag and ill-equipped. 
3. Regarding the weapons displayed by these fighters they appear to consist of AK-pattern rifles and a sole RPG launcher. There is also a notable absence of any PK machine guns which are often shown in the hands of al-Shabaab fighters. 

Given that many of these men in this group of 'volunteers' are unarmed and the group appears as a whole to be quite poorly armed, these men are probably not expected to immediately employed in combat operations. Instead, this group of men and others that are reported to have undergone similar training in other regions are most probably expected to serve as a reserve force for the Islamist militia.

However there are a number of factors that may also be factors in the potential combat effectiveness of this group of men:

1. If they are genuine volunteers they may be prove to be highly motivated fighters. Conversely if they are forcibly conscripted they may suffer from poor morale and be unwilling to take risks in battle. 
2. Was this group of men and others reportedly like them trained to fight as a unit or will they be expected to be called into service as individuals or small numbers?
3. While this group of men are shown to be poorly equipped can al-Shabaab provide them with sufficient numbers of weapons, particularly RPG's and machine guns such as the PK, before committing them to battle? 

What is certain is that the image of these 'volunteers' left to the observer is of a small group of poorly equipped men who may or may not represent a reliable source of man power for the Islamist militia. It is hardly likely then given what we have seen of these groups of 'volunteers' being trained that they will be of significant concern to either AMISOM, the Somali Government or any other force currently fighting against al-Shabaab.

The Photos of al-Shabaab 'Recruits'