Linda Nchi from the sky? Kenyan air counterinsurgency operations in Somalia

Abstract

Kenya embarked on its first foreign military operation in 2011–2012: Operation Linda Nchi (Protect the Nation) involved operations in Somalia targeting al-Shabaab. Kenya has long been an economic and political bastion of Western support. Moreover, Kenya’s military, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), has been a recipient of much Western arms, aid, and training over the years. But how effective were KDF counterinsurgency operations, particularly its use of air power against al-Shabaab? Through a detailed case study, it will become clear that Operation Linda Nchi was poorly planned and the KDF, ill-prepared for its war against al-Shabaab.