The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) of Ethiopia has announced that Ethiopian and Kenyan security agencies have launched a coordinated operation targeting the Shene militant group along their shared border.

According to a statement from NISS, the operation was initiated following a joint security forum attended by Ethiopian intelligence chief Ambassador Redwan Hussein, Kenyan National Intelligence Service Director General General Nuredin Mohamed Haji, and senior officials from both countries’ defense and police forces.

The primary objective of the operation is to curb terrorism, smuggling, and illegal trafficking of people and weapons, which pose a threat to the national security interests of both nations. The security forces are focusing on dismantling Shene’s camps within their respective territories.

A separate statement from the Kenya National Police Service described the Shene group as a significant security threat operating in border areas. The militants are reportedly engaged in illegal arms trade, human and mineral trafficking, and instigating ethnic violence. The joint operation has already inflicted considerable human and material losses on the group, with efforts ongoing to eliminate its activities.

Despite the military action, the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service reaffirmed that a peaceful resolution remains an option. The agency called on remaining members of the militant group to abandon violence and accept the government’s offer of peace.

Security forces from both Ethiopia and Kenya have vowed to continue strengthening the operation to ensure long-term stability in the region.