Operation Linda Nchi the regional IGAD met in Addis Ababa and agreed unanimously to support the co-ordinated military operation in southern Somalia. Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister Haile Mariam Desalegne also indicated that his country may join the military campaign, as "the long-term goal is to eradicate al Shabaab from Somalia and this is the proper time and the process shows al-Shabaab is coming to an end". On 29 October, at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and South African President Jacob Zuma both pledged support for the mission, after Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki informed them of
Mwai Kibaki level, seem dysfunctional. It is widely acknowledged that age and the 2002 accident denied the country the witty, sporty, eloquent Kibaki of the previous years. A man who could make lengthy and flowery contributions on the floor of Parliament without notes was confined to reading speeches at every forum. In late January 2003, it was announced that the President had been admitted to Nairobi Hospital to have a blood clot – the after-effect of his car accident – removed from his leg. He came out of hospital and addressed the public outside the hospital on TV in a visibly incoherent