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US-SOMALIA-CONFLICT-MILITARY
Trump orders pullout of most US personnel from Somalia
WASHINGTON, Dec 5, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – President Donald Trump has ordered the
removal of most US military and security personnel from Somalia, where they
have been conducting operations against the Al-Shabaab militant group, the
Pentagon said Friday.
Trump “has ordered the Department of Defense and the United States Africa
Command to reposition the majority of personnel and assets out of Somalia by
early 2021,” it said in a statement.
The Defense Department stressed the United States was “not withdrawing or
disengaging from Africa,” amid concerns of a pullback from various areas in
the continent.
“We will continue to degrade violent extremist organizations that could
threaten our homeland while ensuring we maintain our strategic advantage in
great power competition,” it said.
The US Africa Command has maintained some 700 troops, personnel from other
US security operations, and private security contractors in Somalia, both
conducting attacks on Al-Shabaab and training Somali forces.
The US personnel have sustained some casualties, including the death of a
CIA officer in late November.
Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller visited Somalia a week ago, where he
“reaffirmed US resolve in seeing the degradation of violent extremist
organizations that threaten US interests, partners, and allies in the
region,” the Pentagon said.
The move came as Trump has sought to wind down US military engagements
abroad in his final weeks in office.
He ordered US troop levels to be slashed by mid-January in Afghanistan and
Iraq, to 2,500 troops in both cases.
The Pentagon said Friday that some of the personnel being pulled out of
Somalia will be reassigned to neighboring countries to allow cross-border
operations against extremist groups in conjunction with partner forces.
“The US will retain the capability to conduct targeted counterterrorism
operations in Somalia, and collect early warnings and indicators regarding
threats to the homeland,” it said.
BSS/AFP/SSS/0914 hrs