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The United States is deploying "a few dozen" troops to Somalia to assist the national army and conduct unspecified security operations, a U.S. military spokeswoman said Saturday. The soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division, a light infantry unit trained for air assaults, will mainly train and equip Somalia's army "to better fight Al-Shabab," an Al-Qaida-linked extremist group, the spokeswoman for the U.S. Africa Command based in Germany, Samantha Reho, told AFP.
They will also conduct "security force assistance," she said, confirming a report by Voice of America. "For operational security issues, we will not discuss specifics of military efforts, nor speculate on potential future activities or operations," she said, declining to say precisely how many troops were being sent. Somalia's fragile central government is still propped up by the international community and a 22,000-strong African Union peacekeeping force, after nearly three decades of civil war and anarchy.
Somali soldiers march along under the watchful gaze of their NCO. A light infantry unit from the 101st Airborne Division is being sent to help train and equip Somalian troops in their fight against al-Shabab.
While Shabab militants have lost large swaths of territory and were forced out of Mogadishu by African Union troops in 2011, they continue to strike in the capital and countryside. They have threatened a "merciless" war against the new administration of President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, a dual U.S.-Somali citizen who goes by the nickname Farmajo. He took office in February. The 101st Airborne Division has been extensively used in U.S.-led military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The United States' most notorious military operation in Somalia was in 1993, when an ill-fated attempt to snatch militia leaders led to two Black Hawk helicopters being shot down in Mogadishu. A chaotic rescue was mounted, resulting in hundreds of deaths, including those of 18 U.S. soldiers. The incident was made famous in the book and the movie "Black Hawk Down." The U.S. military spokeswoman noted that U.S. forces have been in Somalia since 1993, helping the Somali government on security concerns.
Pentagon: 'A Few Dozen' US Troops Deployed to Somalia | Military.com
The U.S. military says it has carried out an airstrike against al-Shabab in Somalia as the Trump administration quietly steps up efforts against the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa. Pentagon spokeswoman Maj. Audricia M. Harris said the strike occurred Sunday afternoon Somalia time and the U.S. was assessing the results. She did not call it a drone strike. Somali officials have said the U.S. has carried out several drone strikes in recent years against the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab.
The airstrike follows one in June that the U.S. said killed eight Islamic extremists at a rebel command and logistics camp in the country's south. Somalia President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed said Somali and partner forces destroyed the training camp near Sakow, in the Middle Juba region. President Donald Trump has approved expanded military operations against al-Shabab, including more aggressive airstrikes and considering parts of southern Somalia areas of active hostilities. The U.S. in April announced it was sending dozens of regular troops to Somalia in the largest such deployment there in roughly two decades, saying it was for logistics training of Somalia's army.
Hundreds of newly trained al-Shabab fighters perform military exercises in the Lafofe area some 18 km south of Mogadishu
The Horn of Africa nation is trying to rebuild after more than two decades as a failed state, and its chaos helped in the rise of al-Shabab. Now a new threat has emerged in the country's north with fighters claiming alliance to the Islamic State group. Al-Shabab last year became the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa, with more than 4,200 people killed in 2016, according to the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies. The extremist group has vowed to step up attacks after the recently elected government launched a new military offensive against it.
Pressure is growing on Somalia's military to assume full responsibility for the country's security. The 22,000-strong African Union multinational force, AMISOM, which has been supporting the fragile central government, plans to start withdrawing in 2018 and leave by the end of 2020. The U.S. military has been among those expressing concern that Somalia's forces are not yet ready.
US Carries Out Airstrike Against Al-Shabab in Somalia | Military.com