U.S. Protection Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Djiboutian leaders and the president of Somalia in Djibouti on Sunday, marking his first journey to Africa as Secretary of Protection amid continued violence within the area. Later within the week, he’ll journey to Kenya and Angola.
Djibouti is house to the U.S. navy’s main base on the continent, and Austin stated Camp Lemonnier was “essential” to “countering violent extremism and supporting safety all through the area.”
He added that the U.S. is proud to accomplice with Djiboutian forces and African Union forces in help of neighboring Somalia, the place al-Shabab militants are more and more resistant amid ongoing navy operations in opposition to the group.
Al-Shabab is the principle department of al-Qaida on the continent.
Somalia confronted latest setbacks in its battle in opposition to al-Shabab after a lethal assault in town of Cowsweyne on August 26. The incident left dozens of presidency troopers lifeless and resulted in a hasty retreat from entrance strains and cities beforehand captured from the militant group.
The setback was one of many causes Somalia cited in requesting a “technical pause” to the navy drawdown of African Union forces from Somalia. The drawdown, which began final week, is scheduled to see 3,000 AU troopers transferring their ahead working bases to Somali troopers by the top of this month.
“Sadly, on August 26, 2023 we’ve suffered a number of vital setbacks after the assault on our forces in Cowsweyne space, Galgudud area and the following retreats by the forces from a number of cities that have been lately liberated,” learn the letter written by Nationwide Safety Adviser Hussein Sheikh-Ali. “This unexpected flip of occasions has stretched our navy forces skinny, uncovered our vulnerabilities in our entrance strains.”
A U.S. protection official described al-Shabab as a “tough problem” and “not one that’s going to cease in a single day.”
“It’s one which’s going to proceed to require constant, sustained cooperation between us and our east African companions on this, together with Kenya,” the official stated.
The U.S. navy has been “advising and aiding” Somali forces for years within the battle in opposition to al-Shabab, together with the coaching of Particular Forces and finishing up airstrikes in opposition to the group.
On Sunday, a senior U.S. protection official stated that AFRICOM didn’t conduct an airstrike on September 22, 2023. The al-Shabab group through telegram message claimed that an AFRICOM strike killed eight members of the identical household, together with six youngsters, on the identical day. The Somali authorities reported {that a} senior al-Shabab commander recognized as Isaaq Abdullahi, who was chargeable for the group’s operations in Bakool area, and 7 “bodyguards,” have been killed in a focused airstrike.
In the meantime, the U.S. protection official confirmed {that a} U.S. contractor and a accomplice drive member have been injured after al-Shabab militants fired on a base staffed by Kenyan protection forces on Friday. Al-Shabab claimed the assault injured 4 U.S. troopers and 9 Kenyan troops. The U.S. protection official stated the al-Shabab declare was “overblown.”
Hundreds of Kenyan troops are in Somalia serving as a part of the African Union Transition Mission, ATMIS. Kenya has additionally confronted repeated assaults from al-Shabab, together with the high-profile assault on Westgate Mall in Nairobi 10 years in the past that killed 67 individuals.
Austin will journey to Kenya and Angola later within the week. Based on a senior U.S. protection official, this would be the first time a U.S. protection secretary has ever traveled to Angola and the primary time since 1976 that an American protection chief has visited Kenya.