Somalia rejects claims on soldier dying in Uganda for organ removal

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The government of Somalia denied claims that one of the soldiers training in Uganda died as a result of losing one of his organs under unclear circumstances, with social media users putting the administration on defense over the untimely demise of the recruit in Kampala.

The soldier's family has also raised concerns about the death after the body appeared to have been dissected Without authorities giving any formidable explanation to the effect. He was among thousands of soldiers training in Uganda upon the request of Somalia.

Abdikhadir Mohamed Nur, the Defense Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia said the body of the soldier had gone under autopsy to determine the cause of his death. According to him, the soldier became ill during training and was rushed to a Kampala hospital where he was treated before passing away.

The minister said he is in contact with commanders in Uganda who he has requested to investigate the cause of death before returning the body to Somalia for burial. Social media users had capitalized on the incident, forcing those whose family members are training in Uganda to reach out to their loved ones.

"An autopsy must be conducted to confirm the cause of his death. A report containing this information will be presented once the body is returned to Somalia. I believe the surgery was misinterpreted, and the family was misinformed," said the defense minister.

The defense minister assured the public that the Somali government would not tolerate such an incident. He emphasized that Somalia had previously sent troops to Uganda and other countries for training without any similar occurrences. There are about 3000 soldiers training in Uganda.

Somalia had requested neighboring countries to help her train as many soldiers ahead of the exit of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] soldiers who will start gradual exit next month. Eritrea and Ethiopia are some of the other countries training the Somali National Army.

GAROWE ONLINE