Trump's plan to withdraw US troops dismayed Somalia's president

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo has cautioned against plans to withdraw the US military from Somalia, just days after reports emerged that President Donald Trump had ordered the Department of Defense to initiate such a move, arguing that it's in line with his pre-election pledges of 2016.

According to Bloomberg, the US president had specifically ordered for withdrawal from Somalia, where the US has close to 600 servicemen. Most of these soldiers were ironically deployed immediately after Trump took over power in 2017, and were placed under the US Africa Command.

Throughout the continent, the US has close to 7,000 military officers who mainly help in training and equipping local forces through capacity building. For instance, in Somalia, they are responsible for the training of the elite Danab forces, who help the country to carry out sophisticated operations.

And in a tweet, Farmajo asked the US to reconsider such a move, arguing that it's likely to erode gains made by the foreign military in Somalia in the fight against Al-Shabaab militants. The Al-Qaida-linked group still controls large swathes of rural central and southern Somalia, making it almost impossible to sustain law and order in the country.

"The United States military support to Somalia has enabled us to effectively combat Al-Shabab and secure the Horn of Africa," he said. "A victory through this journey and for Somali-US partnership can only be achieved through continuous security partnership and capacity building support."

Since January, the US Africa Command has conducted at least 46 airstrikes against Al-Shabaab in Somalia, leading to the death of renowned terrorists. Among them include Bashir Qorgab, who was linked to the Manda Airfield raid in Kenya early this year, Yusuf Jiis, and the recent killing of Abdulkadir Commandos.

Last month, the US Africa Command came under attack from the Al-Shabaab militants at Janay Abdalla in Jubaland but the attack was successfully thwarted. However, a US serviceman was injured while two soldiers attached to the Somali National Army were killed by the militants.

The president’s desire to get out of Somalia has provoked unease internally from officials who warn that it could leave a vacuum for the Islamist militant group al-Shabaab to fill, one of the people said as reported by the Bloomberg.

The group continues to carry out suicide bombings and other attacks in the eastern African country despite being the target of frequent U.S. drone strikes, and the Somali government retains a weak grip on power.

Kelly Cahalan, a spokeswoman for U.S. Africa Command, declined to discuss future force posture but said the U.S. “remains committed to working with Somalia and international partners to enhance long-term regional stability” in the country.

She said the U.S. partnership in Somalia prevents al-Shabaab from “achieving their long-term ambitions, which includes exporting violence more broadly and attacking the U.S.”

GAROWE ONLINE