Hassan Sheikh visits Somali soldiers training in Eritrea

ASMARA, Eritrea - President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud visited Somalia soldiers training in Eritrea, in his fourth trip to the Red Sea nation, amid an ongoing crackdown against Al-Shabaab militants back at home, following the declaration of the full war against your group which has been wreaking havoc in the country.

For over 16 years, Al-Shabaab militants have been fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia but strong military resistance has helped bring relative stability in Somalia. There are close to 17,000 soldiers drawn from the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] Troops Contributing Countries.

Since taking over his second term last year, President Hassan Sheikh has declared total war against Al-Shabaab militants, launching various operations that are being coordinated by the Somali National Army [SNA]. The first phase left over 3,000 Al-Shabaab militants dead.

On Monday, Hassan Sheikh who is on an official trip to Eritrea, took time to visit cadets training in various camps ahead of deployment to the country to face Al-Shabaab militants. Eritrea is currently training over 3,000 Somali soldiers after the first batch which is actively involved in operations across Somalia.

"President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and his Eritrean counterpart Isaias Afwerki inspected the training of Somali military cadets in various branches of the armed forces in Eritrea. The President thanked Eritrea for its role in supporting peace and stability," read the statement by state media.

Besides Eritrea, Uganda, and Ethiopia are also training Somali commandos who are immediately integrated with the Somali National Army to fight the Al-Shabaab. The training targets the Navy, Air Force, and Land Forces, in a bid to strengthen the weakened Somali National Army, officials say.

Somalia is anticipating to train over 30,000 soldiers who will take over from the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia upon their exit. The ATMIS team is set to leave the country by the end of December 2024 upon full implementation of the Somali Transition Plan [STP].

The government of Somalia has requested military backup from the neighboring countries ahead of the second phase of operations against the Al-Shabaab which will target Jubaland and Southwest states. Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti had pledged to dispatch non-ATMIS troops to the country.

GAROWE ONLINE