President Joe Biden has approved plans to send US troops to Somalia to counter terrorist group al-Shabaab, several executives confirmed on Monday.
Several White House officials confirmed development at a briefing on Monday, and Biden from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, a new East African country devastated by war to deal with al-Qaeda and al-Qaeda terrorist al-Shabaab. A group that is said to have thousands of members who said they had approved the request to rebuild.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday when confirming the deployment, “Our troops are not currently engaged in direct combat operations and will not be engaged in the future.” .. “The purpose here is to enable more effective battles with al-Shabaab by the local army.”
He said the troops are now already in the area and will soon be relocated to Somalia. They participate in the training and strengthening of troops loyal to the Somali government against al-Shabaab.
“I believe that’s right,” Kirby said, but “the mission hasn’t changed” by sending hundreds of US troops back to the country. He disputed his claim that it was a new development, stating that it was a “change in attitude” of the armed forces in the region.
Former President Donald Trump said in January 2021 that about 700 US troops would be withdrawn from the country, and that this deployment would put the United States in an “endless war” around the world.
“The decision to reintroduce a lasting presence was made to maximize the security and effectiveness of our army and enable them to provide more efficient support to our partners. “Adolian Watson, a spokeswoman for the US National Security Council, told The New York Times. An unnamed official told the press on Monday that hundreds of troops would be sent to Somalia as part of the mission.
Al-Shabaab has killed more than 12 Americans in East Africa, including three in a January 2020 attack on a base used by US anti-terrorism forces in Kenya. Later that year, the United States charged Kenyans, who had been trained in flight in the Philippines, for planning a 9/11-style hijacking attack on behalf of al-Shabaab.
Rebel groups have made territorial interests in Somalia’s persistently weak federal government in recent months, overturning the interests of African Union peacekeepers who once pushed extremists into remote parts of the country. ..
Since the early 1990s after the fall of the Marxist dictator Siadbare, various Somali warlords have been engaged in armed conflict for years and often left the country without a functioning government. Meanwhile, famine and drought, coupled with terrorist attacks, have crushed countries with long, strategic coastlines near the Indian Ocean and major sea lanes.
In 1992, US troops were dispatched to the country to combat the national famine on peacekeeping missions. But in 1993, Somali militants shot down a Blackhawk helicopter, killing at least 18 soldiers. This is depicted in the popular 2001 movie “Black Hawk Down”.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Jack Phillips is the latest news reporter for The Epoch Times, based in New York.