After the United States pulled out its troops from war-ravaged Somalia during Donald Trump's tenure, U.S. President Joe Biden Monday authorized the redeployment of fewer than 500 American troops in the African country.
Prior to Trump's withdrawal, the U.S. had about 700 troops in Somalia focused on helping local forces defeat the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab terrorist group.
"This is a repositioning of forces already in the theater who have traveled in and out of Somalia on an episodic basis," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. The exact number of troops was not mentioned at the briefing.
A senior administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Biden had approved the request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to "enable a more effective fight against al-Shabab."
The Pentagon said the troops would not be directly fighting in combat operations but working on training, advising and equipping Somali forces.
"Secretary's (Austin's) view was that the episodic engagement model was inefficient and increasingly unsustainable," Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby told reporters. The revamped troop presence will include fewer than 500 U.S. troops, another U.S. official said.
Al-Shabab is seeking to topple the government and establish its own rule in Somalia. It has been waging a deadly insurgency against the country's fragile central government for more than a decade.
"It's good news to have U.S. troops on the ground and counterterrorism efforts can be reinitiated," said Col. Ahmed Sheikh, the former commander of Somalia's elite Danab Special Forces unit, trained by U.S. troops. "This will be a huge boost for the new president – he has a big task ahead," he added.
Former Somali leader Hassan Sheikh Mohamud won the presidency again in voting by parliamentarians on Sunday. Somalia has endured conflict and clan battles with no strong central government since the fall of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. The government has little control beyond the capital and the African Union contingent guards in an Iraq-style "Green Zone."
While the U.S. did not have troops in Somalia since Trump ordered their withdrawal in December 2020, the military has occasionally carried out strikes in the country and has had troops in nearby countries.
