By Enyichukwu Enemanna
At least sixty-one tons of weapons and ammunition arrived Mogadishu, the Somalia capital from the US, as Washington says this is support for a historic Somalia-led military offensive against al-Shabab extremists, a terror group that has recaptured dozens of communities since August.
The US in a statement on Tuesday says, Al-Shabaab is “the largest and most deadly al-Qaida network in the world.”
In a separate joint statement with other leading security partners Qatar, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Britain, the US said they will support Somalia’s efforts to manage weapons and ammunition that could allow the United Nations Security Council to lift its arms embargo on the country.
“A very productive meeting,” Somalia’s National Security Adviser, Hussein Sheikh-Ali, tweeted after the Washington gathering.
Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, had declared, “total war” last year on the thousands of al-Shabab extremists, who for more than a decade have controlled parts of the country and carried out devastating attacks while exploiting clan divisions and extorting millions of dollars a year in their quest to impose an Islamic state.
The US has an estimated 450 military personnel in Somalia, after President Joe Biden reversed his predecessor Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw US forces. The US supports Somali forces and a multinational African Union force with drone strikes, intelligence and training.
The increased support for the Somalia-led offensive comes, as the AU force is set to withdraw from the country and hand over security responsibilities to Somalia by the end of 2024.
