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Massive military base buildup suggests the U.S. shadow war in Somalia is only getting bigger

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MOGADISHU, Somalia — The U.S. military is dramatically expanding its operations at a former Soviet air strip in Somalia, constructing more than 800 beds at the Baledogle base, VICE News has learned. The construction at the secretive base marks the latest example of America’s growing and controversial shadow war in Africa.

Baledogle’s expansion is one part of what appears to be a massive U.S. military infrastructure development project in the Horn of Africa country that will see at least six new U.S. outposts built this year,

The buildup coincides with an aggressive escalation by U.S. forces in their fight against al Qaida-linked al-Shabaab. U.S. Africa Command (known as AFRICOM) now has more than 500 U.S. military personnel in Somalia, according to a spokeswoman, a dramatic increase from 2016, when AFRICOM only acknowledged 50 American troops on the ground.

And since January 2017, U.S. forces have conducted at least 48 airstrikes in Somalia, compared to 14 in 2016 and 11 in 2015, according to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, a London-based watchdog organization.

Access to Baledogle is highly restricted, but American contractors and Somali security officials with knowledge of the project told VICE News the construction work began last June, soon after Somalia officially declared war on the insurgency group al-Shabaab. AFRICOM wouldn’t comment on specific base sizes, but it confirmed that Somalia now has the third-largest concentration of U.S. DOD personnel on the continent, after Djibouti and Niger.

https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/xw7nw3/somalia-is-looking-like-another-full-blown-us-war
 
The Somali armed Islamist group al-Shabab has seized a United Nations helicopter, along with about eight people, both passengers and crew, local sources have told the BBC.

The helicopter landed in territory controlled by the group in central Somalia.

Some reports said it had been forced to make an emergency landing, while others said the landing was a mistake.

Al-Shabab controls large parts of southern and central Somalia.

The group is affiliated to al-Qaeda and has waged a brutal insurgency for nearly 20 years.

The seizure of the helicopter was confirmed to the BBC by Galmudug region Security Minister Mohamed Abdi Adan.

Several foreigners and two locals were on the helicopter, Somali military official Major Hassan Ali told Reuters news agency.

The helicopter was heading to Wisil town near the frontlines of an offensive against al-Shabab by government forces when it landed.

The UN has not yet commented.

The Somali government has in recent months intensified its fight against the al-Qaeda-linked group.

Source: BBC

 

US strikes in Somalia killed ‘key’ ISIS figures: Regional government​


The government of Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region said Sunday that US military strikes in the Golis mountains had killed “key figures” in ISIS.

US President Donald Trump announced the airstrike late Saturday, posting on the Truth Social platform that he had ordered “precision military airstrikes on the senior ISIS attack planner and other terrorists” in Somalia.

ISIS has a relatively small presence in Somalia compared to the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab, but experts have warned of growing activity.

The strikes were carried out in a northern region of Somalia, where the Puntland Defense Forces have been carrying out operations against ISIS since December. The radical group is said to have established a presence in the Golis mountains.

“Recent airstrikes have led to the neutralization of key figures within ISIS, marking a significant advancement as we progress into the second phase of our operation,” the regional government said Sunday.

It called the US involvement in airstrikes “invaluable” and expressed “sincere gratitude” but the statement did not provide more details on the strikes.

A Somali government statement issued in Mogadishu said the operation in the Bari region was “jointly coordinated by the Somali and American governments” and had targeted “senior ISIS leaders.”

It gave no further details.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was briefed on the strikes on Saturday night, according to the president’s office, which added the attack “reinforces the strong security partnership” between the two nations.

He also expressed his “deepest gratitude” to Washington following the strikes in a post on X Sunday.

“Terrorism will neither find friends, nor any place to call home, in Puntland state and entire Somalia,” he added.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the “initial assessment is that multiple operatives were killed in the airstrikes.”

He added that no civilians were harmed in the strike.

According to experts and officials, ISIS in Somalia is run by Abdul Qadir Mumin, a Puntland native.

“He is the most important person, the most powerful one, he is the one controlling the global (ISIS) network,” said Tore Hamming from the International Centre for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR).

Mumin is among a few ISIS leaders who have survived US military strikes in recent years, said Hamming, “which does give him some status within the group.”

 
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