“The rise in the number of strikes can be attributed to new targeting rules that US commanders are working with, thanks to President Trump’s authorization that designates areas of Somalia as “areas of active hostilities.'”
If you pay close enough attention to the news, you might have noticed that the number of US air strikes in Somalia has been rising. It tends to get buried under news about Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan, but the reality is that the United States military has been steadily increasing the number of strikes being carried out mostly by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), or drones, based in Africa.
In March, President Donald Trump ordered an increase in the US military’s role in Somalia, authorizing US commanders to move more quickly on drone strikes and raids carried out by special operations forces, including Navy SEALs from the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU)—better known as SEAL Team Six—and the US Army’s 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment Delta, better known as Delta Force. The president’s approval allows US military forces to take a bigger role in the counterterrorism effort to combat the group al-Shabaab, a combined effort with Somalia’s government security forces and Africa Union peacekeepers in the country.
US military air strikes aren’t anything new in Somalia. Over the last decade, drones have targeted terrorists in strikes that have occurred at a rate of one to two a year. During the Obama administration, the number of strikes began to rise, with an even sharper increase in President Obama’s final two years in office. The US has already conducted 25 strikes since President Trump took office, a number that’s closing in on the 34 strikes that happened during President Obama’s last two years.
The legal basis for the new authority is the 2001 authorization for use of military force due to al-Shabaab’s affiliation with al Qaeda.
The rise in the number of strikes can be attributed to new targeting rules that US commanders are working with, thanks to President Trump’s authorization that designates areas of Somalia as “areas of active hostilities.” This frees counterterrorism strikes from restrictions that limit the United States’ targeting abilities and will give the US more flexibility and timeliness in the decision-making process leading up to a strike. The legal basis for the new authority is the 2001 authorization for use of military force due to al-Shabaab’s affiliation with al Qaeda.
Islamic State fighters are known to be operating in al-Shabaab-controlled areas of Somalia, and the increase in the number of strikes could be directly related to the group’s loss of territory in Iraq and Syria. The US carried out its first strike against ISIS fighters in Somalia on November 3rd, targeting a group of militants in the al-Shabaab-held Galgala Mountains.
Al-Shabaab remains a very active and dangerous terrorist group in Africa, particularly in Somalia. The group carried out the deadliest car combing in Somalia’s history in October, killing 358 people and injuring 400 more in Mogadishu. Al-Shabaab controlled the capital city until 2011, when government forces were able to push the terrorist group out and take the city back.
In addition to the air strikes, there are believed to be nearly 400 US troops on the ground in Somalia. The troops are working with the Somalian Army to improve their capability to combat the Islamist militants. Among the troops on the ground are special operations forces, who will no doubt continue to be called upon to carry out dangerous missions to kill and capture terrorist leaders.