APA-Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) The Military Staff Committee of the African Union (AU) on Tuesday announced that the continental body has decided to hand over military bases to the Somali security forces by the end of June.
The committee has wrapped up a fact-finding mission in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia and reaffirmed its resolve to hand over military bases to the national security forces until end of this month.
The announcement came after a 23-member team, with members from the AU Peace and Security Council assessed the security situation in Somalia ahead of a planned reduction of AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) troops at the end of June and in September.
“We have agreed to hand over a number of Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) to the Somali government from June 15, 2023, as we reduce our numbers by 2,000 soldiers,” Mohammed El-Amine Souef, the special representative of the Chairperson of the AU Commission for Somalia and head of ATMIS, was quoted as saying in a statement issued in Mogadishu.
The AU delegation, which included defense attaches from 17 African countries, met with the leadership of ATMIS, the Somali government, and the United Nations in Mogadishu.
Souef said adding ATMIS remains committed to handing over security responsibilities to the government, and preparations for troop reduction is far advanced and on schedule.
“What we have done for the drawdown was to establish a tripartite technical committee which includes representatives from the government, the UN Support office to Somalia (UNSOS), and ATMIS to plan the details,” Souef added.
He called on the international community to support the lifting of the arms embargo on Somalia to enable Somali Security Forces take ownership of the country’s security in the fight against the al-Shabaab militant group.
MG/as/APA