The deputy head of the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) Mouktar Osman Kaire has been visiting the Jazeera II Forward Operating Base (FOB) to assess troop welfare and operations.
Kaire commended the Nigerian police unit and the Uganda military contingent for their contributions and dedication to restoring peace and stability in Somalia.
He acknowledged the challenges faced by personnel deployed at forward operating bases and said mission leadership is working closely with the UN Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) to address operational gaps.
“You operate in difficult, complex, and resource-thin conditions. Yet this mission is unique: it is the first and only mission led and operated entirely by Africans. This is the dream our founding fathers envisioned,” he added, paying tribute to soldiers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
Kaire had inspected a parade mounted by the AUSSOM police personnel and expressed solidarity with the troops, noting that the international community recognises the AU’s pivotal role in advancing peace and stability in Somalia, a country riven by conflict since the overthrow of President Siad Barre in 1991.
AUSSOM which replaced the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) was authorised by the UN Security Council at the behest of the African Union to degrade the threats posed by al-Shabaab whose militants have been waging an insurgecy in the Horn nation since 2007.
WN/as/APA