The agency has been conducting surveillance flights from the base, which has grown since 2018. Any drone strikes would be limited while the Biden administration carries out a review.
Tag: United States Africa Command
Trump’s Tweets on Troop Withdrawals Unnerve Pentagon
The president’s demands to draw down forces in Afghanistan, Somalia and Syria seek to fulfill a campaign promise. But officials warn rapid troop reductions could bolster adversaries.
U.S. Military Seeks Authority to Expand Counterterrorism Drone War to Kenya
Draft rules for potential airstrikes, drawn up after a Shabab attack at a base in January, are said to be limited and would require Kenyan assent.
Pentagon Admits to Civilian Casualties in Somalia for a Third Time
Africa Command’s admission of the death comes in the wake of its slow move toward better accountability after years of criticism from human rights groups and lawmakers.
U.S. Accuses Russia of Sending Warplanes to Libya
The unusually sharp assertion by a senior American commander underscored the Pentagon’s concern about Moscow’s growing influence in the country’s sprawling war.
In Rare Admission, U.S. Military Says Strikes Killed 2 Civilians in Somalia
The statement was a rare acknowledgment from the military of civilian casualties in its campaign against the Shabab extremist group. The airstrike was in February 2019.
U.S. Military Cutting Medevac Flights for Troops in West Africa
As Army Green Berets move to confront new threats in the Sahel, the Pentagon is reducing the number of helicopters available for casualty evacuation flights.
Human Rights Group Says Two U.S. Strikes Killed Somali Civilians
A report by Amnesty International challenges the American military’s claim that the February strikes hit only terrorists and no innocent bystanders.
Al Qaeda Branch in Somalia Threatens Americans in East Africa — and Even the U.S.
Several ominous signs indicate that the Qaeda affiliate, the Shabab, is seeking to expand its lethal mayhem well beyond its home base, and attack Americans wherever it can.
Terrorism Threat in West Africa Soars as U.S. Weighs Troop Cuts
The Pentagon and the State Department are sending mixed messages about reducing America’s presence in a region bloodied by terrorist violence.