The U.S. will reestablish a permanent troop presence in Somalia to counter the al-Shabab terrorist group, reversing a decision by former President Donald Trump to withdraw the roughly 750 special operations troops who were previously stationed there.
President Joe Biden approved a plan, presented to him by Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III, that will draw on troops already stationed in neighboring countries to bolster U.S. counterterrorism efforts in Somalia, according to a senior administration official.
In total, fewer than 500 special operations forces will be based in Somalia, where they will continue to train local forces to counter al-Shabab, an al-Qaida affiliate that was responsible for a January 2020 attack on a military outpost in Kenya that killed three Americans.
