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| Africa Subsaharan |
| Pentagon to pull hundreds of counterterror troops from Africa |
| 2018-11-16 |
| [Washington Examiner] The number of U.S. troops helping to combat terror and extremist groups across Africa will be reduced by up to 720, or about 10 percent of the current force, the Pentagon said on Thursday. The drawdown will occur over the next several years as the Trump administration shifts focus to potential conflicts with major world powers such as Russia and China. The decision also comes after the ambush death of four soldiers in Niger last year sparked scrutiny of special ops missions against Islamic extremist groups, which occur across the continent and almost entirely out of the public eye. It is a shift from one year ago when Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and other lawmakers warned that the near-defeat of the Islamic State was pushing fighters into Africa and turning the continent into the new front in the global war against extremist groups. But the Pentagon said the 10 percent reduction in the 7,200 troops serving in U.S. Africa Command would leave most of its security partnerships with African countries. Counterextremist "activities in several areas, including Somalia, Djibouti and Libya largely remain the same," it said in a statement. The U.S. maintains a center of operations in the East Africa coastal country of Djibouti and troops spread out to several dozen bases in a variety of countries. Special operators link up with local allied forces and provide training, intelligence, and support in battle against groups such as al Shabaab in Somalia. The U.S. soldiers in Niger had been on a mission with local forces to kill or capture a high-level Islamist militant when they were ambushed. Months later, a Pentagon investigation found they had not received appropriate approval for the mission and were killed by better-armed rebel forces. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |