Somalia: not piracy catch all thread

[davidbfpo]

From Politico an article on a new policy towards Somalia, summed up in this passage:

The new operations also come as a peacekeeping mission spearheaded by the African Union is winding down. That is putting more pressure on the fledgling Somali security forces to confront al-Shabab, a terrorist army allied with Al Qaeda that plays the role of a quasi-government in significant parts of the country.

Link:https://www.politico.com/story/2017/...buildup-247668

Not easy to confirm to what level AMISOM will reduce to, a few media reports refer to contingents being reduced to a UN "cap" and so leaving some towns in the interior. A recent Newsweek article refers to:

Firstly, AMISOM is scheduled to withdraw from Somalia by 2020. The drawdown due to begin with 1,000 troops leaving in December,

Link:http://www.newsweek.com/somalia-war-...-shabab-714622

[davidbfpo]

A good overview of the Turkish and UAE involvement in the region, primarily in Somalia /Somaliland. I do wonder if they will fare any better than all thsoe before them.
Link:http://eaworldview.com/2017/12/turke...anging-region/

There was a BBC Radio report on a small UK team training the Somali Army (SNA), curiously it started with a stark "the Army really is not an army" line. Adding that the UK team have started building barracks for the SNA, as they had none and only afterwards will military training begin.