U.S. Africa Command commander Army Gen. Stephen Townsend is in Somalia to visit U.S. troops and other global leaders — a move that comes amid a slight uptick in airstrikes against violent extremists in Somalia this year.
“The purpose of my engagements is to meet with important African, international and U.S. key leaders, to visit our troops and to assess the progress of our campaign in East Africa and against al-Shabaab,” Townsend, who had headed the command since July, said in a statement.
Townsend is slated to visit Somali President Mohamed Abdullah Farmaajo on Nov. 5, according to AFRICOM. He visited Djibouti on Monday.
Townsend claimed that violent extremist groups, including al-Shabab, an al-Qaida offshoot, and ISIS-Somalia, aim to target the U.S., and pose a threat to U.S. interests and African partners.
“Due to persistent pressure our campaign puts on al-Shabaab and ISIS, we believe they lack the actual capability to attack our homeland but we must stay vigilant and keep pressing them,” Townsend said.
So far, AFRICOM has conducted 55 airstrikes in 2019 against violent extremist organizations — an increase from the 47 airstrikes conducted in 2018 and 35 airstrikes in 2017, AFRICOM spokesperson Air Force Col. Chris Karns told Military Times.
The command estimates that there are between 5,000 to 7,000 al-Shabaab fighters in Somalia, and approximately 150 to 300 ISIS-Somalia militants.
“The number of al-Shabaab militants has remained relatively stable, but their hold on territory has significantly declined,” Karns said. “The loss of ground equates to loss of ability to influence and negatively impact more innocent Somali futures.”
