Recent reports have indicated that the Puntland Security Force (PSF), a
U.S.-trained Somali counterterrorism force, has abandoned its mission and retr


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U.S.-Trained Somali Counterterrorism Force Abandons Mission

 

(New York, N.Y.) — Recent reports
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have indicated that the Puntland Security Force (PSF), a U.S.-trained Somali
counterterrorism force, has abandoned its mission and retreated to its
headquarters in protest of a new commander imposed by the Puntland government.
The PSF played an integral role in quashing extremist activity in Somalia’s
Puntland state. But after the United States withdrew its forces from Somalia in
January, the security force became intwined in political feuds as various
agencies sought to exert control over the force. Extremist groups, including
al-Shabaab and local affiliates pledged to ISIS, have sought to take advantage
of the security vacuum left behind. The force, which had been supplied and
trained by U.S. Navy SEALs and CIA operatives, had been considered a U.S. asset.

 

The PSF has resisted efforts to come under the control of Puntland State
President Said Abdullahi Deni in the wake of a withdrawal of U.S. military
personnel from Somalia earlier this year. It has also remained unaligned with
the central government in Mogadishu. In November, however, Deni fired the
commander of the PSF and appointed a political ally to the post, leading PSF
fighters to retreat to their headquarters in protest.

 

Many years of violence and failed governments have created a power vacuum in
Somalia, which has allowed Islamist militant groups to establish control and
exert influence over the population. After the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) came
into power on June 5, 2006, a group of young hardliners split from a Salafi
extremist group called al-Itihad al-Islami (AIAI) to join the ICU as its
militia. The ICU took control of central and southern Somalia, including
Mogadishu, reportedly prompting many people to flee the capital. The ICU
violently imposed a strict version of sharia, shutting down movie theaters,
centers for viewing soccer matches, and co-ed events such as sports. The ICU
militia later evolved into the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Shabaab. On Monday,
al-Shabaab militantsblew up
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the police station in the town of Eldheere before capturing the town.

 

On January 17, 2021, the United States completed the withdrawal of 700
military personnel who supported counterterrorism operations in the country. A
December 2020 Pentagon statement said that the American forces, most of them
Special Operations units conducting training and counterterrorism missions,
would be reassigned to neighboring countries and some out of East Africa. The
U.S. troop withdrawal was announced days after it was revealed that that a
veteran officer of the CIA had been killed in an attack in Somalia.

 

To read Counter Extremism Project (CEP)’s resource Somalia, please click here
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To read CEP’s resource Al-Shabaab
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