AU mission concludes first phase of troop withdrawal from Somalia

By Xinhua

The African Union (AU) Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) said on 
Thursday that it has completed the first phase of troop withdrawal from 
Somalia with the handover of military bases in the capital of Mogadishu 
and the southern region.MOGADISHU,
 June 30 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) Transition Mission in 
Somalia (ATMIS) said on Thursday that it has completed the first phase 
of troop withdrawal from Somalia with the handover of military bases in 
the capital of Mogadishu and the southern region.ATMIS
 said Mogadishu's Aljazeera One training military base and Jubaland 
State's Geriley base, located in southern Somalia, were handed over to 
the Somali security forces on Thursday."This
 brings the total number of Forward Operating Bases (military bases) 
handed over to Somalia security forces to six, while the Marka Ayub 
facility was closed," Shitanda Terence Soita, Geriley base commander, 
said in a statement issued in Mogadishu by the AU mission.A
 police officer beefs up security at the scene of militant attack in 
Mogadishu, capital of Somalia, on Jan. 22, 2023. (Photo by Hassan 
Bashi/Xinhua)Aljazeera
 One training military base was manned by Uganda People's Defense 
Forces, while the Geriley base was manned by Kenya Defense Forces.ATMIS
 is expected to withdraw 2,000 troops by the end of June and another 
3,000 by September in compliance with the United Nations Security 
Council Resolutions 2628 and 2670, which mandates ATMIS to also hand 
over security responsibilities in agreed areas to Somali security 
forces.  ■