President Trump has signed off on a proposal which allows the U.S. Africa Command to launch its own offensive airstrikes against militants in Somalia.
The move extends authority to launch strikes down the chain of command to the regional military commander. In the Obama administration, authorization for such uses of force resided solely in the White House.
The order is described as expanding U.S. capacity and support to African Union allies in their ongoing fight against al Shabaab, the primary al-Qaeda affiliate in Somalia. U.S. Special Operations forces in Somalia have always retained the right to defend themselves, as well as their Somali allies. This has resulted in occasional strikes, including a particularly massive one in March 2016 that reportedly killed around 150 militants.
As part of the authorization, southern Somalia is now designed an “active area of hostilities,” bringing it on par with Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and certain areas of Libya and Yemen. Airstrikes can also now be approved with “a reasonable certainty” of no civilian casualties on the target, rather than the previous “near certainty” precedent during the Obama administration.
General Thomas Waldhauser, commander of the U.S. Africa Command, has sought the expanded authority to execute offensive strikes before. “I think the combatant commanders, myself included, are more than capable of making judgments and determinations on some of these targets,” he said.
General Waldhauser made a point to distinguish that authorizations and attacks will not necessarily suddenly ramp up now that the approval process has been streamlined. “We are not going to turn Somalia into a free-fire zone,” he said.
Strikes will still be planned and approved in a joint manner with the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and Somali security forces.
“Somali and AMISOM forces have already achieved significant success in recapturing territory from al Shabaab, and additional U.S. support will help them increase pressure on al Shabaab and reduce the risk to our partner forces when they conduct operations,” Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said. “The additional support provided by this authority will help deny al Shabaab safe havens from which it could attack U.S. citizens or U.S. interests in the region.”
Featured image courtesy of Reuters
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As long as later down the road, we don't turn around and blame and try to prosecute those who make the decision to conduct airstrikes, I am in support of this rule change. The people on the ground know more of what is going on than those many levels above. Somalia seems like a hell hole. I don't know the answer, but if this will help fight this bloody battle then God speed.
Its hard to find sources of information about things like this that aren't heavily clouded in political bias. It can be hard to see through a lot of the intentionally political misrepresentations of things.
Interesting take. I think no one knows how to handle this issue, but whack-a-mole has worked in preventing another 9/11 so far.
Sounds like a smart move. That kind of authority doesn't need to be so centralized, lest it waste everyone's time and weaken the ability of the combatant commander to do his job.
"Airstrikes can also now be approved with “a reasonable certainty” of no civilian casualties on the target, rather than the previous “near certainty” precedent during the Obama administration." So this is what the leftist media has been fussing about when it comes to this topic. They made it seem like President Trump was sitting in the war room telling JSOC to "take out their families" as he promised to do on "Fox and Friends." Props to Jack and Derek for explaining how that's not at all how it works on the last podcast. One could interpret this as a rather reckless move, but still, grow up.