MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – American C.I.A soldier was killed in battle in Somalia, a move that could accelerate U.S decision to withdraw its troops from Somalia.
An article carried by New York Times reported that a veteran C.I.A. officer was killed in combat in Somalia in recent days.
Citing former American officials, the paper said the identity of the officer remained classified, and the circumstances of the killing were ambiguous. It was unclear whether the officer was killed in a counterterrorism raid or was the victim of an enemy attack.
The officer was a member of the C.I.A.’s paramilitary division, the Special Activities Center, and a former member of the Navy’s elite SEAL Team 6.
Death of the soldier comes barely a week after reliable sources claimed that the outgoing US President Donald Trump would order the U.S. military to withdraw troops from Somalia by the time he leaves office in January, using the end of his time in power to significantly pull back American forces from far-flung conflicts around the world.
The United States has about 700 troops in Somalia focused on helping local forces defeat al-shabaab fighters.
The United States already pulled out of Somalia’s Bossaso and Galkayo around four weeks ago, according to Reuters.
The troops remain in the southern port city of Kismayo, a special forces airbase in Baledogle and in the capital Mogadishu.
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