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Somalia is on the verge of being overrun by the jihadist group al-Shabaab, which is “rapidly securing terrain,” “closing in” on Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, and seizing key locations. Al-Shabaab’s goal is the same as that of every jihadist operation: regional domination, but jihad expansion has no boundaries. Now comes news of an offer from Somalia to the Trump administration: “Somalia offers U.S. exclusive access to key ports and airbases amid rising tensions,” North Africa Post, April 1, 2025:
Somalia has extended an offer to the United States for exclusive control over strategic airbases and ports in the Gulf of Aden, thus adding a new geopolitical twist to great-power competition in the Horn of Africa.
In a letter from president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to U.S. president Donald Trump, Somalia proposed granting the U.S. operational control over the Balidogle and Berbera airbases, as well as the ports of Berbera and Bosaso. This offer, made in mid-March, aims to bolster the U.S. military’s presence in the region and strengthen efforts against Islamist militants. The strategically positioned assets would provide the U.S. with enhanced military and logistical access in the Gulf of Aden, a critical corridor for global trade and security.…
However, the proposal has sparked tensions with Somaliland, a breakaway region that controls the Berbera port and airbase…
According to the Institute for the Study of War, al-Shabaab and the Islamic State Somalia Province (ISS) “are the main competitors for control of the various mountainous ranges in northern Somalia,” and ISS is key for regional and even global Islamic State alliances, “including external attack plots in Asia and the West through the ISKP” (the Islamic State in Khorasan Province, aka ISIS-K). ISIS-K operates in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Turkmenistan. ISS raises money through criminal activity such as extortion rackets, and then transfers funding to ISIS K.
The Institute for the Study of War highlights the expansion of ISIS-K’s network, as it has reached Russia and even the European Union, with warnings of attacks inside the US:
ISKP has become the vanguard of IS’s external attack network and is the most active IS branch in terms of plotting and conducting external operations.The group has primarily focused on central Asia, where large-scale attacks have killed hundreds of civilians in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and Russia. However, European security forces have thwarted several ISKP attack networks, and analysts and security officials have warned in 2024 that there is a heightened risk of further ISKP plots targeting the West, including inside the United States.
The U.S. for years has helped Somali forces “with airstrikes and other support” against al-Shabaab. In December, the Somali government signed a $600,000-per-year “deal with a top Washington lobbying firm for advice on US-Somalia relations.”
With the latest Somali offer to the Trump administration comes “exclusive operational control over the Berbera and Baledogle air bases and the ports of Berbera and Bosaso to bolster American engagement in the region.” This is despite the reigniting of tensions between the Somali government and the breakaway region of Somaliland, where the Berbera Port is located. Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi is calling the move “dangerous,” saying that Somaliland “governs itself, controls its own land, sea and airspace, and makes its own decisions.”
But Somaliland’s longstanding assertion that it is an independent state isn’t recognized internationally. Still, last year, Somaliland signed an agreement with neighboring Ethiopia, “granting it access to the sea to build a port.” Somalia accused Ethiopia of interfering.
The dispute between Somalia and Somaliland, however, isn’t standing in the way of Trump. Somalia’s invitation is in American interests, given the strategic operations of IS Somalia Province (ISS), al-Shabaab jihadists, al-Qaeda, and ISIS-K. Trump stated this on social media in February, following an attack on the Islamic State:
The message to ISIS and all others who would attack Americans is that ‘WE WILL FIND YOU, AND WE WILL KILL YOU!’”
Christians in Somalia are severely persecuted, and al-Shabaab seeks to eradicate Christians from the country altogether. Also, al-Shabaab has been busy using social media to build a bridge between Gaza and Somalia, highlighting the alleged “plight of Muslims in both Gaza and in Somalia.” Right after October 7, “al-Shabaab’s networks were alight with congratulatory commentary and reporting of Hamas’ ‘victory.’ The group claimed the victory as a global one for all Muslims fighting against colonial oppression.” Yemen’s Houthis have also been collaborating with al-Shabaab and the Islamic State in Somalia (ISS). Not only do they share the same Salafi ideology, but also they are united in their hatred of America and Israel.
Jihadist activity in the Horn of Africa is rapidly increasing, but too little media attention is given to it. Trump, on the other hand, is taking it seriously.
