Somalia’s “Danab” Unit: From Counterterrorism to Accusations of Theft
In a striking turn of events, the Somali government has announced the detention of several members of the “Danab” special forces unit, trained by the United States, on charges of stealing aid donated by Washington.
The Danab unit serves as a key pillar in efforts supported by the United States to combat the terrorist movement Al-Shabaab, affiliated with Al-Qaeda.
In February, Washington agreed to allocate over a hundred million dollars to build up to five military bases for the Danab unit.
The Somali Ministry of Defense stated in a late Thursday statement that it had informed international partners of the theft incident and would announce the findings of its investigations.
A U.S. official stated in a Reuters statement that Washington takes all corruption allegations very seriously.
He added that “we look forward to cooperating with the Danab unit to put in place necessary measures of protection and accountability to prevent any future incidents that may impact forthcoming aid,” without directly addressing whether any U.S. support had already been suspended.
In 2017, the U.S. administration agreed to provide assistance for the training and equipping of the Danab unit, consisting of 3,000 soldiers, considered a rapid response force against Al-Shabaab, which has been rebelling against the central government since 2006.
The Danab unit has significantly participated in the military offensive launched by the Somali army and allied tribes since 2022, which initially succeeded in retaking vast territories from Al-Shabaab in central Somalia.
However, the campaign began to falter as government-allied forces struggled to control rural areas, and Al-Shabaab continued to carry out large-scale attacks, including in the capital Mogadishu.
Washington suspended some of its military aid to Somalia in 2017 after the army failed to provide reports on the use of its food and fuel supplies.
The United States also conducts repeated drone strikes to target Al-Shabaab fighters.
