Somali army chief in Turkey for talks on fight against Al-Shabab

Turkey provides training to Somalia's armed forces and is the only country that has a military base in the country’s capital Mogadishu [Turk-Som] which was opened in 2017.

News Keydmedia Online
24 November 2021

ANKARA, Turkey – The commander of the Somali military General Odowa Yusuf Rage has arrived in Turkey on Tuesday as the war on Al-Shabaab takes a new shape in the country.

The SNA chief held talks with the Turkish Minister of Defense in Ankara, discussed ways to strengthen military ties between the two countries, according to the state media.

Rage traveled to Turkey at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart General Yasar Guler. His visit comes as Somalia is facing challenges in the fight against Al-Shabaab.

Turkey provides training to Somalia's armed forces and is the only country that has a military base in the country’s capital Mogadishu [Turk-Som] which was opened in 2017.

Rage, a 32-year-old officer was appointed as SNA head in 2019 by Farmajo in the latest changes to top military brass that resulted from the president’s total failure in security.

He was promoted straight from lieutenant colonel to brigadier, bypassing the colonel rank, a move that showed how Farmajo politized the army and used it for personal gains.

Rage is a Turkish-trained officer and he is accused of incompetence and failure to lead the armed forces efficiently in the anti-al-Shabaab combat. He takes orders from Farmajo.

Somalia-Turkey ties have picked up pace after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made an official visit in 2011, the only visit by a non-African leader to Somalia in 20 years. 

Scroll down for pictures of the meeting.

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