AFRICOM Chief Voices Frustration as Al-Shabaab Reclaims Liberated Areas, Warns Military Victories Are Being Squandered

Mogadishu (WDN ) – The commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), General Dagvin R.M. Anderson, in an interview with journalist Omar Faruk, has delivered one of the clearest expressions yet of American frustration over Somalia’s counterterrorism campaign, lamenting that Somali and international forces have repeatedly been forced to recapture territory they had already liberated years ago.

His remarks underscore growing concerns within Washington that hard-won battlefield gains have too often been undermined by weak governance, inadequate stabilization efforts, and poor post-conflict planning—allowing Al-Shabaab to return to areas where it had previously been driven out.

General Anderson recalled that between 2019 and 2021, U.S. forces, the Somali National Army, and the elite Danab Special Forces achieved significant successes along the Shabelle River corridor, liberating a number of strategic communities, including Mubaarak. Yet those gains ultimately proved temporary.

According to Anderson, many of the same areas later fell back under Al-Shabaab control, forcing Somali forces and their international partners to launch fresh military operations this year to recapture territory that had already been secured at considerable human and financial cost.