US suspends assistance to Somalia over alleged seizure of donor-funded food aid

Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
2h ago
The United States suspended all assistance to Somalia’s government, alleging Somali officials destroyed a US-funded World Food Programme warehouse and seized 76 metric tonnes of donor-funded food aid intended for vulnerable Somalis.
US suspends assistance to Somalia over alleged seizure of donor-funded food aid
A What happened
The United States suspended all assistance to the government of Somalia. The Trump administration alleged that Somali officials destroyed a US-funded World Food Programme warehouse and illegally seized 76 metric tonnes of donor-funded food aid intended for Somalis in need. Somali officials had not responded to the allegations at the time of publication. The US State Department said any resumption of assistance would depend on the Somali Federal Government taking accountability and remedial steps.
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Key insights

  • 1

    US conditions for restoring assistance: The US State Department said assistance could resume only if the Somali Federal Government takes accountability for the alleged actions and takes appropriate remedial steps.

  • 2

    US stance on aid diversion: The Trump administration said it has a zero-tolerance policy for waste, theft, and diversion of life-saving assistance.

Takeaways

US assistance to Somalia’s government remained suspended, with the US linking any restart to Somali government accountability for the alleged destruction of a WFP warehouse and seizure of 76 metric tonnes of food aid.

Topics

World & Politics Policy & Regulation International Affairs Security & Defense Migration Development

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