Uganda Begins Phased Pullout of Troops From Somalia After Two Decades

Uganda Starts Pulling Its Troops Out of Somalia

After nearly twenty years of involvement, Uganda’s army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba confirmed that the first batch of 109 Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) troops left Mogadishu on Friday.

The move follows a statement on X in which Gen Muhoozi said, “As we promised, we have started withdrawing UPDF from Somalia. After 20 years of a lot of blood and sacrifice, we are handing over security to our Somali brothers.”

Uganda was the inaugural African nation to send forces under the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom), which began in 2007 to protect Somalia’s transitional government from Islamist militants.

According to the source, the withdrawal will proceed in phases and is scheduled for completion in August 2027. Patience, as always, is a virtue of the UN‑style timetable.

Uganda’s military presence will not disappear entirely. Troops deployed under a separate bilateral security arrangement—estimated at about 2,000—will remain, while roughly 4,500 soldiers continue to serve under the African Union mission.

Since their 2007 arrival, Ugandan forces have been credited with helping drive al‑Shabab out of Mogadishu and other major towns, working alongside the Somali National Army to recapture strategic locations and secure government sites.

The African Union mission evolved from Amisom to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmis), and most recently to the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (Aussom) in 2025, which focuses on strengthening Somali security institutions.

Somalia continues to grapple with a protracted insurgency led by al‑Shabab, an al‑Qaeda‑linked group that has plagued the country for over two decades.

Uganda’s phased exit signals a shift toward Somali‑led security, even as a modest Ugandan footprint persists under bilateral terms.