Somalia Requests UN to Delay Peacekeeping Troop Withdrawal

Somalia has requested the United Nations to postpone the withdrawal of 3,000 soldiers from the African Union peacekeeping forces for three months, to allow its troops time to reorganize after being forced to withdraw from several towns they had recently controlled due to an attack by militants. The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), established under a mandate from the UN Security Council, took over the mission from another African Union mission in April of last year. On June 30, ATMIS completed the first phase by withdrawing 2,000 soldiers, with the second phase of troop withdrawal set to begin by September 30, aimed at reducing troop numbers to 14,626 soldiers.