State Department to permanently end aid to Somalia after government destroys US-donated food

The State Department is permanently ending foreign assistance to Somalia after the country’s government destroyed a warehouse containing 76 metric tons of US-donated food.

Earlier this month, authorities at Mogadishu port demolished a World Food Programme emergency response warehouse at the direction of Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and the Federal Government of Somalia. The demolition was carried out without prior coordination with donor countries, including the United States.

A diplomatic cable from the US Embassy in Somalia dated January 6 said the action “likely resulted in the destruction of these emergency food supplies,” and noted that the decision had been approved by the country’s president. Because of the demolition, an additional 1,650 metric tons of food commodities that were scheduled to arrive earlier this month were instead stored at an alternative warehouse.

The United Nations World Food Programme said it would notify Somalia that the demolition constituted a breach of UN diplomatic protocols.

The cable also said the US Embassy in Somalia requested that the Secretary of State “strongly consider pausing, canceling, or postponing U.S. assistance to [Somalia] until it returns or compensates the United States and other international donors for the stolen food assistance items.”

On January 7, the State Department announced it “paused all ongoing U.S. assistance programs which benefit the Somali Federal Government. Any resumption of assistance will be dependent upon the Somali Federal Government taking accountability for its unacceptable actions.”

According to a senior administration official who spoke to the Daily Wire, all US assistance to Somalia is expected to end permanently by May. The outlet reported that Somalia’s ports minister issued an eviction notice to the World Food Programme in December, although the Somali government later indicated the warehouse could continue to be used while a final decision was pending. The port manager had said that the food remained accessible, though the World Food Programme disputed that account, saying the supplies likely were ruined because they required specialized storage conditions.