US suspends assistance to Somalia’s federal government, alleging it seized food aid

WASHINGTON: The State Department said Wednesday that it has suspended all US assistance to Somalia’s federal government over allegations that Somali officials destroyed an American-funded warehouse belonging to the World Food Program and seized 76 metric tons of food aid intended for impoverished civilians.

“The Trump Administration has a zero-tolerance policy for waste, theft, and diversion of life-saving assistance,” the department said in a statement.

“The State Department has paused all ongoing US assistance programs which benefit the Somali Federal Government,” it said.

“Any resumption of assistance will be dependent upon the Somali Federal Government, taking accountability for its unacceptable actions and taking appropriate remedial steps.”

The suspension comes as the Trump administration has ratcheted up criticism of Somali refugees and migrants in the United States, including over well-publicised fraud allegations involving child care centers in Minnesota.

It has slapped significant restrictions on Somalis wanting to come to the US and made it difficult for those already in the United States to stay.

It was not immediately clear how much assistance would be affected by the suspension because the Trump administration has slashed foreign aid expenditures, dismantled the US Agency for International Development and not released new country-by-country data.

The US had provided $770 million in assistance for projects in Somalia during the last year of Democratic President Joe Biden's administration, but only a fraction of that went directly to the government.

The Trump administration made the move after authorities at the Mogadishu Port demolished the WFP warehouse at the direction of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud “with no prior notification or coordination with international donor countries, including the United States,” according to a US official familiar with the alleged incident.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private reporting from American diplomats in the region.

Located in the Horn of Africa, Somalia is one of the world's poorest nations and has been beset by chronic strife and insecurity exacerbated by multiple natural disasters, including severe droughts, for decades.