According to the Times, Biden’s decision came in response to a request by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin for the troops to be returned to Somalia. The troops are returning to assist Somali forces in their fight against the militant group al-Shabaab, an affiliate of al-Qaeda that has been one of the 21^st century’s deadliest terrorist organizations. Al-Shabaab, formed in the early 2000s, has killed thousands of people in Somalia, conducted deadly attacks against neighboring countries such as Kenya and Uganda and fought international forces affiliated with the U.S. and the African Union.

The current mission for U.S. forces will be to disrupt al-Shabaab’s ability to plan and launch complex, often international attacks. This mission includes targeting specific top leaders within al-Shabaab, according to Biden administration officials who spoke to the Times. This mission has the support of the Somali government. Recently elected Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said over Twitter that he “thanks and appreciates” Biden’s move, adding that “The #US has always been a reliable partner in our quest to stability and fight against terrorism.”

The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia H.E @HassanSMohamud thanks and appreciates H.E @JoeBiden for authorizing the deployment of American troops to #Somalia. The #US has always been a reliable partner in our quest to stability and fight against terrorism. #Partnership

— Villa Somalia (@TheVillaSomalia) May 17, 2022

The U.S. has a long history of intervening in Somalia. The country was an American ally during the Cold War, with the U.S. supporting the military dictatorship of President Siad Barre. With American support drying up at the end of the Cold War, Barre’s regime was overthrown in 1991 by a coalition of armed factions who subsequently fought one another for control of the country. Somalia has struggled to form a stable government that controls all of the country’s territory ever since.

In 1992, President George H.W. Bush authorized U.S. forces to intervene in the country to create stability and allow humanitarian aid to be delivered amid food shortages and natural disasters. President Bill Clinton continued the American intervention until two American Black Hawk helicopters were shot down in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, in 1993. Eighteen U.S. troops and hundreds of Somalis were killed in a battle with Somali militia forces in the incident, which became the basis for the 2001 movie Black Hawk Down. Clinton eventually withdrew U.S. forces from the country in the face of domestic backlash over the loss of American life.

In recent years, the Somali government has battled al-Shabaab for control of the country’s territory. The U.S. has been supporting the fight against al-Shabaab through a variety of methods, including ground troops to support Somali and other regional forces and drone strikes against al-Shabaab militants and leaders. This latter policy has been heavily criticized for causing significant civilian deaths and creating ill will against the U.S. and sympathy for al-Shabaab and its cause.

Biden quietly stopped nearly all drone strikes in Somalia, a move that was praised by human rights activists. More generally, the Biden administration has been scaling back American involvement in operations related to the longstanding War on Terror, such as withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan last year, which ended the two-decade American intervention in that country.

However, the Biden administration has been slowly increasing its involvement in Somalia. Though rare, U.S. forces have conducted a handful of drone strikes in the country after the initial freeze on such tactics. Now, the administration’s plan to send troops back to Somalia demonstrates the limit to the president’s commitment to stepping away from “forever war.”

An administration official who spoke to the Times noted that the situations in Afghanistan and Somalia were different, noting that al-Shabaab, unlike the Taliban, has conducted strikes against U.S. troops and interests in recent years and seems intent to continue to target Americans.

While the current mission in Somalia has specific aims, it remains to be seen whether this return will lead to a larger reengagement in Somalia and a recommitment to the War on Terror. But given the decades of American involvement in these fights, it seems likely that American forces will be involved in the region for some time.