The UAE Ministry of Defense has announced the tragic deaths of 3 UAE Armed Forces members and a Bahraini officer in an attack at the “Gordon Base” in Mogadishu, with two others sustaining injuries.
According to the Ministry, in a statement posted on its platform, “3 UAE Armed Forces members and a Bahraini officer were martyred, and 2 others injured following a terrorist act in the brotherly Republic of Somalia.”
The statement specified that the attack occurred “while they were performing their duties in training and rehabilitating the Somali Armed Forces, within the bilateral agreement between the UAE and the Republic of Somalia as part of the military cooperation between the two countries.”
The Ministry extended its heartfelt condolences to the families of the martyrs, praying for the departed souls to be enveloped in divine mercy, and expressing wishes for the speedy recovery of the injured.
The statement further mentioned that “the UAE continues to coordinate and collaborate with the Somali government in investigating the heinous terrorist act.”
On the other hand, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud conveyed his condolences to the UAE, condemning the attack in Mogadishu and calling for an immediate investigation into the incident, as reported by the Somali News Agency (SONNA).
The Somali President visited the hospital that received the injured UAE officers from the attack, stating, “We offer our condolences to the government and people of the United Arab Emirates, who lost their soldiers in the terrorist attack in Mogadishu. These officers came to our country to participate in rebuilding the Somali Armed Forces.”
As per Reuters, the military Gordon Base in Mogadishu is managed by the UAE.
For years, Somalia has been engaged in a war against Al-Shabaab militants, founded in early 2004 and ideologically affiliated with Al-Qaeda. The group has carried out numerous operations claiming the lives of hundreds of individuals.
