MOGADISHU, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) said Thursday that it has officially handed over the Kuday military base to the Somali security forces, marking a milestone in the third phase of the troop drawdown.

ATMIS said the Kuday base, which is located in the Lower Juba region in southern Somalia, has been manned by the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) since 2015 and has played a critical role in safeguarding the port city of Kismayo as a strategic buffer zone.

"This handover demonstrates the government of Somalia's capacity and willingness to continue to take over security responsibilities, supported by ATMIS," ATMIS Military Chief Engineer Suleiman Ibrahim said in a statement issued in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

He also commended the KDF troops for securing Lower Juba and urged the incoming Somali security forces to remain vigilant and uphold the legacy of their predecessors.

The Lower Juba region was liberated from al-Shabab by ATMIS and Somali security forces in 2015, dismantling the group's operations in southern Somalia.

Sakariye Mohamed Omar, representative of the Somali National Army, emphasized the importance of cooperation between the allied forces against al-Shabab in the region.

"Al-Shabab is an enemy to Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, and every country in Africa and the entire world. We must work together to degrade the threats these enemies pose," Omar said.

ATMIS has so far transferred six military bases to Somali security forces and reduced the number of troops by 2,000 as part of the phase three drawdown approved by the United Nations and the AU. The pan-African body's mission withdrew 5,000 troops from Somalia and handed over 17 military bases to the Somali security forces during the first and second phases of the drawdown concluded in 2023. Enditem

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