Mogadishu, Somalia – Ending the United States’ “forever wars” was a major slogan of Donald Trump’s 2024 election campaign, during which he and many of his supporters spoke out against American resources and lives being put to waste in conflicts across the globe.
But on February 1, a mere 10 days after being inaugurated for a second time, President Trump announced that the US had carried out air strikes targeting senior leadership of ISIL (ISIS) in Somalia. “These killers, who we found hiding in caves, threatened the United States,” his post on X read. This marked Trump’s first military action overseas, but it wouldn’t be his last.
