Egyptian troops deploying to Somalia will assume control of Sector Five in the Middle Shabelle region, replacing Burundian forces set to withdraw in the coming weeks, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has said.
In an interview with the BBC, Mohamud confirmed the troops will be stationed between the districts of Balcad and Mahaday. He rejected media reports claiming the Egyptian contingent would deploy to the Gedo region near the Ethiopian border, where Ethiopian troops are already based.
“There may be differences between Egypt and Ethiopia, but not inside Somalia. There are no Egyptian troops going to the Ethiopian border out of nowhere, nor have Egypt asked us to go to the Ethiopian border,” Mohamud said.
The president stressed that Somalia would not allow its territory to become a battleground for a proxy war between Cairo and Addis Ababa, whose relations remain strained over disputes including the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile.
“Somalia will not allow two countries involved in a ‘proxy war’ to fight inside the country. Both countries have very good relations with us, and there is no reason for them to fight inside Somalia,” he said.
Egypt’s participation in the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) was approved by the AU Peace and Security Council in late 2024 and reinforced by a bilateral security pact signed with Mogadishu in January 2025.
The comments follow criticism from Ethiopia’s ambassador to Somalia, who accused Cairo of lacking peacekeeping experience and argued that Egyptian forces would not improve Somalia’s fragile security landscape.
The Burundian National Defence Forces, whose mandate was extended by six months, are expected to fully depart Somalia in the coming weeks, part of a phased handover as AUSSOM prepares to wind down and Somali security forces assume greater responsibility.
