Beletweyne- Maj. Gen. Marius Ngendabanka, Deputy Force Commander in charge of Operations and Planning for the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), visited Mission troops in Beletweyne on Wednesday to examine their well-being.
Beletweyne is the headquarters of Sector Four under the ATMIS military sectorization, which is manned by Djiboutian and Ethiopian troops. It also includes the Hiraan region, where ATMIS and Somali National Army (SNA) troops have recently recaptured large swaths of territory previously controlled by Al-Shabaab insurgents and their supporters.
“We’ve come to examine the health of our troops. “We visited the Level 2 Hospital, which is doing an excellent job of treating ATMIS and Somali Security Forces (SSF) soldiers, as well as the local residents that live in the surrounding areas,” said Maj. Gen. Ngendabanka, who is also the acting Force Commander.
Maj. Gen. Ngendabanka met with sector commanders and visited some of Sector Four’s facilities, which are crucial in providing logistical support to troops on the frontlines.
He praised the Djiboutian and Ethiopian contingents for assisting the SNA in its offensive against Al-Shabaab insurgents and maintaining the peace and stability of Beletweyne and its surroundings.
Sector Four Commander Col. Hassan Djama Farah, for his part, emphasized the progress gained in the war against Al-Shabaab as well as the hurdles encountered in the current military offensive.
“The visit by the Deputy Force Commander is aimed at raising the morale of the troops and assessing their readiness for the ongoing and impending operations. “The delegation also went to the Level 2 Hospital to inspect its condition and discussed other logistical matters,” Col. Farah stated.
Maj. Gen. Ngendabanka was joined by Maj. Gen. Peter Kimani Muteti, the Deputy Force Commander in charge of Logistics and Support, and other senior ATMIS officers.