Somali government has beefed up security across the capital city of Mogadishu ahead the planned visit by the Turkish President Raccep Tayyib Erdogan on Friday (today). The Turkish leader will stop by on the last leg of his East African tour.
Hundreds of soldiers from the Somali government and African Union forces have been deployed across the city only a day after Al-Shabaab militants launched a deadly attack on a hotel in Mogadishu killing over 20 people, including two Members of Parliament. Over 40 others were injured during the siege, which lasted more than 12 hours.
Erdoğan, who arrived in Kenya on Wednesday after a brief visit to Uganda, is expected to arrive in Mogadishu for his third visit to the city for a brief visit and to hold talks with Somali political leaders. He will also open the new embassy in Mogadishu, the largest Turkish embassy in Africa.
Referred to as a ‘hero’ by many in Somalia, Erdogan, who became the first non-African Head of State to visit Mogadishu last year, has long advocated for greater support for the economically struggling horn of Africa nation, which is recovering from decades of war. The Turkish government spent more than $500 million in humanitarian and development aid to Somalia after a devastating famine hit the country in 2013, making it the largest recipient of Turkish aid in Africa.
The Turkish government also continues to undertake major projects in Somalia in a bid to jumpstart the country’s economy, shattered by decades of conflict. A major ally of Somalia, Turkey was the first non-African administration to resume formal diplomatic relations with Somalia after warlords overthrew the central government in 1991.