US freezes aid to Somalia over dispute on destroyed WFP warehouse

The United States has frozen all assistance to Somalia after accusing Somali officials of destroying a U.S.-funded World Food Programme warehouse and illegally seizing food aid. The move comes as Somalia faces a worsening food crisis, with nearly 4.4 million people projected to face acute food insecurity amid a fast-escalating drought expected to worsen in the coming months. In a statement on Wednesday on the social media platform X, the U.S. State Department said it was “deeply concerned by reports that Federal Government of Somalia officials have destroyed a US-funded World Food Programme (WFP) warehouse and illegally seized 76 metric tons of donor-funded food aid for vulnerable Somalis.” “The State Department has paused all ongoing U.S. assistance programs which benefit the Somali Federal Government,” the statement said, adding that the Trump administration has a “zero-tolerance policy for waste, theft, and diversion of life-saving assistance.” The warehouse, located inside the busy Mogadishu port area, was storing specialized food for malnourished pregnant and breastfeeding women, girls, and young children. The United States has historically been Somalia’s largest bilateral humanitarian donor. The U.S. government obligated $1.2 billion in humanitarian and other assistance to Somalia in fiscal year 2023 and $420 million the following year. And the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development last year has had profound impacts on the fragile country, affecting vulnerable people and social services and even weighing on tax revenues and the country’s gross domestic product. But while Somali authorities confirm they demolished the warehouse structure, both the government and WFP say the food aid itself was not destroyed or looted. “The Government wishes to clarify that the commodities referenced in recent reports remain under the custody and control of the World Food Programme, including assistance provided by the United States,” the Somali Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. In a statement, WFP said it was “actively engaging with authorities and partners to address this issue and ensure the safe storage of food commodities,” stopping short of saying the supplies were stolen. A WFP worker in Mogadishu told AFP there had been no looting. The incident is unfolding amid major construction and expansion at the Mogadishu port. In August, Somalia opened a new container terminal that officials said would nearly double the country’s cargo handling capacity, part of an effort to modernize the port and strengthen regional trade links. “The WFP warehouse in question is located within the Mogadishu Port area, where ongoing expansion and repurposing works are underway as part of broader port development activities,” Somalia’s government said. It added that it is reviewing the matter in coordination with humanitarian partners. The U.S. statement on Wednesday said that “any resumption of assistance will be dependent upon the Somali Federal Government taking accountability for its unacceptable actions and taking appropriate remedial steps.” It was not yet clear what these remedial steps could look like. The standoff comes amid heightened tension in U.S.-Somalia relations, as Washington steps up domestic enforcement actions against immigrants, including Somalis. President Donald Trump’s recent derogatory remarks about Somalis prompted a pushback from Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. Somalia has been courting closer ties with Washington, but the relationship sits against a sensitive geopolitical backdrop. There have been renewed calls amongst U.S. conservatives, such as Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, to recognize Somaliland, the self-declared independent region that broke away from Somalia in 1991 — a prospect the Somali government strongly opposes. Last month, Israel, among America’s closest allies, recognized Somaliland’s independence in a move that Somali and Palestinian officials suggested could be linked to a plan to resettle displaced Palestinians to Somaliland. This week, Israel’s foreign minister was in Somaliland for his first official visit. How Somalia navigates the accusations around aid theft and diversion could shape not only the future of U.S. food assistance but also broader diplomatic and security ties.