Djiboutian Armed Forces - History
At independence in 1977, the ethnic Somalis and the Afars, an ethnic group with ties to Ethiopia, were feuding over the composition of the new Djiboutian army. The core of the army consists of Djiboutians who served with French forces stationed in the territory.
Djiboutians who served in the French army were angry over taking substantial pay cuts in the new Djibouti force. President Gouled in July 1977 announced severe sanctions would be imposed. against troops who threatened not to perform their duties.
President Gouled agreed to integrate 300 members of the Front for the Liberation of the Somali Coast into the army to placate Front militants and Somalia. The Front was organized and trained by Somalia, but it now has legal status in Djibouti. Some of its leaders were members of the legislative assembly and the cabinet.
In response, militant Afar members of the Djibouti Lberation Movement, an Ethiopian puppet organization, demanded to be integrated into the Djibouti army also. Their demand was apparently supported by pro—Ethiopian Afar politicians whose positions had declined relative to Gouled and other political leaders supported by Somalia.
With the 2001 final peace accord between the government and the Afar-dominated FRUD, the armed forces have been downsized. The country's security is supplemented by a formal security accord with the Government of France, which guarantees Djibouti's territorial integrity against foreign incursions. France maintains one of its largest military bases outside France in Djibouti. There are some 3,000 French troops stationed in Djibouti, including units of the famed French Foreign Legion.
In October 2009 Djibouti's Minister of Defense and chief of general staff, for assistance to support the East Africa Standby Brigade's Field Training Exercise (EASBRIG FTX), scheduled for mid-November 2009 in Djibouti. The exercise, the first-ever of its kind to be conducted by EASBRIG, will involve nearly 2,000 troops from nearly a dozen countries - including such key regional troop-contributing countries as Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda. The successful conclusion of the EASBRIG FTX promoted US strategic goals, by building security capacity among key allies in both the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa regions.
In December 2009 Djibouti capped off a four-day field training exercise conducted by the newly forged Eastern African Standby Force (EASF). Ten countries of the Eastern African Brigade [EASBRICOM] worked together throughout the week to practice responding to simulated incidents. Army camps from Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Seychelles, Somalia and Uganda participated in training scenarios that included armed groups manning illegal vehicle check points, hijacked vehicles, blocked roadways, and other incidents. Their goal was to learn how to work together to bring stability and peace during unstable situations and to overcome logistical obstacles. Police and civilian specialists also participated in the scenarios and all were evaluated on their responses.
Djibouti Army headquarters in 2011 sent 2000 troops in central town (Beled-Weyne) in Somalia to take part in the African Union Mission (AMISOM) to defeat al-shabaab. Djibouti Army’s goal was to clear the central town in Somalia (Beled-Weyne) of armed militants in an effort to bring better security to the Hiran region, paving the way for better governance. Djibouti became the third country to contribute to the African Union forces battling the Al-qaeda linked Al-shabaab militant and deployed a contingent in Hiran region, central Somalia.
During a ceremony 05 June 2013 at the Djiboutian Armed Forces (FAD) Camp Cheik Osman Parade Field in Djibouti, Africa, Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa leaders joined Djibouti's prime minister and hundreds of Djiboutian military defenders in celebration of the FAD's 36th anniversary.
"Today is the birthday of the Djibouti Army," said FAD Chief of Staff Gen. Zakaria Cheikh Ibrahim, "a celebration of the creation of the Djiboutian Armed Forces in 1977. "On that day Djibouti Army was (formed of) militia, some rebels and parts of the army from the French," the general explained. "The Djibouti Army was settled 21 days before the independence (of the country), so the month of June is very important for us because of two major events - June 6 was the creation of the Djiboutian Army and June 27 is Independence Day."
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