The United Nations Security Council on Friday decided to reduce uniformed personnel of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) by 1,000.

Resolution 2472, unanimously adopted by the 15-member Security Council, decided to reduce the level of uniformed AMISOM personnel by 1,000 to a maximum level of 19,626 by Feb. 28, 2020, in line with the Transition Plan.

The council decided to authorize the AU member states to maintain the deployment of AMISOM until May 31, 2020.

The council also decided that AMISOM shall be authorized to take all necessary measures, in full compliance with participating states' obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and in full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and unity of Somalia, to carry out its mandate.

Under the Transition Plan agreed in 2017, AMISOM will gradually hand over security to Somali forces, but the AU has expressed its concern about the extra responsibility as the country is scheduled to have elections next year.

The United Nations is making efforts to reinforce stability in Somalia, where al-Qaida-linked al-Shabaab fighters have been seeking to overthrow the government for a decade.