What role, if any, did Somali troops have in WWII?

by rupertalderson

My very general understanding is that there were two divisions of Somali soldiers, under the command of Italy which was still the colonial ruler of what is now Somalia (among other areas in East Africa). Were these soldiers forcibly conscripted, did they generally volunteer, or was it a mixture of the two? Additionally, did Germany have any command over these troops, or were they solely organized by the Italians? Finally, how were the Somali troops treated following defeat of Italy in East Africa by British-led forced?

jikugee
  1. The Somali soldiers composing the two divisions were mostly drawn from already existing units that were used 5 years earlier in the Italian invasion of Ethiopia also known as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. These troops composed around 13000 if the 20000 that made up the two divisions. The other 7000 were enlisted though most were not conscripted as enlisting provided a way to get out of the harsh living conditions in Somalia. Very few of the 20000 were conscripted with most of the conscripts being convicted criminals.
  2. Germany did not have any command over these troops in the direct sense. There were no German commanding officers who had control over these ranks. Of course there was still Hitler who could influence Mussolini to do things with his troops.
  3. The number of Somali troops on the frontlines of East Africa in the defense against the allies was only around 2000 troops (The rest were either stationed in mainland Italy or providing logistics for frontline soldiers. After Italy's defeat in East Africa after a three month defense the Somali troops were not treated differently than the Italian troops and were equally respected by the British soldiers for their courage and bravery in battle with some receiving military accolades after the war.