U. S. airstrike kills 8 al- Shabab terrorists in Somalia
U. S. airstrikes targeted Islamic extremists in Somalia Sunday as the U. S. ramped up efforts to support the East African government in the face of brutal attacks from the al- Qaeda- linked al-Shabab terrorist group.
The U. S. Africa Command said “current assessments” indicated eight militants died in the airstrikes, which appeared to be the first since President Trump gave the Pentagon the go- ahead in March to conduct actions against the ruthless group in support of partner forces in Somalia.
The strike targeted a camp about 185 miles southwest of Mogadishu. The Pentagon said the attack was coordinated with “regional partners as a direct response to al- Shabab actions, including recent attacks on Somali forces.”
Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed said Sunday’s attack destroyed an al- Shabab training base near Sakow, a provincial capital.
“This was a successful strike which destroyed a key al- Shabab command and supply hub,” he said. “This will ultimately disrupt the enemy’s ability to conduct new attacks within Somalia.”
He noted that Somalis have long suffered at the hands of the militants, which he said are supported by global terror networks. He also promoted his amnesty offer, saying those who surrender can be part of his nation’s “peaceful and prosperous” future.
The group, which wants to turn Somalia into a fundamentalist Islamic state, most recently took responsibility for an attack in Mogadishu this month that left more than a dozen people dead.
U. S. Africa Command said that Sunday’s airstrikes were part of an effort to curtail al- Shabab’s recruitment, planning and direction of terror attacks in both Africa and the United States. The group has “cemented its control ( over) southern and central Somalia, ( using) the area to plot and direct terror attacks, steal humanitarian aid and to shelter other terrorists,” the statement said.
The statement said al- Shabab has overrun three African Union military bases in the past eight months, increasing its military strength.