Airstrike targets Al-Shabaab in southern Somalia
MOGADISHU, Somalia - An airstrike activated on Monday targeted Al-Shabaab camps near Bal'ad town, at least 30 kilometers north of the capital Mogadishu, in an offensive coming just amid the ongoing withdrawal of soldiers from the Horn of Africa nation.
Reports coming from the town indicate that the airstrike was specifically aimed at the Al-Shabaab-dominated villages in the country, further reaffirming the spirit to defeat the group which has been causing havoc in central and southern regions.
Casualties have not been immediately known and no one has yet claimed responsibility. However, such airstrikes are waged by the Somali National Army with the support of the US Africa Command, which provides aerial surveillance for combat troops.
The US special forces work closely with the Danad commandos who they train. The team is credited for liberating several strategic towns from Al-Shabaab with the close help of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS).
Last month, a U.S. Army-operated MQ-1C crashed in southern Somalia at approximately 12:40 PM. An investigation is ongoing, although the crash does not appear to be the result of any attempt to shoot down the aircraft, the US said.
The US had temporarily withdrawn its troops in Somalia in 2021 as a cost-saving measure but the action was reversed when Joe Biden won the 2020 elections. It is not clear if Donald Trump will revisit the action again having won his second term a few weeks.
But the reinstatement of the troops was done by the Senate which had accessed intelligence reports claiming resurgence of Al-Shabaab militants in the Horn of Africa nation. The Al-Shabaab is fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia.
Analysts project that Shabaab attacks could be on the rise following political tensions between the federal government of Somalia and some federal member states. Puntland and Jubaland have differed with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on his policy in the fight against Shabaab.
GAROWE ONLINE