US airstrike targets Al-Shabab in Somalia; 1 extremist killed

Image

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The United States military said on Friday it carried out an airstrike targeting Al-Shabab in southern Somalia, killing at least one militant, Garowe Online reports.

The U.S. Africa Command said in a statement that the raid was conducted in the vicinity of Tortorow, a small rebel-held town in the country's southern Lower Shabelle region on June 5.

In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting an al-Shabaab militant in the vicinity of Tortoroow, Somalia, on June 5, 2019," said the AFRICOM.

The statement said no civilians were killed or injured in the latest airstrike. There was no immediate comment from Somalia’s Federal government in Mogadishu.

Al-Shabab controls large parts of rural southern and central Somalia and continues to carry out high-profile suicide bombings and other attacks in the capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere.

The US has dramatically stepped up airstrikes against al-Shabab in Somalia since Trump took office, carrying out at least 47 such strikes last year.

Amnesty International said in its latest report that the US military may be guilty of war crimes for killing large numbers of civilians in a sharply stepped-up campaign of airstrikes in Somalia over the past two years.

GAROWE ONLINE

Related Articles

Somalia election dispute deepens as Puntland and Jubaland leave Mogadishu talks

Somalia has been facing prolonged political disagreements over electoral reforms, with disputes centred on the structure of elections.

  • Somalia

    22-07-2026

  • 12:44PM

Turkish parliament extends military mission in Somalia until 2028

The mandate allows Turkish forces to operate in areas agreed upon by the two governments, including Somalia's territorial waters.

  • Somalia

    22-07-2026

  • 12:26PM