Library image of an armed Reaper drone, December 2019 (US Air Force/ Senior Sergeant Haley Stevens)
An AFRICOM declared US airstrike in coordination with Somali Army commandos resulted in the death of up to five Al-Shabab fighters near Labi-Kus village on July 17, 2022. Somali National News Agency (SONNA), a Somali government-run news agency, tweeted that “three #Alshabab terrorists were killed and one was captured after Somali National Army’s commandos (#DANAB) attacked
More than 10 alleged al-Shabaab militants were killed by Somalia government forces and international partners in the Burweyn area of Hiraan region on February 28, 2023. A tweet from @HSNQ_NISA, the National Intelligence & Security Agency (NISA) of Somalia, announced that “more than” 10 [al-Shabaab members] including leaders were killed in an army operation by NISA
On the 24th of January, 2024, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) conducted an airstrike against Al-Shabaab in a remote area near the town of Caad in the Mudug region of eastern Somalia. AFRICOM stated that six Al-Shabaab militants were killed in the strike and assessed that no civilians were injured or killed. AFRICOM released a statement
“Unknown military jets fired several missiles” at a suspected Somali pirate base in the northern autonomous region of Puntland a coastguard official told AFP. The target was the village of Gumah, described as being between Hafun and Bargal towns and some 220 kilometres (140 miles) east of Bossaso, the main port of Somalia’s breakaway Puntland
Two media organisations reported a possible US air operation targeting an al Shabaab base in the Lower Shabelle region. Dalsan Radio reported that Somali commandos backed by US Special Forces had attacked al Shabaab bases in Omar Berre in Lower Shabelle overnight using helicopters. It also quoted what it said was an eyewitness: “‘We heard several
The sixth declared US strike in five days hit Somalia, targeting al Shabaab fighters, the US military told the Bureau of Investigative Journalism. An Africa Command spokesperson said the attack occurred at 0840 near Gaduud about 250 miles southwest of Mogadishu. As of November 15th, the US was still “assessing the results of the strike”.
A strike reportedly hit a village outside Marka, a city around 60 miles south of Mogadishu, according to a field investigation by a reporter for The Nation. There were no reports of immediate civilian harm, though a man reportedly died of a heart attack following the violence. Airwars has placed this event in a date
US Africa Command reported that the previous day it had “conducted an airstrike near a terrorist encampment location in the vicinity of Shebeeley, Hiran Region, Somalia, on January 30, 2019.” It added: “no civilians were injured or killed in this airstrike.” However, AFRICOM claimed that the airstrike “killed twenty-four militants.” This contrasted with AFRICOM claims just
A suspected US drone carried out double airstrikes in Somalia’s Middle Juba region, killing 20 al Shabaab fighters in total, Mareeg Media reported. According to Mareeg: “A suspected US drone has carried out double air strikes targeting towns held by al Qaeda linked Al Shabaab in south of Somalia. The strikes were conducted in Bu’ale and
Local reporters alleged that US and Somali forces had killed four civilians including a mother and child, during an operation in Leego. Caasimada alleged that the civilians were killed around midnight, by Somali troops accompanied by ‘white US officers’, and claimed that the attacking forces had flown there from a military base to the north.
According to Voice of America correspondent Harun Maruf, two airstrikes by an unknown party struck al Shabaab targets in southern Somalia. One unsuccesfully targeted a ‘senior ISIS figure’ near Buaale. According to Maruf’s tweet, “There are reports of 2 new airstrikes in S. Somalia overnight. A strike in Jamame area reportedly hit a graduation ceremony
Two civilians, including a child, were reportedly injured in a US airstrike on Jilib. AFRICOM later admitted that the strike led to civilian harm. Somali Memo, a news site close to Al Shabaab, wrote: “Reports from Jilib district say that a drone crashed into a civilian residence yesterday, killing no one but injuring two civilians,
Three civilians were killed and one child injured by a US airstrike near Jilib, according to a number of local sources. Mareeg said that at least two civilians had been killed. Halgan Media claimed the following: “Suspected US drones launched a series of strikes overnight bombing the Al Shabaab controlled town of Jilib in the
A US airstrike targeted Al Shabaab in Burr Heybo, AFRICOM told Airwars via email. The correspondence reads: “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted one airstrike in Burr Heybo, Somalia on Dec. 21 targeting two (2) al-Shabaab terrorist. The command’s initial assessment concluded this airstrike yielded no death or injuries
Over 100 al-Shabaab militants were reportedly killed by Somali forces and “international partner” airstrikes or ground operations on the outskirts of the village of El-Dhere on November 26, 2022. Voice of America quoted Somalia’s deputy information minister, Abdirahman Yusuf Omar Adala, who said that an operation conducted by the Somali army, backed by locals and international
Between 10 and 40 militants were killed by declared US airstrikes near Afmadow in Lower Juba on July 8, 2023. AFRICOM announced on July 9, 2023 that “At the request of the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted three collective self-defense airstrikes overnight in a remote area near Afmadow, approximately 105 kilometers north
Several people, possibly civilians, were left wounded as US airstrikes hit four towns near Ras Kamboni, including a terrorist training camp on Badmadow island, local and international media reported. Sources added that up to ten al Qaeda members were also killed. The strikes came just two days after the US-launched AC-130 attack in Ras Kamboni,
A US drone strike allegedly killed “a senior commander and other members” of al Shabaab. Two or three people were reportedly killed by the drones – with an artillery barrage from Kenyan troops followed up the air attack according to the Los Angeles Times, and reportedly killing 50 ‘militants’. This was the first of six
On November 17th 2017, US Africa Command sent the Bureau of Investigative Journalism a list of previously unreported strikes, which included this one. An AFRICOM spokesperson explained that their goal “is to be as transparent as possible while taking into account operational security, force protection and diplomatic sensitivities.” It therefore did not proactively release information
The US confirmed it had accompanied Somali troops in a mission that rescued 30 to 32 boys from an al Shabaab indoctrination centre in the Lower Shabelle region. However, during the rescue attempt, fire reportedly from Somali forces reportedly killed four or five children, and a teacher. A later US government FOIA response indicated that
Four al Shabaab fighters were killed as the US carried out a strike in Somalia in the vicinity of Araara, Lower Juba region, after partner forces came under attack from small arms fire, a US Africa Command press release stated. The press release called it a “collective self-defense airstrike.” No US service members were apparently
A confirmed US action, striking approximately 23 miles east of Beledweyne in the Hiran Region, killed 35 militants while no civilians were harmed, an AFRICOM statement asserted the next day. The airstrike targeted armed al Shabaab militants “as they were transitioning between locations in a rural area”, the US command said. Marine Corps Maj. Gen.
In June 2016, the US reported that six weeks earlier it had struck a group of al Shabaab fighters, killing three. According to the AFRICOM statement released on June 27th 2016, “U.S. forces supporting the Federal Government of Somalia, the Somali National Army and troop contributing nations to the African Union Mission in Somalia, provided
Publicly declaring its 60th strike of the year, AFRICOM said that it had targeted and killed an alleged al Shabaab terrorist According to a press release issued on the same date, “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting an al-Shabaab terrorist in the vicinity of Dujuuma, Somalia,
Four Al Shabaab members were allegedly killed in a US airstrike near Gandarshe, AFRICOM declared. The official press release asserted: “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting an al-Shabaab camp in vicinity of Gandarshe, Somalia, Mar. 7. The command’s initial assessment concluded this airstrike killed four (4) terrorists. We
The Somali government and US Africa Command declared the first US action in 53 days, reporting an airstrike on an al Shabaab checkpoint in the vicinity of Hantiwadaag, in Lower Shabelle. One alleged militant was reported killed. Declaring the attack, Somalia’s Ministry of Information said the strike had taken place in the afternoon. “The FGS,
The US conducted its second airstrike within four days against Al Shabab fighters in the Qay’ad area between Qaycad town and Xarardheere district on July 23, 2021 at 10:21AM. According to Morad News, the US airstrike was in support of Somali forces involved in fighting with Al Shabab fighters as they were trying to capture
136 al-Shabaab fighters were killed and up to 98 others were injured in an operation carried out by the Somali government and international partners between Tawakal and Garasjered in Lower Shabelle region on January 29, 2023. BBC News quoted the Somali government who said that 136 al-Shabaab fighters, including top commanders, were killed in a
Up to seven civilians, including up to five children and a woman, were killed and up to five others, including children, were injured during an operation that has been declared by the Somali government. The US has denied directly participating in the operation despite accusations of US drone/air strikes, while the Somali government has denied
The US carried airstrikes in self-defence in Jillib, Middle Juba, as reported by local media. According to one local tweet, the attack took place at night in Jilib. Mogadishu News claimed that eight militants were killed when an al Shabaab police station was struck – noting “civilian houses razed by the strikes.” UPDATE: Drone strikes