A US airstrike was called in to support a Somali forces unit under attack from al Shabaab, AFRICOM reported the next day.

According to the official press release, “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike against al-Shabaab terrorists who engaged Somali National Army Danab Unit near Bangeeni, Somalia, Jan. 19. ”

Unusually, AFRICOM noted that “This airstrike targeted al-Shabaab fighters who posed a direct, immediate, and significant threat to our partner forces.”

Abdirahman Ahmed, a Somali Ministry of Information official, also stated in a tweet that “On the afternoon of 19 January 2020, the FGS in coordination with the US Military and FMS conducted an air strike on AS militants during a clearance operation being conducted by the Elite Danab Commandos near the town of Bangeeni. Three AS operatives were killed in the strike.”

According to the Anatolia Agency several al Shabaab fighters were also wounded – though it was unclear whether this had resulted from the airstrike or ground fire.

Mareeg Media said that Bangeeni was between Koban and Jamame, in Lower Shabelle.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Several days after the events, US Africa Command press released that it had conducted five airstrikes in the vicinity of Janaale during March 16th-17th. Somali state media and government reported the same strikes but said they took place on March 15th-16th.

AFRICOM said the actions were in support of ground operations by Somalia forces, while noting that “U.S. forces were in the area when these airstrikes occurred in order to advise and assist Somali and partner forces.”

Unusually, the US gave no enemy casualty figures for the strikes – while noting that “These precision airstrikes targeted members of the al-Qaida-aligned terrorist network as they massed and maneuvered in the vicinity of an ongoing Somali-led ground operation.”

Sonna state media – citing the Ministry of Information – gave slightly different information. It said the attacks had taken place on March 15th-16th – a day earlier. It also stated that “the strikes left several al-Shabaab members killed and significantly reduced the group’s ability to conduct operations against SNA and AMISOM forces in Janale effectively.”

Airwars has set the minimum casualty range at two for this and each of the other four events during the battle for Janaale – and will update as more accurate information becomes available.

The strikes came during a major ground operation by the SNA and AMISOM, supported by US troops, to capture Janaale from the terror group al Shabaab. Early reports made no mention of the US role, focusing instead on the actions of Somali and Ugandan troops.

Halgan Media gave the following description of the battle: “Six unmarked helicopters were spotted hovering over the town of Janaale shortly before the assault began. A joint contingent of Somali, US and AMISOM forces stationed nearby later began the ground assault.

“The joint contingent were traveling in 47 [vehicles] while in route to the Al Shabaab controlled town of Janaale according to sources. Upon reaching the periphery of the town, the Somali and allied Foreign forces came under heavy fire from Al Shabaab militants, sparking fierce clashes. The coalition forces where able to withstand the hail of Al Shabaab bullets and penetrate the Militants line of defense. The Somali, US, and AMISOM forces entered the town of Janaale shortly after the clashes.

“Upon entering the town a military convoy carrying the coalition forces struck a roadside bomb. Per sources the vehicle was severely damaged and engulfed in flames. The casualties from that blast still remain unknown. The armed group Al Shabaab withdrew from the town shortly after the encounter, as the strategic town of Janaale fell to coalition forces. The expulsion of Al Shabaab from Janaale comes five years after Militants previously overran the town after killing dozens of Ugandan troops.”

AFRICOM later said it had killed 15 Al Shabaab militants in the strikes. The number is reflected across the five incidents for the strikes.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The US conducted “a self-defence strike against al Shabaab, killing three” in southern Somalia, describing the action as having “provided defensive fires to protect U.S. troops from imminent threats posed by the terrorist group al-Shabaab.”

A statement from US Africa Command (Africom) issued at the time said “the operation was conducted after it was assessed the terrorists were planning and preparing to conduct an imminent attack against US forces.”

Writing about the incident, The Hill noted that “There are about 50 U.S. forces on the ground in Somalia, in support of partner forces fighting al-Shabab militants. The strike comes amid a new assessment by IHS Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Centre that said over the course of 2015 and 2016, al-Shabab has “been expanding capabilities and increasing the tempo of attacks.”

The local time of the incident is unknown.

AFRICOM reported on the same day it had “conducted an airstrike in Somalia against al-Shabaab on Thur., Nov. 9 at approximately 3 p.m. local Somalia time”.

It added that the “operation occurred in the Bay Region of Somalia, about 100 miles west of the capital, Mogadishu”. AFRICOM made no mention of civilian harm. However, it stated that the strike had killed “several militants”.

This and four additional strikes over the following three days killed “more than 40 terrorists,” 35 of them al Shabaab and five with ISIS, a Pentagon spokesperson later told reporters on November 13th. He did not say how many people were killed in which of the five strikes, “for operational reasons,” an AFRICOM spokesperson told the Bureau of Investigative Journalism on November 15th.

Associated Press reported the following for the November 9th attack: “A U.S. drone strike killed ‘several militants’ with al-Shabab in Somalia, the military said, as the Trump administration increasingly targets what has become the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa. The strike was carried out Thursday afternoon in the Bay Region, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of the capital, Mogadishu, according to a statement by the U.S. Africa Command. A spokeswoman told The Associated Press that no civilians were anywhere near the strike.”

In a subsequent FOIA response obtained by journalist Joshua Eaton in May 2019, AFRICOM confirmed it had struck what it says were al Shabaab fighters on this date, in the vicinity of Buulo Fuulay.

The incident occured at approximately 3:00 pm local time.

On June 4th 2018, AFRICOM reported that it had “conducted an airstrike targeting al-Shabaab militants approximately 26 miles southwest of Bosasso, Somalia, on June 2”.

It added: “We currently assess no civilians were injured or killed in this airstrike.” However, AFRICOM claimed that the airstrike killed “twenty-seven (27) terrorists.”

As Voice of America noted, “Saturday’s airstrike came after al-Shabab extremists attacked a military base in Puntland, claiming to have killed five soldiers, wounding seven and destroying Somali military equipment.”

Garowe Online said the al Shabaab attack had been on a Puntland security force base near Balli Khadar in the Galgala hills – a possible location for the following US strike.

In a subsequent FOIA response obtained by journalist Joshua Eaton in May 2019, AFRICOM  confirmed it had struck what it says were “Al-Shabaab Fighters”, in the vicinity of Puntland, Somalia.

The local time of the incident is unknown.