Mabkhout Ali al Ameri with his 18-month old son Mohammed, shortly after a botched US raid on al Ghayil in January 2017 had killed at least 20 villagers, including Mohammed's mother Fatim Saleh Mohsen. © Iona Craig
US forces carried out a strike against al Shabaab militants on April 16th near Leego, an Africa Command spokesperson told the Bureau of Investigative Journalism in early May. AFRICOM made no mention of civilian harm. An AFRICOM spokespersons noted that “No terrorists were killed and no equipment was destroyed in this strike.” Leego is described
At least five alleged AQAP militants were reportedly killed by a US drone strike in Al-Jamajem area, Tayab, in the Dhi Naseem district of Bayda governorate, overnight from June 24th-25th 2019. In an email to Airwars, US Central Command later confirmed that a strike had taken place on June 24th. Since there were no other
At least one US drone strike reportedly killed at least two alleged AQAP militants in Sama’a district, in Bayda governorate, late on February 7th 2018. A US Central Command spokesperson later told the Long War Journal that a strike took place in Bayda on February 7th. Since there were no other known reported strike in
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
Local reports claimed that US airstrikes had targeted al Shabaab bases near Sakow in Middle Juba, in support of ground operations by Somali forces. AFRICOM itself did not publicly report any strikes on this date. Goobjoog News reported what it said were US strikes in support of Somali ground operations “around Sakow district, the airstrike
Three Al Shaabab fighters were injured in a US airstrike near Dujuuma, according to both the Somali government and AFRICOM. A US military press release issued the same day stated: “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting an al-Shabaab compound in the vicinity of Dujuuma, Somalia, Feb.
At least a dozen US air and naval strikes reportedly targeted alleged AQAP militants in an area of salt marshes south of Ahwar city, in the Ahwar directorate of Abyan governorate, overnight from March 30th to March 31st 2017. There are no known associated reports of civilian harm. Several sources indicated that overnight naval and drone
In an event not publicly disclosed at the time, US Africa Command conducted a strike in the vicinity of Jilib on February 1st, which it later said “did not result in any terrorist deaths, injuries or damage to equipment and infrastructure. Nor did we assess any civilians were killed or injured.” The strike came to light, along
A US drone strike reportedly killed an alleged AQAP militant on a motorbike in Sama’a district, in Bayda governorate, on the evening of January 16th 2018. There were no known associated reports of civilian harm. Both @demolinari and @AdenNowNews reported that Akram Al-Adeni was killed by a US strike in Sama’a on that day; according
A few local language social-media sources suggested that US strikes, reportedly including a naval bombardment and at least one air strike, had targeted “terrorist groups”, possibly AQAP, in Arqoub in Abyan governorate, on August 31st 2019, killing “dozens”. Some suggested that the “terrorists” were amongst or affiliated with pro-government forces. There were no known associated
US drone strikes reportedly targeted alleged AQAP militants in the Mudiyah district, Abyan governorate, late on March 31st 2017. There were no known associated reports of civilian harm, nor of alleged militant casualties in the strikes. Sources including @demolinari and Yemeni journalist Saeed al-Batati (@saeedalBatati) reported that US drone strikes had targeted AQAP militants to
Two civilians were allegedly wounded in two US airstrikes on Kunya Barrow. Radio Al Furqaan, the Al Shabaab-affiliated radio station bombed in the incident, said: “On Friday afternoon, January 1, 2021, US warplanes bombed the headquarters of Al-Furqan Islamic Radio in Kunya Barrow, Lower Shabelle region, destroying the station’s building and equipment. There were no
Several Al Shabaab militants were reported killed at Salagle in a military strike which two local sources claimed was a US drone action. However AFRICOM explicitly denied this in an email to Airwars, insisting that “U.S. Africa Command’s last airstrike in Somalia was conducted Jan. 19, 2021.” Intelligence Briefs said: “A number of Al-Shabaab operatives
AFRICOM declared conducting an airstrike on September 18th 2022 against Al-Shabaab terrorists who were reportedly attacking the Somalia National Army forces near Buulobarde, Somalia. The US confirmed responsibility for killing 27 militants in this strike, according to the US, with the Somalia National Army saying that over 100 militants were killed in the whole operation
An Al Qaeda leader was killed and four soldiers in the Shabwa Defense Forces were injured by alleged US drone strikes in Al Musinaa in Shabwa governorate on June 15, 2023. A tweet from @aboalfatl2019 reported that “leader” Abu Muhammad al-Shalwani al-Awlaki was killed by American drones in Shaab Madhab in the Musinaa area. @egl3000
On February 3rd, 2024, one woman was reported injured while she was at home following a series of US strikes conducted on Al-Baloum neighborhood, in al-Mayadeen city, east of Deir Ezzor, in areas reportedly controlled by Iranian militias. The attacks were carried out at around midnight/at dawn, according to local reporting. Sources also reported a
In the first known US targeted assassination outside of a conventional battlefield and using a drone, a CIA Predator launched from Djibouti struck a car in Annaqaah, Marib governorate, on the evening of November 3rd 2002, killing six Al Qaeda suspects. A seventh individual escaped alive, and was later cleared of involvement in an October
An alleged U.S. drone strike killed four to five alleged AQAP militants and injured five others traveling in a car along an outpost in the Al-Ghunaim area of Shuria district in Al-Bayda Province on 13 March 2012. There are currently no known reports of civilian harm. Yemeni security officials stated that the strike was conducted
A second alleged US drone strike on May 19th 2012 around noon destroyed a vehicle in the southern province of Bayda, killing two militants, international and local media reported. There are currently no known reports of civilian harm. The attack killed the two occupants according to provincial governor Mohammed al Ameri who told the defense
On the evening of December 28, 2012, an alleged US drone strike fired missiles at a moving motorcycle killed between two to four alleged AQAP militants near the town of Shaher, near the site of a strike four days earlier. An investigation by an NGO revealed that a 10 year old child was also wounded.
Two people, including a 14-year old boy, were reportedly killed by a US drone strike in Al Qam`alah, in the Dhi Naem area of Bayda governorate, on January 29th 2018. In a later email to the Long War Journal, a US Central Command spokesperson stated that a strike had targeted AQAP in Bayda on January
Air strikes ‘reportedly from international forces’ targeted ‘a mountainous area near town of Qandala’ according to Garowe Online. However All Africa said that “Air strikes reportedly from a US military aircraft or naval ship on the coastal town of Qandala caused damage to many buildings in the town.” All Africa and Garowe Online said it
In the last declared Somalia strike of Barack Obama’s presidency, the US conducted a “self-defence strike” against al Shabaab on January 7th, according to a US Africa Command press release published on January 10th. The strike was conducted “in coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, Somali partner forces, African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM)
A US strike killed “several” al Shabaab fighters in the seventh aerial attack in Somalia in six days. Lower Shabelle’s deputy governor told Voice of America the strike had killed six al Shabaab fighters in the village of Idow Jalad. A statement from US Africa Command said the strike was carried out “in coordination with
AFRICOM reported that the previous day it had “conducted an airstrike targeting al-Shabaab fighters in the vicinity of Gandarshe, Lower Shebelle Region, Somalia, on February 1, 2019.” It added that “at this time, it was assessed no civilians were injured or killed in this airstrike.” However, AFRICOM claimed that the strike had “killed 13 militants.” According
The US military carried out an airstrike targeting alleged ISIS-Somalia terrorists in the Golis Mountains, according to a press release issued by US Africa Command. The strike killed two fighters from ISIS-Somalia it was asserted, with AFRICOM currently assessing that no civilians had been harmed. “This is the fifth precision airstrike against ISIS-Somalia since April
According to a Freedom of Information response obtained by journalist Joshua Eaton in May 2019, this previously unknown confirmed US strike took place in the vicinity of Saakow, Somalia against an unspecified “al-Shabaab Named Objective”. This incident was not previously publicly known. No further details are currently available.
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,
Multiple local language sources indicated that US airstrikes took place in Aqaba Za’aj, in Qayfa Radaa, Bayda province, during the night from March 2nd to March 3rd. There were no known reports of civilian harm. Various sources reported that strikes took place in Aqaba Za’aj, seemingly in conjunction with strikes against the nearby locations of