Airwars assessment
This was the second of two strikes confirmed by the Pentagon on April 4th 2016. The attack was a “self-defence air strikes against al Shabaab fighters who posed imminent threats to US and partner nation forces in Somalia,” Department of Defense spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Michelle Baldanza told the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.
Earlier on April 4th, Voice of America reported: “A separate strike Saturday killed six militants in the Lower Juba region, according to local officials and residents.”
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Summary
Sources (2) [ collapse]
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention that the strike took place in the Lower Juba region, for which the generic coordinates are: 0.379318, 42.0136. Due to limited information and satellite imagery available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
US Forces Assessment:
Original strike reports
"On April 1 and April 2, US forces conducted two self-defense air strikes against Al Shabaab fighters who posed imminent threats to U.S. and partner nation forces in Somalia. Our forces are working closely with partners to combat Al Shabaab. Al Shabaab has pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda; and is dedicated to creating safe havens for terrorist operations and is planning on conducting external attacks in and from Africa. We continue to assess the results of the strikes and will provide additional information as and when appropriate."
Via email from Pentagon spokesperson, however original email has not been retrieved