Geolocation
Airwars assessment
AFRICOM reported that the previous day it had “conducted an airstrike against al-Shabaab militants on Feb. 26, in the vicinity of Jilib, Somalia”.
It added: “We assess no civilians were killed in this strike.” However, AFRICOM claimed that the airstrike killed two terrorists and wounded two more.
Shabelle Media Network had reported a strike carried out by unknown forces, but said this had occurred the day after the action confirmed by AFRICOM. Sources told them it had hit an al Shabaab controlled town.
One resident said a militant camp was targeted in the district of Jilib, described as an al Shabaab strong-hold in the Middle Juba region. Jilib appears to be both a district and a town. Jilib was the site of another confirmed US strike on February 19th 2018.
In a subsequent FOIA response obtained by journalist Joshua Eaton in May 2019, AFRICOM confirmed it had struck on February 26th what it says were “al-Shabaab Fighters”, in the vicinity of Jilib, Somalia.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention that the strike took place in the vicinity of the town Jilib, for which the coordinates are: 0.494527, 42.777868. Due to limited information and satellite imagery available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (5) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]
US Forces Assessment:
Original strike reports
U.S. Conducts Airstrike in Support of the Federal Government of Somalia
In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. forces conducted an airstrike against al-Shabaab militants on Feb. 26, in the vicinity of Jilib, Somalia, killing two (2) terrorists and wounding one (1) terrorist.
We assess no civilians were killed in this strike.
U.S. forces will continue to use all authorized and appropriate measures to protect U.S. citizens and to disable terrorist threats. This includes partnering with AMISOM and Somali National Security Forces (SNSF) in combined counterterrorism operations and targeting terrorists, their training camps, and their safe havens throughout Somalia and the region.
Together with other international partners, the United States is committed to providing Somalia, AMISOM and SNSF with support in the fight against violent extremist organizations.