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Airwars Assessment
Two Al Shabaab members were killed and another wounded in two or more US airstrikes near Saakow, according to AFRICOM. The US later said the pair, a husband and wife, were both active terrorists within al Shabaab.
The initial press release said: “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting an al-Shabaab compound in the vicinity of Saakow, Somalia, Feb. 22. Initial assessments conclude two terrorists were killed, one terrorist was wounded, and an al-Shabaab compound was reduced as a result of this precision airstrike. We currently assess no civilians were injured or killed as a result of this airstrike.”
Somali state media SONNA said that the strike took place within the city of Saakow. An official statement referenced women fighting for Al Shabaab, stating that “This strike is an important one because it demonstrates that women can also be al-Shabaab. Women that serve in the Amniyat network or other facilitating roles are al-Shabaab.Women are being coerced to join through fear or by force to support al-Shabaab’s false ideology.”
AFRICOM also later reported, on February 25th, that it had targeted and killed a woman and her husband: “Post-strike assessments confirm the two terrorists killed in the Feb. 22 precision airstrikes were an individual associated with the attack on Manda Bay and his wife, who was also a known al-Shabaab member. The two terrorists were identified as a senior al-Shabaab leader, who was in charge of planning and directing terrorist operations on the Kenya border region, including the recent attack on Manda Bay, and his wife, who also was a witting and active member of al-Shabaab responsible for facilitating a wide range of terrorist activities.”
VOA and the BBC later reported that the airstrike killed Bashir Mohamed Mahamoud, aka Bashir Qoorgaab, a senior Al Shabaab commander. VOA noted that “Qoorgaab was one of the most battle-hardened al-Shabab commanders of the group’s Jabhat (military). Most recently he commanded three al-Shabab Jabhat units, two of which are operating in Kenya, including the notorious Jaysh Ayman unit in the area of Manda Bay.”
The BBC noted that the US had previously offered a $5 million reward for Qoorgaab’s death or capture.
Key Information
Geolocation Notes
Reports of the incident mention a strike on a compound in the vicinity of Saakow (سااكوو) town, for which due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further. The coordinates for Saakow are: 1.637795, 42.452829
Military Statements
Media From Sources (3)
#breaking @USAfricaCommand says airstrike targets #alShabaab compound near Dujuuma #Somalia today wounding 3 terrorists.
— Carla Babb (@CarlaBabbVOA) February 23, 2020
In nod to NDS, Africom dep. dir. of intel Hadfield adds”#China & Russia appear content to remain on sidelines as our African partners, w/US...fight extremism”