Three civilians were killed and one child injured by a US airstrike near Jilib, according to a number of local sources.

Mareeg said that at least two civilians had been killed.

Halgan Media claimed the following: “Suspected US drones launched a series of strikes overnight bombing the Al Shabaab controlled town of Jilib in the Middle Jubba province of Somalia. Sources that spoke with Halgan Media on condition of anonymity reveal three missiles rained down on the town in the midst of the night. The strikes struck a densely populated neighborhood in the town. Three civilians where instantly killed in the deadly drone strike according to sources. The victims have been identified as two males and a women.”

Morad News tweeted that a child was injured in addition to three civilians killed.

AFRICOM itself insisted it had caused no civilian harm: “In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike targeting al-Shabaab terrorists in the vicinity of Jilib, Somalia, Apr. 6. The command’s initial assessment concluded this airstrike killed five (5) terrorists.

“U.S. Africa Command currently assess no civilians were injured or killed as a result of this airstrike. U.S. Africa Command is aware of reports alleging civilian casualties resulting from the April 6, 2020 airstrike in Jilib, Somalia. As with any allegation of civilian casualties U.S. Africa Command receives and reviews any information it has about the incident, including any relevant information provided by third parties.”

Later AFRICOM detailed the rebuttal of civilian harm in its quarterly civilian harm report: “Contrary to the allegations stating the airstrike targeted civilians, including a child and an elderly woman, an airstrike was executed on April 6, 2020 against five adult males which U.S. intelligence confirmed were al-Shabaab members. No civilians were observed in the area before or after the strike. Strike images confirmed that the effects were limited to the five al-Shabaab members. It is assessed with a high degree of confidence that no civilian casualties occurred as a result of U.S. military action. Additionally, the sources of the allegations are known al-Shabaab media and propaganda outlets, or are sympathetic to al-Shabaab. The sources used photos that were published in 2019.”

The original source of the images cannot be found at this time. In an email to Airwars, AFRICOM clarified “that it did appear on a Somalia-based website in 2019” but refused to give any further details.