5 Al-Shabab Members Killed in Single U.S. Airstrike in Somalia

A March 10 U.S. airstrike killed five al-Shabab targets in Somalia without harming any civilians, U.S. Africa Command said.

The strike was carried out near Janaale, which is located about 75 kilometers (or approximately 47 miles) southwest of Mogadishu in Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region, and was coordinated with Somalia’s federal government, the command said.

The attack was the sixth U.S. strike in Somalia this month. A U.S. strike carried out near Janaale a day earlier brought the number of al-Shabab militants killed by American airstrikes in Somalia in March into the double digits.

“Our strikes are a key effort to combatting terror and helping to bring stability to Somalia,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Miguel Castellanos, the command’s deputy director of operations, in a March 10 release. “Not only do they degrade al-Shabab’s ability to conduct violent activities in the region, but they illuminate the fighter network and impede the al-Qaida affiliated terrorist organization’s ability to recruit and export terrorism.”

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to correct the number of strikes conducted by the U.S. in Somalia in March and the number of al-Shabab militants killed in those strikes.