In a move to stop what the USA military said was an imminent threat against US troops and African peacekeeping forces in Somalia, a US strike in Somalia killed as many as 150 suspected Al-Shabaab fighters, the Pentagon said Monday.
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Al Shabaab confirmed the attack but said the figure was inflated. He said Somali officials helped the U.S.to pinpoint the location of the militants’ training base but did not give details.
“Instead of al Shabaab attacking civilians, it was a military target that was hit and there was a high success rate”, Omer said.
In 2015, almost 150 people were killed when al-Shabab militants launched an attack on neighboring Kenya’s Garissa University.
Saturday’s strike was the most significant US attack on al-Shabab since September 2014, when an American drone strike killed the leader of the group, Ahmed Abdi Godane, at the time one of the most wanted men in Africa.
“The U.S. bombed an area controlled by al Shabaab”.
“Their removal will degrade al Shabaab’s ability to meet the group’s objectives in Somalia, which include recruiting new members, establishing bases and planning attacks on US and Amisom forces there”, Davis said.
The strike on the Raso training camp was carried out by drones and U.S. aircraft, which dropped precision-guided bombs and missiles on the field where the fighters were gathered. “And, we know that they were going to be departing the camp and posed an imminent threat to USA and [African Union Mission in Somalia] forces”, said Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis.
Global humanitarian groups, including Human Rights Watch, have for over five years called for the United States to stop its targeted killing drone operations outside of active war zones, and to release data on the death toll.
The Al-Qaeda-linked militant group has been waging an insurgency in Somalia since 2006.
Al-Shabab, means “the youth” in Arabic.
Davis said the United States estimated that as many as 200 fighters had been at the camp, including a number of trainers.
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According to data compiled by the think tank New America, there have been 15 special operation raids and 12 drone strikes in Somalia since 2003.
