The US Africa Command claimed in a statement that an air strike in Somalia on Tuesday killed seven Al-Shabaab fighters. The Somali Federal Government had requested for the reinforcement attack that took place about 320 miles northeast of Mogadishu.
“Given the operation’s distant location, the command believes no civilians were harmed or killed,†AFRICOM added.
Earlier this month, the US carried out two strikes in Somalia against al-Shabaab militants, killing 17 combatants in total, according to AFRICOM.
The strike on Tuesday was the sixth time this year that US forces and the Somali government worked together to attack Al-Shabaab.
The repeated operations against Al-Shabaab are evidence of the US and Somali government’s increased collaboration against what both countries see as a growing regional danger.
The US also killed an ISIS leader in Somalia at the end of January. His name was Bilal al-Sudani, and he was in charge of spreading ISIS beliefs across Africa.
According to AFRICOM, Somalia sees the military operations as part of a larger counterterrorism strategy that includes economic transformation, political reconciliation, and religious tolerance.
The president of Somalia is in the UAE seeking support to strengthen the capacity of Somalia’s forces to defeat Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia.
Last year, the Somalia government launched an offensive against the militants in Somalia, and so far, it has succeeded in liberating large areas in Galmudug and Hirshabelle states.
The government is struggling to rebuild its security institutions; the Somali parliament enacted the National Intelligence and Security Agency Bill, which is on the table for the president to ratify.
