Wednesday September 7, 2016
LONDON — The U.S. military conducted two strikes in southern Somalia early this week that killed four al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab militants involved in attacks on Somali government troops, a U.S. military spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
The U.S. military previously has used drones to target al-Shabab’s senior leaders. In June, the Pentagon said it carried out a strike in late May against Abdullahi Haji Da’ud, one of al-Shabab’s senior military planners, and served as a principal coordinator of attacks in Somalia, Kenya and Uganda.
The latest strikes took place Monday in Torotorow in southern Somalia’s Lower Shabelle region.
Al-Shabab was pushed out of Mogadishu by African Union peacekeeping forces in 2011 but has remained a potent antagonist in Somalia, launching frequent attacks aimed at overthrowing the Western-backed government. For instance, the Islamist militant group claimed responsibility for an August 30 car bombing outside Mogadishu’s presidential palace that killed at least 22 people.