WASHINGTON: The US performed an airstrike that destroyed stolen Al-Shabaab weapons and gear in Somalia close to an African Union army base that was attacked by the group, officers reported Saturday.
The bottom in Bulo Marer, 120 kilometers (75 miles) southwest of the capital Mogadishu, was housing Ugandan troops when it was raided Friday in an assault claimed by the Al-Qaeda-linked group.
In a press release, US Africa Command stated that it “destroyed weapons and gear unlawfully taken by Al-Shabaab fighters,” with out specifying when or the place the weapons had been stolen.
“US Africa Command performed an airstrike towards militants within the neighborhood” of Bulo Marer on Friday, in help of the Somali federal authorities and the AU drive referred to as ATMIS, it stated.
Eight lifeless in Somalia bombing claimed by Al-Shabaab: police
Al-Shabaab militants drove a automobile laden with explosives into the bottom, prompting a gunfight, native residents and a Somali army commander informed AFP.
It was not instantly identified if there have been any casualties from the Al-Shabaab assault.
US Africa Command stated its “preliminary evaluation is that no civilians had been injured or killed” in its operation.
Professional-government forces backed by ATMIS forces launched an offensive final August towards Al-Shabaab, which has been waging an insurgency within the fragile Horn of Africa nation for greater than 15 years.
The 20,000-strong ATMIS drive has a extra offensive remit than its predecessor referred to as AMISOM.
The drive is drawn from Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya, with troops deployed in southern and central Somalia.
Its purpose is handy over safety tasks to Somalia’s military and police by 2024.
