US airstrike kills 9 Al-Shabaab militants in southern Somalia-AFRICOM

Nine Al-Shabaab militants were killed Monday in a US airstrike in the outskirts of the coastal city of Kismayu, US military has said.

The US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said in a statement Tuesday the militants were neutralized after they attacked Somali forces.

“In coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, U.S. forces conducted an airstrike after al-Shabaab militants attacked Somalian Government forces approximately 40 kilometers northeast of Kismayo, Somalia, on October 1, 2018,” AFRICOM said.

We currently assess nine (9) militants were killed in the strike. One (1) other militant was wounded, AFRICOM said adding initial assessments indicate there were no casualties.

According to the campaign group Bureau of Investigative Journalism, the US strikes as of September19 stood at 18 with an estimate of between 83 and 87 people killed.

The strike follows increased Al-Shabaab activity in southern Somalia. The militants captured some areas in Bala’d some 43 kilometres north east of the capital Mogadishu Saturday.

The militants also engaged locals in a deadly clash in Middle Shabelle region Monday resulting in the death at least six people.

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