| government armed group, in Somalia last week, marking the first time a US unmanned plane has been used for such an attack inside the country.The strike, said to have been carried out on June 23, is believed to have targeted a convoy of fighters belonging to al-Shabab, which is fighting to overthrow Somalia's weak Transitional National Government and impose Islamic law.The attack was not immediately identified as a drone strike, but a senior US military official familiar with the operation told the Washington Post newspaper on Thursday that it had come from such an aircraft.The strike would make Somalia the sixth country where the US has reportedly used drones to conduct air strikes. They have also been used in Libya, Yemen, Iraq and most extensively in Pakistan and Afghanistan.The strike hit the convoy as it drove along the cost in Kismayo, a southern port town, the AP news agency reported. Two fighters were wounded.Abdirashid Mohamed Hidig, the deputy defence minister, declined to identify who the fighters were or who carried out the attack, except to say it had been done by a "partner country".In 2009, a raid involving US special operations troops succeeded in killing Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a Kenyan national wanted for a 2002 truck bombing at a tourist hotel in Mombasa.Al-Shabab, which is believed to maintain links with al-Qaeda franchises, is growing stronger as it consolidates its hold on the majority of Somali territory, including more than half of the capital, Mogadishu."They have become somewhat emboldened of late, and, as a result, we have become more focused on inhibiting their activities," the US official told the Post. "They were planning operations outside of Somalia."The Somali Transitional National Government, led by President Sharif Ahmed, relies on international funding and military support from the African Union to maintain its tenuous hold on power. |
US fires drone at commanders of Somalia’s Shabaab Islamist insurgency  US drone wounds top Islamists in Somalia: report A US drone fired at leaders of Somalia’s al-Shabaab Islamist insurgency after they were found to have ties to al-Qaeda, the Washington Post reported late Wednesday, citing US officials. The strike last week is believed to have wounded the two leading militants and came amid increasing concern among US officials about growing ties between Shabaab and the global terror network, the Post said. “They (Shebab fighters) have become somewhat emboldened of late and, as a result, we have become more focused on inhibiting their activities,” it quoted an official as saying. “They were planning operations outside of Somalia.” The US military could not immediately be reached for comment. The official quoted by the Post said the two commanders had “direct ties” to Anwar al-Awlaqi, a charismatic American-born preacher believed to be hiding in his family’s native Yemen. The US military has carried out a number of attacks in recent years against top al-Qaeda militants believed to be hiding in Somalia, but last week’s incident appeared to be the first drone strike, the Post said. Last Thursday residents reported huge explosions near Kismayo, a southern port town controlled by Shabaab, followed by the sound of aircraft. read more |
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