Somalia: U.S Targets Al-Shabab Militants in Somalia
02.09.2014
The Pentagon has confirmed that it launched an operation against al-Shabab
militants in Somalia. Washington targeted the al Qaeda-linked group's
leader, according to Somali officials.
Although the Pentagon did not provide details about the operation, Somalia
officials said on Tuesday that the US had launched an airstrike against
al-Shabab's leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, also known as Abu-Zubayr.
"The Americans carried out a major airstrike targeting a gathering by senior
al-Shabab officials, including their leader Abu-Zubayr," said Abdukadir
Mohamed Nur, the governor of Somalia's Lower Shabelle region, where the
strike took place.
Militant group al-Shabab has bombed Somalia's intelligence headquarters in
the capital, Mogadishu. The rebels were trying to reach a high-security
prison within the facility. (31.08.2014)
Meanwhile, an unnamed senior Somali intelligence official told the
Associated Press that airstrike was carried out by a US drone.
"We are assessing the results of the operation and will provide additional
information as and when appropriate," Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John
Kirby said on Monday.
Washington backs African Union forces, which intervened in Somalia to drive
out al-Shabab and support a new federal government in Mogadishu. The federal
government, Somalia's first central authority since the collapse of state
institutions in 1991, has the backing of the United Nations.
Last September, al-Shabab militants launched an assault on Westgate Mall in
Nairobi, Kenya, killing 67 people. Kenya has deployed troops to Somalia and
played a leading role in efforts to defeat al-Shabab, which seeks to
establish an Islamist state ruled by Shariah law.