The U.S. army conducted two airstrikes in the Debatscile region of Somalia on Monday killing some 37 al-Shabaab militants, the US Africa Command said in a statement.
The authority said it conducted the strikes in coordination with Somali forces, and did not injure or kill any civilians.
“We currently assess the first airstrike killed twenty-seven (27) militants. This precision strike was a planned and deliberate action,” the statement read in part.
“We currently assess the second, separate airstrike killed ten (10) militants.”
Al-Shabaab has waged an Islamist war in Somalia for over a decade, killing tens of thousands and displacing millions.
The U.S. forces and African Union troops have however been deployed in the Horn of African country to battle the militant group.
While the U.S. initially engaged the militants minimally, President Donald Trump granted broader authority to carry out strikes after coming into power.
“Airstrikes reduce al-Shabaab’s ability to plot future attacks, disrupt its leadership networks, and degrade its freedom of maneuver within the region,” AFRICOM said in its statement.
The agency said it would continue to work with local Somali troops to rid Somalis of the al-Shabaab threat.
Al-Shabaab Degraded by U.S., Federal Government of Somalia – https://t.co/zcu8kQcere pic.twitter.com/12Kxv50aRU
— US AFRICOM (@USAfricaCommand) November 20, 2018
