Airwars assessment
Over 50 al-Shabab militants, along with a senior commander, were killed in an airstrike conducted by the Somali National Army (SNA) with the assistance of “international partners” in the southern Mudug region in central Somalia. The strike reportedly targeted and destroyed multiple military bases, vehicles, and weapons facilities where, according to Somali military officials, al-Shabab militants were “regrouping” in preparation for an “imminent attack” on SNA forces in the town of Harardhere. The Somali military recaptured the town from al-Shabab in January 2023.
The airstrike was conducted in conjunction with an SNA ground operation in the region and in partnership with an unnamed “international partner,” according to local media reports and Somali officials. In a Facebook post published the same day as the strike, Cornel Ahmed Somali of the SNA wrote that the “Bayraqdar TB2 returned tonight” after some months out of the air, a reference to a Turkish combat drone, which the Somali military acquired in late 2022. It is unclear if this means that the Turkish military was involved or if the drone was being operated by the Somali military. The drone “went through 4 Somali regions,” the colonel wrote, and in the area of Baraag Gurguurte, where the airstrike took place against “2 BJ and 3 weapon facilities”. A senior al-Shabab leader, Ahmed Jaiss, was also killed in the strike, according to Somali military officials.
While no sources directly implicated the US in the operation, the Somali government’s reference to airstrikes has in the past indicated US involvement but could also refer to Turkish involvement or United Arab Emirates involvement.
The local time of the incident is unknown.