US airstrike kills 60 Al Shabab militants in Somalia

Mogadishu: The US military on Tuesday said its special forces conducted an airstrike in the vicinity of Harardhere town in Mudug region of central Somalia on October 12, killing 60 Al Shabab militants.

The US Africa Command (Africom) which oversees American troops on the African continent said this airstrike was the largest airstrike against the militants since November 21, 2017, when American forces killed about 100 terrorists in an airstrike against the insurgents' camp, Xinhua reported.

"We currently assess this airstrike killed approximately 60 terrorists. We are also currently assessing this airstrike did not injure or kill any civilians," Africom said in a statement.

Africom has vowed to work with its partners to transfer the responsibility for lasting security from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) to the Somali government and its member states.

"Alongside our Somali and international partners, we are committed to preventing al-Shabab from taking advantage of safe havens from which they can build capacity and attack the people of Somalia," the statement said.

"In particular, the group uses portions of southern and central Somalia to plot and direct terror attacks, steal humanitarian aid, extort the local populace to fund its operations, and shelter radical terrorists." it said.