Al-Shabaab, IS leaders killed in US airstrikes: Pentagon

Washington: The US airstrikes killed a senior leader of al Qaeda affiliated Al-Shabaab group in Somalia and a senior leader of the Islamic State (IS) in Libya, the Pentagon has said.

Abdirahman Sandhere, also known as Ukash, was killed during a US airstrike in Somalia on December 2, Xinhua quoted Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook as saying on Monday.

The airstrike "specifically targeted" Sandhere, said Cook, adding that two other Al-Shabaab associates were also killed in the strike.

"This is an important step forward in the fight against Al-Shabaab and reflects the painstaking work by our intelligence, military, and law enforcement professionals," Cook said.

Al-Shabaab, an extremist group, is responsible for dozens of attacks in east Africa, particularly Kenya.

In February 2015, the group released a video calling for attacks on shopping malls in the US, Canada and Britain.

In another statement issued on Monday, Cook said Abu Nabil, also known as Wissam Najm Abd Zayd al Zubaydi, an Iraqi national who was a longtime Al-Qaeda operative and a senior IS leader in Libya, was killed in a US strike on November 13.

It was the first US strike against an IS leader in Libya, Cook said.