Pentagon: Two militants dead in Somali airstrike

Two militants were killed in Somalia as a result of a U.S. airstrike targeting an al Qaeda-linked group and al-Shabab, according to the U.S. military’s Africa Command. 

U.S. Conducts Airstrike in Support of the Federal Government of Somalia – https://t.co/kvmn6CwwCJ pic.twitter.com/Jyl9HQLuiX

— US AFRICOM (@USAfricaCommand) January 3, 2018

The strike occurred early Tuesday, about 30 miles west of the Somali capital of Mogadishu.

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The U.S. military said that, in addition to the militant deaths, a “vehicle-borne improvised explosive device” had been destroyed in the strike.

No civilians were killed in the attack, according to the military. 

The strike comes after the U.S. urged its nonessential diplomatic personnel to evacuate Mogadishu after it warned of a potential threat.

Al-Shabab has been significantly weakened throughout Somalia in recent years, however, the militant group has continued to fight the country’s United Nations-supported government. 

The terror group was responsible for a double bombing in Mogadishu that killed over 500 people in October.