Dozens dead in US airstrikes on Somali extremists

The U.S. military said Monday it conducted airstrikes over the weekend in Somalia that killed 62 extremist rebels.

U.S. Africa Command said in a statement that it carried out precision airstrikes on Saturday and Sunday in coordination with the Somali government. Saturday’s airstrike killed 34 al-Shabaab militants, while Sunday’s killed 28.

No civilians are believed to have been killed or injured in the strikes, the military said.

{mosads}The airstrikes targeted a known al-Shabaab encampment in the Gandarshe province of the country, the statement said.

“U.S. Africa Command and our Somali partners conducted these airstrikes to prevent terrorists from using remote areas as a safe haven to plot, direct, inspire, and recruit for future attacks,” the military said.

Al-Shabaab Forces Degraded by U.S., Federal Government of Somalia – https://t.co/f3XjSWzsAF pic.twitter.com/zQvfPJxgJH

— US AFRICOM (@USAfricaCommand) December 17, 2018

The Associated Press reported that the U.S. military has now carried out at least 46 airstrikes this year against al-Shabaab, which is Africa’s most active Islamic extremist group. The group controls parts of southern and central Somalia and has carried out numerous deadly attacks in the country.

President Trump has overseen an increase in airstrikes and in military operations in parts of Africa, the AP reported.