Jihadists ambush US military base in Somalia
Jihadists have on Monday, attacked a training base, where US soldiers train commandos in Somalia.
The base, about 100km (60 miles) west of the capital Mogadishu, is said to house US special forces, Somali special forces and Ugandan peacekeepers. It is used as a launch site for US drones as well as being a training centre.
BBC reports that Local residents said heavy blasts and gunfire at Baledogle airport in the southern Lower Shabelle region.
The al-Shabab militant group said it had carried out the attack, using a car bomb to blast through the gates before sending its fighters inside.
Al-Shabab said in a statement it had launched the raid and that it was ongoing.
“After breaching the perimeters of the heavily fortified base, the mujahideen [holy warriors] stormed the military complex, engaging the crusaders in an intense firefight.”
In the same vein, Italy’s defence ministry hinted that an Italian military convoy was also hit by an explosion in Mogadishu, adding that no casualties have as yet been reported in this attack.
The US has sharply increased its air strikes against al-Shababwhich which is linked to al-Qaeda, since President Donald Trump took power.
Officials in Somalia say the group has increased its attacks in Mogadishu as retaliation for the air strikes.
The US state department says al-Shabab retains control over large parts of the country and has the ability to carry out high-profile attacks using suicide bombers, explosive devices, mortars and small arms.
