Somali intelligence cooperated with US for al-Shabab hit

Tuesday March 8, 2016

Somalia's intelligence service cooperated with the U.S. in airstrikes that killed more than 150 al-Shabab members on Saturday, an intelligence official said Tuesday.

The airstrikes targeted a forested military training camp run by the Islamic extremists 200 kilometers (124 miles) north of the capital Mogadishu, the official said, adding that the camp was al-Shabab's main planning base. He said Somali officials helped the U.S. to pinpoint the location of the militants' training base but did not give details.

Another intelligence official said al-Shabab members training there were planning to attack a drone base in the region.

The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press on this matter.

The Pentagon said Monday that the airstrikes killed fighters who were preparing to launch a large-scale attack, likely against African Union or U.S. personnel.

Multiple drones and manned aircraft launched missiles and bombs on the site, called Raso Camp, which the U.S. had been watching for several weeks, said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman.

The camp was destroyed, Davis said, adding that the U.S. believes there were no civilian casualties.

The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab has been linked to a number of attacks, including the detonation of a bomb aboard a commercial passenger jet last month that forced the plane to make an emergency landing in Mogadishu.

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