US air strike said to kill 13 al Shabaab militants in Somalia

The US military on Sunday (Aug 27) said it believed it had killed 13 al Shabaab fighters in southern Somalia in what it called a "collective self-defence airstrike" at the request of the Somali government.

The US military on Sunday (Aug 27) said it believed it had killed 13 al Shabaab fighters in southern Somalia in what it called a "collective self-defence airstrike" at the request of the Somali government.

The Somali government and allied forces began a campaign a year ago to that has pushed al Shabaab, an al Qaeda-linked group, out of parts of the center of the country, although the group continues to carry out major attacks.

The US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said it had conducted an air strike on Saturday against al Shabaab near Seiera, about 45km northwest of Kismayo, at the government's request.

"The collective self-defence airstrike was conducted in the early morning hours of Aug 26, in support of Somali National Army forces who were engaged by" al Shabaab, AFRICOM said in a statement.