Ten killed in joint US/Somali raid

831

Somali government officials said 10 men and boys killed in a joint US/Somali raid were civilians and blood money will be paid to the families.

“The 10 people were civilians. They were killed accidentally… The government and relatives will discuss about compensation. We send condolences to the families,” said lawmaker Mohamed Ahmed Abtidon at a public funeral held for the 10, killed in a raid on Bariire village on Friday.

US Africa Command confirmed the presence of US troops in the raid, carried out under the expanded powers President Donald Trump granted to US troops in Somalia in March.

US officials have not publicly commented on the raid since Friday, when they said they were investigating reports of civilian casualties.

The Somali government appointed a high-level investigation into the incident due to present its findings on Thursday.

Clan elder Ibrahim Hassan Ali said they reached agreement with government on Wednesday.
“We met the government last night and agreed on three points: a national burial where government officials will attend and admit the killings, compensation, and that government will solve the clan conflict in the lower Shabelle region so that such incidents do not take place again.”

The raid took place in an area long plagued by clan conflicts for control of the fertile farmland. Somali forces and African Union peacekeepers fought to take Bariire village back from Islamist insurgents earlier this month.
Â