US air strike target IS militants in Somalia

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The US military executed an air strike against Islamic State militants in north-east Somalia, killing one person.

Islamic State has been gathering recruits in the region, although experts say the scale of its force is unclear and it remains a small player compared to al Shabaab.
“In co-ordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, US forces conducted an air strike against ISIS, in north eastern Somalia on November 27, killing one terrorist,” US Africa Command said in a statement.

Colonel Ali Abdi, a military officer in Qandala in the semi-autonomous Puntland region, said the strike took place in hills near town.
“We heard a huge crash of air strike in the hilly areas of Dasaan behind Qandala town this afternoon ” Abdi said.
“After the strike IS militants ran away. We went to the scene and saw pieces of a dead body.”

Last month, a group loyal to Islamic State seized a small port town in Puntland, the first town it has taken since emerging a year ago.

The group, which refers to itself as Islamic State, is a rival to the larger al Shabaab force, linked to Islamic State’s rival al Qaeda and once controlled much of Somalia.

Earlier this month, the US military carried out its first air strike against Islamic State militants, killing several.

Last week, Somalia’s government said it requested a US air strike that killed scores of suspected militants to help pave the way for an upcoming ground offensive against al Shabaab.

Earlier this year, the White House gave the US military broader authority to carry out strikes in Somalia against al Shabaab.