US Africa Command said on Wednesday that it launched multiple airstrikes in Somalia a day earlier that it said targeted ISIS.
The US-backed Mogadishu-based government said the strikes were carried out in the Golis mountains in Puntland, a northern semi-autonomous region in Somalia that is not under the federal government’s control.
Local Puntland forces have been operating against ISIS fighters on the ground in the region and have received air support from the US. AFRICOM said its initial assessment found that “multiple” ISIS operatives were killed by the strikes.
AFRICOM also claimed that it assessed that no civilians were harmed, although the Pentagon is notorious for hiding civilian casualties in Somalia.
The incident marks the third known US airstrike in Somalia in March. The other two that occurred earlier this month targeted al-Shabaab, which has been carrying out an offensive against the federal government in central Somalia.
The recent US airstrikes in Somalia came after President Trump eased restrictions on US airstrikes and special operations raids outside conventional battlefields. US officials said at the time that the step was taken with al-Shabaab in mind.
The US may expand its military presence in Somalia as it is considering recognizing Somaliland as a country in exchange for a naval base. Somaliland acts as an independent state and has a coast on the Gulf of Aden, just across from Yemen, meaning the US could use a base there for operations against the Houthis.
