US Africa Command said in a press release on Wednesday that its forces launched an airstrike in Somalia on September 21 that targeted the ISIS affiliate in the northeastern Puntland region, as the Trump administration continues its heavy air campaign in the country, which has gained virtually no US media coverage.
The command offered no further details about the strike, except that it was launched in the Golis Mountains, approximately 37 miles southeast of the Gulf of Aden port city of Bossaso. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” AFRICOM said.
The same day as the strike, US-backed Puntland forces said that the US had launched a total of two airstrikes in the area. “Two airstrikes targeted caves where fleeing ISIS terrorists were hiding. The strikes were carried out by the Puntland Government’s US partners in support of the forces engaged in the operation,” the Puntland Counter-Terrorism Operations wrote on X.
Antiwar.com asked AFRICOM if it could clarify whether it launched one airstrike or two on September 21. Counting it as just one airstrike brings the total number of US strikes in Somalia so far this year to 79. The Trump administration has shattered the previous annual record for total US bombings in the country, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term.
The last Somalia airstrike confirmed by AFRICOM was launched on September 13 in Somalia’s northern Sanag region. AFRICOM claimed without providing evidence that it targeted an al-Shabaab weapons dealer, but locals and clan leaders say the man who was killed, Abdullahi Omar Abdi, was a prominent clan elder who had no affiliation with al-Shabaab and worked for peace in the region.
The US has also continued launching airstrikes against al-Shabaab in southern and central Somalia. Based on Somali media reports, the US likely launched more airstrikes in those areas during battles this week. AFRICOM typically confirms its airstrikes a few days after they were launched.
