US forces launched airstrikes in Somalia from February 22 to February 26, US Africa Command has announced, as the Trump administration continues its record-breaking bombing campaign in the country.
AFRICOM said in a press release that it conducted airstrikes on those days against the ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region, about 43 miles southeast of the Gulf of Aden port city of Bossaso. The US has been supporting the local Puntland government in a fight against ISIS militants based in caves in a remote mountain region.
AFRICOM offered no other details, and there have been no statements from the US-backed Puntland government about military operations in the area. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” the command said.
The Trump administration has overseen a major escalation in US airstrikes in Somalia, which came after President Trump loosened the rules of engagement for the US military in early 2025. AFRICOM launched at least 124 airstrikes in Somalia in 2025, shattering the previous annual record for US airstrikes in the country, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019.
It’s unclear how many airstrikes AFRICOM launched from February 22 to February 26, but if one was conducted each day, it would bring the total number of US airstrikes in Somalia this year to 41, putting the administration well on track to break the 2025 record.
US airstrikes in Somalia this year have also targeted al-Shabaab, a group the US has been fighting since it first emerged following a 2006 US-backed Ethiopian invasion that ousted the Islamic Courts Union, a coalition that briefly held power in Mogadishu. The ISIS affiliate in Somalia started as an offshoot of al-Shabaab in 2015.
