A U.S. military strike killed approximately 30 al-Shabaab fighters in central Somalia, where the terrorists were engaged in heavy combat against the Somalia National Army, the U.S. Africa Command said.
The self-defensive strike was conducted in a remote location by U.S. forces Friday at the request of the Somali federal government, officials said. No civilians were injured or killed, according to authorities.
"The combined actions by partner forces on the ground and the collective self-defense strike is estimated to have resulted in three destroyed vehicles and approximately thirty al-Shabaab terrorists killed," U.S. Africa Command said.
Somalia's Information Ministry said their soldiers killed 100 al-Shabaab terrorists and destroyed five vehicles, Reuters reported. The Islamic extremist group killed seven Somali soldiers, the government said.
Al-Shabaab is designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department and is "the largest and most deadly al-Qaeda network in the world," according to Africa Command.
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