US Says Al-Shabab Leader Injured in Airstrike in Somalia

An al-Shabab leader appears to have survived the latest United States military airstrike in Somalia, according to a spokesperson for U.S. Africa Command.


"Following a comprehensive battle damage assessment, U.S.-AFRICOM assesses that one al-Shabab leader was injured as a result of the operation," Lt. Commander Timothy S. Pietrack, an AFRICOM spokesman, told VOA on Tuesday.


Pietrack did not disclose the name of the al-Shabab leader injured in the May 20 strike, which took place in Jilib, an al-Shabab stronghold some 385 kilometers southwest of Mogadishu.


"The command's initial assessment is that no civilians were injured or killed," the statement said.


The strike came as Mahad Salad, director of Somalia's National Intelligence and Security Agency, was in Washington and New York to meet with U.S. officials from the Pentagon, CIA and FBI, according to a source familiar with the visit who did not want to be identified as they are not authorized to speak to the media.


The talks focused on security and counterterrorism cooperation between the two countries, the source added.