A week of strikes targeted al-Shabab in renewed fighting against the militant group.
By Nicholas Slayton Task & Purpose
After more than a month without conducting airstrikes in Somalia, the U.S. military quickly ramped up its actions in the country this past week. U.S. forces carried out four strikes in support of Somalis, all targeting al-Shabab militants in the country.
According to U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), American forces launched four airstrikes against al-Shabab between June 14-19. The attacks are the first airstrikes in the country since the U.S. targeted the Islamic State’s Somalia branch on May 6.
The command’s statements announcing the operations were near-identical, differing only on the date and location the strikes took place.
“AFRICOM, alongside the Federal Government of Somalia and Somali Armed Forces, continues to take action to degrade al-Shabaab’s ability to threaten U.S. forces and our citizens abroad,” each statement said. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security.”
AFRICOM did not provide many details, only that the strikes happened in the country’s south, in the lower Juba region or near the city of Kismayo. However, local Somali media report the fighting targeted bases and supply depots used by the al-Qaeda-linked militants. Garowe Online, citing Jubaland officials, said that the operations had ground force backed by airstrikes, and Hiraan reported 14 militants killed, although it attributed that to the actions of the U.S.-trained Danab special operations unit.
The pause in operations in Somalia were a break from the new norm for the U.S. military, which has been steadily conducting airstrikes in the country for more than a year. In May, AFRICOM carried out only two strikes in Somalia, targeting ISIS, but also ramped up operations against ISIS in Nigeria, where the American military has stepped up its presence since an operation on Christmas. That included a joint American-Nigerian operation that killed ISIS’s global second in command Abu-Bilal al-Minuki.
By AFRICOM’s own figures, the U.S. conducted 63 strikes in Somalia this year prior to June. This weekend’s operations bring this year’s tally to more than half the number of strikes in 2025, when the Trump administration rapidly escalated the air war after it had subsided under the Biden administration. In 2025, the U.S. carried out 126 air operations, compared to 11 the year prior.
The military is also investing in its intelligence capabilities and cultural outreach in Somalia. As Military Times reported earlier this month, Joint Special Operations Task Force – Somalia is looking to hire cultural and political advisers to translate for and assist in interactions with Somali governmental and tribal leaders. The special operations solicitation says that the effort will “allow JSOTF-SOM to successfully conduct its mission with an understanding of local customs, history, cultural routines, tribal dynamics, local government, and the socio-cultural context in which operations are being planned and conducted.”
Earlier this year, the U.S. began a large-scale overhaul of the airfield at the Manda Bay Air Base in Kenya, a Kenyan installation used by American troops. That base has been a staging ground for American aircraft in missions against al-Shabab and ISIS.
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