US says drone strike in Somalia kills 3 al Shabab extremists

CAIRO – 22 February 2018: The United States military says it has carried out a drone strike against al Shabab extremists in Somalia, killing three "terrorists,” ABC News reported on Wednesday.

The US Africa Command statement says the airstrike occurred Monday near Jilib town in Middle Juba region. "We assess no civilians were killed in this strike."

The US has carried out a growing number of drone strikes in the Horn of Africa nation in coordination with Somalia's government. Most are against al-Shabab but a small number have targeted Daesh group-affiliated fighters in the Puntland region in the north.

The US carried out more than 30 drone strikes last year in Somalia after President Donald Trump approved expanded military efforts against al Shabab. The US says it has carried out four such strikes so far this year.

The al Shabab extremist group is blamed for the October truck bombing in the capital, Mogadishu, that killed 512 people