Washington, Feb 1 – U.S. forces carried out airstrikes in Somalia on Saturday, targeting a senior Islamic State attack planner and other militants, President Donald Trump announced. The strikes in the Golis Mountains reportedly killed several members of the extremist group.
“These killers, who we found hiding in caves, threatened the United States and our allies,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The strikes destroyed their hideouts and eliminated many terrorists without harming civilians.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth confirmed the operation, saying an initial assessment indicated multiple militant casualties with no civilian harm. The Somali president’s office said President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was briefed on the attack and later expressed gratitude for U.S. counterterrorism support.
The Puntland state information minister, Mohamud Aidid Dirir, reported that the attack targeted Islamic State bases in the Cal Miskaad Mountains, part of the Golis range. He said the exact number of casualties remained unclear due to the nighttime operation, but frontline forces heard powerful explosions.
