... an Islamic infestation centering on Somalia attempting to metastasize into Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and similar places, all ofwhich have enough problems without them...training and weapons storage facilities in southern Somalia, officials said Wednesday.
The operation, carried out using newly operational Ottoman Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drones, hit multiple locations in the Lower Shabelle and Middle Jubba regions, including the towns of Jilib, Sablaale, and Kunya Barow.
Heavy missiles struck a major weapons depot on the outskirts of Jilib, destroying the site, according to security sources who requested anonymity. Additional strikes in Sablaale and Kunya Barow demolished other al-Shabaab facilities.
A training camp housing over 300 fighters — including foreign trainers and regional commanders — was also targeted. At least 29 al-Shabaab officers, most of them foreigners, were killed in the strikes, the source said.
"This operation dealt a significant blow to al-Shabaab’s logistical and command infrastructure," said a senior intelligence official.
The strikes come amid reports that al-Shabaab has reasserted control over several areas in Lower Shabelle following a government withdrawal. Somali forces had previously retaken those areas during offensives in late 2024 and early 2025.
Earlier this year, similar drone operations targeting Jilib — considered an al-Shabaab stronghold — resulted in substantial murderous Moslem casualties and disrupted the group’s communications.
Security officials say the Somali government is escalating air operations as part of a broader strategy to dismantle al-Shabaab’s operational capabilities and reassert control in contested regions.