Somalia Raid May Have Killed al-Shabab Mastermind of Deadly Attack in Kenya, Pentagon Says
The raid in Somalia was supported by U.S. military advisers, Pentagon says.
— -- The mastermind of an attack on Garissa University College in Kenya that killed 148 people last year may have been killed in a raid Tuesday conducted by the Somali army, supported by U.S. military advisers, U.S. military officials said today.
An assessment is still underway to determine whether senior al-Shabab leader Mohammed Dulyadeen was in fact killed in the raid, according to the Pentagon.
Initial reports were received about "a ground operation conducted in southern Somalia Tuesday night, May 31, by the Somali National Army as part of operations targeting mid- and upper-level al-Shabab leadership," Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. Michelle Baldanza said in a statement.
"The operation may have resulted in the death of al-Shabab member Mohammed Dulyadeen," she added. "Dulyadeen is believed to be the mastermind of the April 2015 attack on Garissa University College in Kenya that killed 148 people." Dulyadeen is also known as Mohammed Kuno and Kuno Gamadere.
"U.S. forces supported this Somali-led operation in an advise-and-assist role," Baldanza said. "We are working with Somali officials to assess the results of the operation and will provide further details when appropriate."
There is a small U.S. military presence in Somalia to advise and assist that country's new military and African Union in Somalia forces (AMISOM) targeting the terrorist group al-Shabab, which once ruled the country.
As both forces have increased operations targeting al-Shabab, the U.S. military has provided helicopter transportation to targeted areas. American advisers, mainly Special Operations Forces, accompany the Somali or AMISOM ground troops on the raids but remain behind to provide assistance from afar. In some recent cases they have called in for airstrikes conducted by Predator or Reaper drones flying overhead to support the local ground forces if they come under intense fire.
Separately, the U.S. military continues conducting counter-terrorism missions of its own against al-Shabab, mainly through drone strikes, according to U.S. officials.
The Pentagon confirmed on Tuesday that a drone strike on May 27 in southern Somalia had killed another senior al-Shabab military leader involved in planning attacks in Kenya and Uganda.
"On May 27, U.S. forces carried out an airstrike in south-central Somalia targeting Abdullahi Haji Da'ud, a senior military commander for al-Shabab," Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said in a statement. "Da'ud was one of al-Shabab's most senior military planners and served as a principal coordinator of al-Shabab's militia attacks in Somalia, Kenya and Uganda. He held several positions of authority within the terrorist organization over the years, including head of the Amniyat, al-Shabab's security and intelligence branch." He said a final assessment of the drone strike is still underway.
Cook said Da'ud had been responsible for the deaths of many innocent lives through attacks he had planned and carried out. "We are confident that the removal from the terrorist network of this experienced al-Shabab commander with extensive operational experience will disrupt near-term attack planning, potentially saving many innocent lives."
In recent years, al-Shabab has carried out high-profile attacks in Kenya and Uganda targeting undefended civilian targets, like the Garissa University attack and the 2013 attack on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi that killed 67 civilians and injured hundreds more.
On Wednesday, al-Shabab claimed responsibility for an attack on the Hotel Ambassador in Somalia's capital city of Mogadishu that killed at least 16 people and injured 55 others.
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