Shabaab claimed that fighters from its “anti-aircraft battalion” in the southern city of Kismayo shot down an unmanned US strike aircraft three days ago. The al Qaeda-linked terror group also announced it would display the remains of the downed drone on Sept. 30.
Shabaab made the claim about the downed drone in a propaganda statement that was released on jihadist forums on Sept. 28. The terror group said that “American spy drones” were spotted circling the Kismayo area days before their fighters shot one down. Kismayo is currently under the control of Shabaab, which also controls most of southern Somalia.
“The anti-aircraft battalion set up a strong ambush for one of these planes while it flew through the outskirts of the city of Kismayo” on Sept. 26, according to a translation of the statement by the SITE Intelligence Group. “After the plane was hit by the fire of the mujahideen, it fell down without burning, and immediately it was dismantled and taken to an unknown location.”
On Sept. 27, Shabaab announced that the wreckage of the unmanned aircraft would be displayed at Freedom Park in Kismayo on Sept. 30. Shabaab fighters “made the announcement using loudspeakers mounted on a militia car ordered the locals to avail themselves at the park to witness the drone they claimed they shot down,” according to a report at Sunatimes.
In a separate report, unmanned aircraft are reported to have struck on Sept. 25 in the city of Afmadow, which is about 50 miles northeast of Kismayo. An unconfirmed report from PressTV claimed that “dozens” of people were killed when a surveillance drone and a strike drone crashed near Kismayo. Shabaab did not release a statement on the purported incident in Afmadow.
The US military’s Joint Special Operations Command and the CIA are known to operate the armed Predators and Reapers from bases in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, and from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean. Bases are also being built in Ethiopia and an unnamed country on the Arabian Peninsula. The bases are to be used to attack al Qaeda affiliates Shabaab, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
Although US attack aircraft and drones conduct operations over Somalia, reports of strikes are difficult to confirm. The last confirmed strike took place on June 25, when Predators attacked a training camp outside of Kismayo. Ibrahim al Afghani, a senior Shabaab commander who fought in Afghanistan and has close ties with al Qaeda, is rumored to have been killed in the attack.
4 Comments
This could be a scary sign, if true. With an increase of drone patrols is it easier to spot and track their pattern?
Perhaps manpads or stingers or whatever you call them ‘liberated’ from Syria have made there way to Shabaab?
Or it crashed and they are just claiming it as their kill.
I am hearing anwar al awlaki was killed in yemen.
Have they displayed the remains yet?
Because it’s Oct.2 now, and at this point, I think I’m in a good position to call their bluff.