US launches airstrike on Islamic State in Somalia
Yesterday’s drone strike was the first US airstrike on the Islamic State in Somalia this year.
Yesterday’s drone strike was the first US airstrike on the Islamic State in Somalia this year.
The month of May saw a relative spike in Islamic State claims inside Somalia compared to earlier months. However, this comes in the backdrop of several Puntland security operations against it.
The camp is at least the second one ran by the Islamic State in Somalia’s northern Puntland region.
The video provides the first known instance of a Western foreign fighter within the Islamic State Somalia’s ranks.
With Shabaab continuing to target ISS members and pro-ISS members within its own ranks, it is unlikely Fiile will be the last commander to be killed by the al Qaeda branch.
The Islamic State’s loyalists claimed more operations in Somalia in 2018 than in 2016 and 2017 combined. The group has also expanded its operations to include tactics normally associated with its larger rival, Shabaab.