A week before the latest and third iteration of an African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission came into being in Somalia, a requested United States (US) airstrike saw a “senior al-Shabaab leader” and another militant killed in the East African country.

An official US Africa Command (Africom) statement says the precision strike was undertaken 10km southwest of Quyno Barrow. The strike, executed in co-ordination with the Somali federal government, “resulted in the death of senior al-Shabaab leader Mohamed Mire and another al-Shabaab militant”.

Mire, also known as Abu Abdirahman, was responsible for al-Shabaab regional governance in Somalia for the last 15 years, according to Africom.

In addition to being one of al-Shabaab’s longest serving members, he served as interior minister and played a key role in the group’s strategic decision-making. On October 17, 2022, the US Department of State identified Mire as a specially designated global terrorist under Executive Order (EO) 13224.

Based on the Command’s initial assessment, no civilians were harmed.

“As our National Security Strategy outlines, America remains steadfast in countering the evolving threats of terrorism,” US Marine Corps General Michael Langley, Africom Commander, is quoted as saying in the statement. “In 2024, the Global Terrorism Index highlighted that terrorist organisations remain a serious global threat. Al-Shabaab is one of these threats and we partner with like-minded nations in the region to combat them and other malign actors. Uniting against these transnational threats promotes regional security, stability and prosperity.”

In January 6 post on its website Africom said that on December 24 “in coordination with the federal government of Somalia, US Africa Command conducted a precision airstrike approximately 10km southwest of Quyno Barrow that resulted in the death of senior al-Shabaab leader, Mohamed Mire and another al-Shabaab militant.”

Due to operational security concerns, the specifics of the mission cannot be disclosed; however, the command will continue to assess the results of the operation and provide additional information as appropriate.

• A Tell report