Eight suspected militants killed in US airstrike on al-Shabab training camp in Somalia

The US military in Africa says it carried out an airstrike in southern Somalia that killed eight alleged al-Shabab militants at a rebel command and logistics camp, 185 miles southwest of the capital Mogadishu.

The Pentagon said the operation occurred at approximately 0600 GMT "in coordination with regional partners as a direct response to al-Shabab actions, including recent attacks on Somali forces." 

The statement emphasised that the strike was carried out as part of US President Donald Trump's March authorisation of American forces "to conduct legal action against al-Shabab within a geographically defined area of active hostilities in support of (the) partner force in Somalia."

Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed Farmaajo confirmed the airstrike, saying that Somali and partner forces destroyed an al-Shabab training camp near Sakow, in the Middle Juba region.

"The mission which was successfully ended destroyed an important training camp where the group used to organise violent operations," said Mohamed. "This undermines their ability to mastermind more attacks."

Neither statement mentioned casualties.

There was no immediate comment on the airstrike from Somalia's homegrown extremist group, al-Shabab, which is allied to al-Qaeda.

In early May an American soldier was killed in a nighttime raid in Somalia.

It appeared to be the first US military death in combat there since the infamous events of "Black Hawk Down" 24 years ago, when 18 American servicemen died in what is called the Battle of Mogadishu.

US special forces have been deployed in Somalia for years. Drone and missile strikes have also been used against al-Shabab commanders and foot soldiers.

The militant group has been fighting to overthrow the internationally backed government in Somalia since 2007.

Meanwhile, in the north, al-Shabab militants stormed a military base in Somalia's semi-autonomous state of Puntland on Thursday, leaving 70 dead and many more injured according to officials.

Civilians - including women - were beheaded during the rampage, which has been one of the deadliest extremist attacks in years.

Puntland also faces a growing threat from IS-linked fighters who have split from al-Shabab, which grew out of the Horn of Africa country's quarter-century of chaos.

Last year, al-Shabab became the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa, with more than 4,200 people killed in 2016, according to the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies.