Will Ross
Africa editor, BBC World Service
Wednesday August 10, 2022
State-owned media in Somalia says the US military has carried out an air strike against al-Shabab fighters in the central Hiran region.
It said this followed a request from the Somali government.
The US-Africa Command has not yet commented.
American officials said two airstrikes in June and July killed seven jihadist fighters.
Al-Shabab has increased its attacks on government targets in recent months and has carried out cross border raids into Ethiopia.
A former leader of the group, Mukhtar Robow, has just been made Somalia's minister of religious affairs.
His appointment is seen as an attempt to counter al-Shabab's extreme ideology.