Warplane hits rebel-held village in south Somalia
Nov 22, 2011
An unidentified fighter jet bombed the outskirts of a Somali rebel-controlled village in the south of the Horn of Africa country on Tuesday, residents and a commander from the al Shabaab militant group said.
An unidentified fighter jet bombed the outskirts of a Somali rebel-controlled village in the south of the Horn of Africa country on Tuesday, residents and a commander from the al Shabaab militant group said.
"A warplane struck the village of Yaqle. We don't know if there were any al Shabaab casualties, but the body of an elderly nomadic woman lay on the ground, separated into pieces," Amina Ali, a nearby resident who rushed to the blast site, told Reuters. Local people said the village in the Gedo region, which borders Kenya and Ethiopia, was a known rebel haunt.
Neighbouring Kenya sent hundreds of troops into southern Somalia more than five weeks ago to crush the insurgents it blames for a series of kidnappings on its soil and regular cross-border attacks. Its air force has launched a wave of air strikes on what it says are rebel targets.
Al Shabaab commander Sheikh Said Warsan told Reuters there were no rebels in the strike zone at the time of the bombardment but acknowledged they were stationed near by. A Kenyan military spokesman was not immediately available for comment.