Al-Shabaab attacks US base, EU convoy

MOGADISHU: The Al-Shabaab militant group claimed responsibility for an attack on a US base in Somalia on Monday, as the European Union confirmed a separate strike against a convoy of Italian advisers.The militants struck the US base at Baledogle, about 70 miles northwest of the capital Mogadishu, with explosives before gunmen opened fire on the compound.In a statement, Al-Shabaab said: “In the early hours of Monday morning, an elite unit of soldiers... launched a daring raid on the US military base”.“After breaching the perimeters of the heavily fortified base, the Mujahideen (holy fighters) stormed the military complex, engaging the crusaders in an intense firefight.”The Shabaab claimed they had killed dozens in the attack, however the US Mission to Somalia and a Somali military official said there were no casualties. “We already had the information about the attackers and simply repelled them before they reached our defence barriers. There was no casualty inflicted on our soldiers or on the US soldiers in the base,” the military official said on condition of anonymity.Witnesses in the Baledogle area said that a heavy exchange of gunfire after the initial explosion had ended. “We cannot hear any fighting for some hours now but... the whole area around the base is being patrolled by American military helicopters,” said Abdullahi Osman, a witness.The US Mission to Somalia denied Al-Shabaab fighters penetrated the camp’s defences, saying that Somali security forces repelled the attack.In a separate incident on Monday, a security official said EU advisers training the Somali National Army were attacked by a car bomb in Mogadishu.“There was a car bomb targeting the EU military advisors along the industrial road. A vehicle loaded with explosives was rammed into one of the convoy vehicles,” said Omar Abikar, a Somali security officer.

from The News International - World https://ift.tt/2neGYeQ