Shabaab said that a British national who was " from the early
people who came to jihad in Somalia" was killed in a US drone airstrike.
The British citizen, who was identified as Bilal al Berqawi, was "of a
Lebanese origin," according to a statement released today by Shabaab's
media arm, Al Kata'ib Foundation for Media Production. The statement,
which was published on jihadist forums, was translated by the SITE
Intelligence Group.
Shabaab said that Berqawi was killed today, on "Saturday 28 Safar
1433H," and that he had fought in Somalia before the
Islamic Courts
Union, the predecessor of Shabaab, was formed.
"The martyr, may Allah have mercy on him, was from the early people
who came to jihad in Somalia, where he participated in fighting with the
warlords and participated in the war against the
Courts and in fighting
the African Crusaders," according to that statement.
"The martyr received what he wished for and what he went out for ...
when, in the afternoon today, brother Bilal al-Berqawi was exposed to
bombing in an outskirt of Mogadishu from a drone that is believed to be
American," the statement continued.
The report did not indicate where Berqawi was killed. It is unclear
if the US conducted the strike. Kenyan and Ethiopian aircraft have been
conducting airstrikes in Somalia.
Although US attack aircraft and drones conduct operations over
Somalia, reports of strikes are difficult to confirm. The last confirmed
US strike took place on June 25, 2011, when Predators attacked a
training camp outside of Kismayo. Ibrahim al Afghani, a senior Shabaab
commander who fought in Afghanistan and has close ties with
al Qaeda,
is rumored to have been killed in the attack, but the report was never confirmed. Shabaab did not release a statement announcing his death.
The US military's Joint Special Operations Command and the CIA are
known to operate the armed Predators and Reapers from bases in Djibouti
in the Horn of Africa,
Arba Minch in Ethiopia,
the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean, and a base in an unnamed country on
the Arabian Peninsula. The bases are to be used to attack al Qaeda
affiliates Shabaab,
al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, and al Qaeda in
the Islamic Maghreb.
Washington Time
Kabul Time
London Time
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