Image via WikipediaMilitary spokesman Major Emmanuel Chirchir confirmed on Friday the airstrikes which took place late on Thursday also saw more than 10 technical vehicles burnt down.
"Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) jets pounded Al-Shabaab camp south of Garbahare on Thursday night, killing over 60 Al-Shabaab, battle damage assessment to follow," Chirchir said in his official Twitter account on Friday.
Kenyan forces entered Somalia in October to push back Al- Shabaab, which controls large sections of southern and central Somalia and is blamed by Kenya for a series of cross-border kidnappings.
The militant group has also come under pressure from African Union peacekeepers, who pushed them out of the Somali capital Mogadishu in August, and from Ethiopia, which seized the town of Beledweyne on Saturday.
Chirchir said the late Thursday's airstrike could make the turning point in the dual military operation being undertaken with soldiers from the Transitional Federal Government.
"The latest airstrike may be the turning point in our military operation in Somalia. No KDF/TFG soldier was injured in the attack which was conducted by air. All troops are safe and in high spirit, " Chirchir told Xinhua by telephone.
Al-Shabaab is known for enforcing a strict brand of Islam in the areas under its rule and is believed to have links to al-Qaida.
The group has also blocked most international aid workers from accessing parts of Somalia suffering from drought and famine.
There has been a string of attacks by Al-Shabaab militants and their sympathizers since Kenya sent troops into Somalia in October to subdue the insurgents who were blamed for a series of murders and kidnappings on the Kenya soil with Daadab district which hosts the refugee camps being one of the worst hit by the attacks.
In total about seven security officers were killed in ten attacks that has occurred in Mandera town, while 19 people were killed in Garissa County, among them five were security officers.
from XINHUA
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