Airstrike Takes Out a Top Terrorist Suspected of Involvement in Attack on U.S. Personnel in Kenya by Diana Stancy Correll - Military Times
Bashir Mohamed Mahamoud, a senior al-Shabab leader suspected of involvement in the attack on U.S. and Kenyan forces in Manda Bay, Kenya, was killed in a late February airstrike in Somalia, U.S. Africa Command officials said Sunday.
Mahamoud, also known as Bashir Qoorgaab, was a member of al-Shabab for more than a decade and had coordinated al-Qaida activity within Somalia, according to the U.S. State Department, which had offered up to a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture. AFRICOM officials believe he was involved in terrorist plots within Somalia and neighboring Kenya.
“This terrorist was responsible for the pain and suffering of many innocent people,” Air Force Col. Christopher Karns, AFRICOM’s director of public affairs, told Military Times. “He can no longer inflict physical pain on others, nor export his hate and violence more broadly. What we are doing in Somalia is meaningful basic security insurance for Africa and the long term security of America, the continent and our international partners.”…