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Posted on 10/05/2013 2:31:01 PM PDT by kristinn
A Navy SEAL team targeted a senior leader of the Shabab militant group in a raid on his seaside villa in the Somali town of Baraawe on Saturday, American officials said, in response to a deadly attack on a Nairobi shopping mall for which the group had claimed responsibility.
The SEAL team stealthily approached the beachfront house by sea, firing on the unidentified target in a predawn gunbattle that was the most significant raid by American troops on Somali soil since commandos killed Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a Qaeda mastermind, near the same town four years ago.
The Shabab leader was believed to have been killed in the firefight, but the SEALS were forced to withdraw before that could be confirmed, a senior American official said. Such operations by American forces are rare because they carry a high risk, and indicate that the target was considered a high priority. Baraawe, a small port town south of Mogadishu, the Somali capital, is known as a gathering place for the Shabab’s foreign fighters.
“The Baraawe raid was planned a week and a half ago,” said an American security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity about a classified operation. “It was prompted by the Westgate attack,” he added, referring to the mall in Nairobi that was overrun by militants two weeks ago, leaving more than 60 dead.
Witnesses in the area described a firefight lasting over an hour, with helicopters called in for air support. A senior Somali government official who spoke on the condition of anonymity confirmed the raid, saying, “The attack was carried out by the American forces and the Somali government was pre-informed about the attack.”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Terrorists seem to like that town, a couple of years from now, another terrorist leader will undoubtedly be killed near this town.
why not simply destroy the town and everything and everyone in it?
Obama desperate for so good press
Dang! I’m losin’ it. I thought this was another article about Detroit.
Now we know what all the fuss was about in Somalia in yesterday’s threads. There was some talk about an attack from offshore, hmmmm...
/johnny
What? Obamabarrycade letting our SEALS kill the real bad guys????? Hmmmm?
Any word yet on the Benghazi killers?
“Terrorists seem to like that town, a couple of years from now, another terrorist leader will undoubtedly be killed near this town. why not simply destroy the town and everything and everyone in it?”
You mean DC?
———Somali government——
I was unaware there was a functioning Somalia government. ...
I will agree that DC needs to be fumigated, but destroyed — not just yet.
Why in the hell weren’t the helicopters called in to launch a couple of dozen missiles at the house?
Sounds like a great training facility for Ohio class submarine transported SEALS who can do some good while keeping their skills honed. If all the dirtbagz enjoy having the upscale seaside villa as a crash pad then why not leave it so we know where we can find them? Or melt it down-—I’m not locked in to either way.
ping
good point about knowing where terrorists like to hang out.
I did not think about it in that context.
thanks.
My guess is that they wanted to snatch someone, otherwise a couple of bombs or missiles could have been used if they were looking to kill them.
Wait, it’s not too late for plan B.
Very cool. Good for our guys. But why wasn’t it the target for a B-52 and a full load? There’s no need to fight rifle to rifle and expose our men to that kind of danger.
Another great effort by the SEALS, but we should not be releasing info through the NY Times.
God Bless our Navy SEALS!!
Followed by John Kerry stating that he led the attack and is looking for a Silver Star for his brave actions.
Why do we need to get involved in this?
Breaking: Western Troops storm a house in Somali town of Brava which is Al Shabab stronghold
H/t Time's Zeke Miller
Good question, why a ground attack rather than drones or helicopters? Maybe it was intended to be a snatch that went wrong?
Let them be ghosts. God will damn the people that released this info to the times. Of course, they’ll run it. They are like silly, prancing twits with this kind of info - can’t publish it fast enough can they?
The unidentified Shabab leader is believed to have been killed in the firefight, but the SEAL team was forced to withdraw before that could be confirmed, a senior American security official said.
American officials initially reported that they had seized the Shabab leader, but later backed off that account. The first American security official said there were no reports of American casualties in the operation.
Another false flag op.
wtf? Is Obama upset that a mall in his home country was attacked yet he ignores an attack on US soil where several CIA operatives along with a US ambassador were murdered.
This is yet another attempt for him to look like a tough guy and using the US military like a set of toys he mother never let him play with as a child.
The stated reason for the Mall attack was US and western nation’s attack on their forces in Somalia and elsewhere.
I thing killing these groups is the only suitable answer to their actions, no matter how they are made.
It sounds like a snatch....they wanted him alive I cant fault them he would have been a huge intel get.
No OPSEC again. Very curious that they reacted so quickly to an attack in Kenya but have done nothing after the first US Ambassador was killed in more than 30 years—even after a year!
Wag the dog because of sinking poll numbers? Does it confirm that there is something sinister being covered up? (Like the kidnap attempt for the Blind Sheikh theory).
|
I call B.S. Show me his carcass.
Your call is important to us. Please stay on the line for our next available operator. Your expected wait time is about 1.57785e6 minutes.
I no longer believe that we will ever see justice for Benghazi, but if we do, it will not be for at least another 3 years.
No matter how many times you hear this reported or read about it, it is like looking at an empty sack. It’s a sack, but what was “in” it? This just doesn’t make sense. Why? Why not a drone kill? This looks to me like a failed attack’s cover story.
More SEALs to die.
why not simply destroy the town and everything and everyone in it?
***
I second that motion.
There’s no need to fight rifle to rifle and expose our men to that kind of danger.
&&&
Unless you are intent upon destroying our special forces. The Dear Leader is several points up in that game.
Thanks kristinn. Oh, and don’t forget, Obama got Osama.
Names and addresses of the Navy Seals who participated will be published soon.
Terrorism expert on Fox news states that we may be hearing bad news about this raid in the near future.
Love to see an arc light mission of about 100 B52’s with maximum loads of concrete jdams on that vile ville.....:o)
We could just explain it as an attempt to build an artificial reef just off the beach and accidentally hit the little towel headed camel humpers home.
Oooops our bad..... See ya next week.
The raid in Somalia failed to capture the senior militant and it isn't clear if the senior leader was killed, although several al-Shabaab members were killed, according to an official.
....The SEALs called off the mission to capture the militant after the gunbattle appeared to put civilians at risk. "We disengaged after the initial assault on al-Shabaab. We took precautions to minimize civilian casualties," the official said.
No wonder the SEALS had to withdraw.
“Obama desperate for so good press”
my thought too.
"Don't be surprised tomorrow to learn the Somalia raid went very badly for the US."
AND
"there is also no question on one detail, the extraction was a full blown retreat by us in the face of overwhelming force."
Interesting that we can send Navy Seals for the attack on the Somalia mall but couldn’t get help to 4 Americans in Benghazi and it took 2 weeks for the FBI to get to Benghazi site to investigate.
SUre. We kill some, then they come here to do the same thing at a mall. Another bad idea.
If those twitter rumors are true the kenyan’s ROE just got some of America’s best KIA.
As the fellow pointed out on Fox a few weeks ago, the history of successful negotiations with murderous religious zealots is 0% over the last 2500 years. The only answer is to kill them in retaliation until they stop the murder.
I am not talking indiscriminate or relentlessly, but make the cost of their murder more than they can bear until it ceases and they change their ways or withdraw and become isolated on their own.
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