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OHANNESBURG — The U.S. military’s Africa command says its forces conducted an airstrike against Islamic extremists in Somalia last week, approximately 30 miles northwest of Kismayo, killing eight militants and destroying one vehicle. In its statement released Monday, the U.S. Africa Command said that it assess no civilians were killed in the strike. The statement said U.S. forces will continue to use “all authorized and appropriate measures” to protect U.S. citizens and to disable extremist threats. This includes partnering with the multinational African force in Somalia and the Somali National Security Forces to attack the extremist rebels of al-Shabab, their...

SNIPPET: "08:20 GMT, April 2, 2010 defpro.com | The African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the none-militant Somali Islamists Ahlu Sunna wal Jama'a, which has ties with Somali government, have warned of simultaneous terrorist attacks by al-Shabaab militants in Mogadishu and in some neighbouring states including Kenya and Djibouti. The spokesman for the moderate Islamist group, Sheik Abdullahi Sheik Abdurahman Abu Yusuf, said in a press conference in the central Somali town of Dhusamareeb late Thursday that his intelligence services have gained reliable information that al-Shabaab are in the final preparations of planned terror attacks which will be...

"Somali jihadists forcing civilians to watch executions" SNIPPET: "Movies and television? No way. Executions? Bring the whole family -- or else! "Somalis 'made to view executions'," by Mary Harper for BBC News, October 25:" SNIPPET: "Hundreds of people in Somalia have been forced to watch Islamist militants executing two people accused of spying. People in Merca said al-Shabaab militia patrolled the town with loudspeakers, demanding they attend the executions. The militants also ordered schools to close for the day as they were keen for children to watch the two men being shot dead by a firing squad. Most of those...

Somali Islamists clash over port. Two Islamist groups who were previously working together in Somalia have become embroiled in a fierce fight for control of the southern port of Kismayo. At least 12 people have been killed and hundreds have fled their homes.

22 hours ago WASHINGTON (AFP) — American recruits of Somali extremists addressed a press conference in the conflict-wracked country this week to rally other youths to join their jihad (holy war), a US monitoring group said Friday. On April 5, "two American members of the Mujahideen Youth Movement (MYM) identified as Abu-Muslim and Abu Yaxye" spoke at the news conference and acknowledged that "many" Somali-Americans are "all over Somalia to join the jihad," said the SITE Intelligence Group. The pair said they are "Somali youth" from the United States and are stationed near the southern port of Kismayo. "Some of...

http://www.garoweonline.com Last Updated: Apr 9, 2009 - 11:35:04 AM SOMALIA "Al Shabaab shut down radio station in southwest Somalia" 9 Apr 9, 2009 - 6:46:36 PM SNIPPET: "BELED HAWO, Somalia Apr 9 (Garowe Online) - Islamist hardliners in Somalia have shut down an independent radio station, with the station's owners saying they were not told why the radio was targeted, Radio Garowe reports. The station, Maandeeq FM, is based in the town of Beled Hawo in Gedo region near the borders with Ethiopia and Kenya. Mr. Hassan Mohamud Halane, the director of Mandeeq radio station, told reporters that the radio...

Somali Islamic stronghold falls The Somali army is backed by Ethiopian heavy weaponry Somalia's Ethiopian-backed government says it controls the southern port city of Kismayo - which was the last stronghold of Islamist militiamen. The Islamists retreated as the army, supported by Ethiopian aircraft, tanks and artillery advanced on the city. The Somali prime minister urged the African Union to send peacekeepers and offered an amnesty to Islamic fighters. The Islamists had swept through Somalia last year, and their retreat from Kismayo is seen as a major reversal. Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Ghedi told AFP news agency: "Kismayo is...

Somali Troops, Allies Prep for Showdown Thousands of Somali and Ethiopian Troops Set Off for Final Showdown With Islamic Militia By MOHAMED OLAD The Associated Press MOGADISHU, Somalia - Thousands of Somali and Ethiopian troops set off Saturday for a showdown with Islamic forces who have regrouped at a southern seaport since abandoning the Somali capital two days ago. Some 3,000 Muslim militiamen have taken a stand in the Indian Ocean port city of Kismayo, and the U.S. government believes they may include four suspects in the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. This map...