US Airstrike On Al Qaeda?
CBS News is reporting that an American AC-130 gunship operated by US Operations Command has attacked al Qaeda leaders in Somalia. They are the only media outlet I have seen yet that has this information and they are calling it exclusive. If true, and if the reports of major damage done by the strike are correct, al Qaeda in East Africa has been hit very, very hard.
The targets included the senior al Qaeda leader in East Africa and an al Qaeda operative wanted for his involvement in the 1998 bombings of two American embassies in Africa, Martin reports. Those terror attacks killed more than 200 people.
The AC-130 gunship is capable of firing thousands of rounds per second, and sources say a lot of bodies were seen on the ground after the strike, but there is as yet, no confirmation of the identities.
The gunship flew from its base in Dijibouti down to the southern tip of Somalia, Martin reports, where the al Qaeda operatives had fled after being chased out of the capital of Mogadishu by Ethiopian troops backed by the United States.
Once they started moving, the al Qaeda operatives became easier to track, and the U.S. military started preparing for an air strike, using unmanned aerial drones to keep them under surveillance and moving the aircraft carrier Eisenhower out of the Persian Gulf toward Somalia. But when the order was given, the mission was assigned to the AC-130 gunship operated by the U.S. Special Operations command.
If you are not familiar with the AC-130, here's a primer. If they did hit the al Qaeda leaders with this, they did a lot of damage very quickly. These things are fierce. They are descended from these of course: Your friend Above.
UPDATE: CNN now reporting that a senior Pentagon official has confirmed the strike. It happened within the last 24 hours.
WASHINGTON (CNN) — A U.S. gunship has attacked suspected al Qaeda targets in southern Somalia, a senior Pentagon official said Monday.
The AC-130 flew its mission within the last 24 hours, the official told CNN. The operation was launched based on intelligence that al Qaeda operatives were in the location, but there was no immediate indication of how successful the strike had been.
Additionally, the official said, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower has moved within striking distance of Somalia, but its jets have not been put to use.
Three al Qaeda operatives accused in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania have been hiding in Somalia for years. The US believes they were closely tied to the Somali Islamic group - the ICU.
"We had seen intelligence evidence these three Al Qaeda operative were very much influencing the leadership of the council of the ICU — for example providing logistics, fuel and arms to the militias," said Jendayi Frazer, assistant secretary of state for African affairs
Looks like al Qaeda might have a few job openings. Expect another whining audio tape from Zawahri exhorting more volunteers to kill themselves in Somalia. Apparently, the US is willing to help them out.
UPDATE: This one is going asymptotic in the blogosphere: Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, Captain's Quarters, Gateway Pundit, SevenStripes.com, Right Voices, Ace of Spades, Austin Bay, MK Ham (pinch hitting at Michelle Malkin’s), Mac’s Mind, 186KPS, Sensible Mom, Webloggin, STACLU, Gateway Pundit, Mudville Gazette, A Blog for All, Mark My Words, Jawa Report, Counterterrorism Blog, Neptunus Lex, Opininonnation Times, Don Surber, Secular Blasphemy,
UPDATE: Washington Post is reporting some success:
Others have identified Sudani as the financier for Fazul Abdullah Mohammed and Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, believed responsible for the 1998 bombing of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. All are among the senior al-Qaeda operatives the Bush administration has charged were sheltered by Somalian Islamic fundamentalists controlling Mogadishu, the country's capital. They are believed to have fled late last month when Ethiopian troops drove the fundamentalists out of the capital and toward the Kenyan border.
[In an interview early Tuesday, Abdirizak Hassan, chief of staff for Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Gedi, confirmed the strike. Hassan said he heard from American officials that Fazul Abdullah Mohammed had been killed, although U.S. officials said he had not been in their immediate sights. "Among the targets was Fazul," he said, "and we understand that Fazul is no more."
Hassan also said Somali officials authorized the strike. "We gave permission for actions that are more than airstrikes," Hassan said. "Whatever it means to rout these people out, we have given them permission."]
As Don Surber said, job openings but no job security.
As Don Surber said, job openings but no job security.
World news | Gaius Monday, 8 January , 2007
Other Links to this Post
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186k Per Second - » War on Terrorism Comes Full Circle — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 8:35 pm
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Sensible Mom — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 8:48 pm
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Don Surber » Blog Archive » Somalia is not a good place to hide — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 9:29 pm
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Don Surber — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 9:31 pm
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Right Voices » Blog Archive » Alert:U.S. airstrike targets al-Qaida in Somalia — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 9:46 pm
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Right Pundits — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 11:10 pm
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Flopping Aces — Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 11:34 pm
By Tony B, Monday, 8 January , 2007 @ 8:01 pm
I saw it reported on MSNBC’s site, too. Though they were reporting that it was a helicopter attack. I’m guessing that they heard the word “gunship” attached to AC-130 and the reporter didn’t know what that was, but “gunship” to him meant helicopter.