NOTE: The following materials are for information purposes only and may not be copied, reproduced, or transmitted without the explicit permission of SITE Intelligence Group and specific attribution to SITE Intelligence Group.</s>ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA—The Ethiopian National Defence Force on Saturday confirmed an ambush by Al Shabab extremists on an Ethiopian peacekeeping convoy in neighbouring Somalia and said Ethiopian forces are preparing a “massive offensive” in response.

The statement rejected an Al Shabab claim that several Ethiopian troops were killed.

The ambush was reported as the Al Qaeda-linked Al Shabab claimed responsibility for the deadly hotel assault in Nairobi and deadly attacks on forces inside Somalia.

Ethiopia contributes troops to a multinational African Union peacekeeping mission. It also has troops in Somalia independently under Ethiopian army command.

The statement said the ambush occurred when the convoy was travelling Burhakaba to Baidoa in Somalia’s southwest.

A separate statement by the AU force said the ambush occurred on Friday and AU troops returned fire, killing four extremists and wounding several others.

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Al Shabab extremists claim deadly attack on Nairobi hotel

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Three soldiers with the AU force were wounded, the statement said.

Al Shabab, which formed more than a decade ago in response to the presence of Ethiopian forces inside Somalia, among other reasons, has never managed to orchestrate a major attack inside the Ethiopian heartland, though it has carried out major attacks in neighbouring Kenya.

In late October, Al Shabab claimed killing 30 Ethiopian troops inside Somalia. Weeks before that, Ethiopian state media outlets reported that the Ethiopian Air Force killed 70 Al Shabab members after the extremist group tried to attack Ethiopian forces.</s>Ethiopian troops on Friday engaged in combat with Al-Shabaab fighters in the town of Buur Hakaba in Somalia’s southern Bay Region, multiple sources reported.

One source, a VOA journalist described the confrontation as one of the deadliest saying that the insurgents had attacked the convoy of the troops with an improvised explosive device, IED.

Harun Maruf said it took security reinforcement from Baidoa, capital of the Bay region to fend off the attack that left the Ethiopians with casualties.

He cited security briefing which said “… Al-Shabaab’s remote-controlled IEDs hit two of a 4-vehicle Ethiopian military convoy followed by heavy attack, troops on this convoy reportedly took significant casualties.”

An Ethiopian reinforcement from Baidoa was also ambushed with more IEDs. Ethiopian military helicopters are said to have targeted a base where the insurgents were believed to have launched their attacks.

Ethiopian contingent are part of the wider African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM. The mission is mandated by the African Union Peace and Security Council and authorized by the United Nations Security Council.

Troop contributing countries include Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Djibouti and Somalia. It also has a police force with personnel from Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda and Zambia.

The force is a major player in the fight against Al-Shabaab and supporting the Federal Government of Somalia, FGS.</s>The Ethiopian National Defense Force is confirming an ambush by al-Shabab extremists on an Ethiopian peacekeeping convoy in neighboring Somalia and says Ethiopian forces are preparing a "massive offensive" in response.

A statement on Saturday rejects reports and an al-Shabab claim that several Ethiopian troops were killed. It does not give further details on casualties.

The ambush was reported as the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the deadly hotel assault in Nairobi and deadly attacks on forces inside Somalia. The statement does not say exactly when the ambush occurred.

Ethiopia contributes troops to a multinational African Union peacekeeping mission. It also has troops in Somalia independently under Ethiopian army command.

The statement says the ambush occurred when the Ethiopian convoy was traveling Burhakaba to Baidoa in Somalia's southwest.

Al-Shabab, which formed more than a decade ago in response to the presence of Ethiopian forces inside Somalia, among other reasons, has never managed to orchestrate a major attack inside the Ethiopian heartland, though it has carried out major attacks in neighboring Kenya.

In late October, al-Shabab claimed killing 30 Ethiopian troops inside Somalia. Weeks before that, Ethiopian state media outlets reported that the Ethiopian Air Force killed 70 al-Shabab members after the extremist group tried to attack Ethiopian forces.</s>The Western Journal has not reviewed this Associated Press story prior to publication. Therefore, it may contain editorial bias or may in some other way not meet our normal editorial standards. It is provided to our readers as a service from The Western Journal.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — The Ethiopian National Defense Force is confirming an ambush by al-Shabab extremists on an Ethiopian peacekeeping convoy in neighboring Somalia and says Ethiopian forces are preparing a “massive offensive” in response.

A statement on Saturday rejects reports and an al-Shabab claim that several Ethiopian troops were killed. It does not give further details on casualties.

The ambush was reported as the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the deadly hotel assault in Nairobi and deadly attacks on forces inside Somalia. The statement does not say exactly when the ambush occurred.

The statement says the ambush occurred when the Ethiopian convoy was traveling Burhakaba to Baidoa in Somalia’s southwest.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.</s>he U.S. military said it carried out an airstrike in Somalia that killed 52 al-Shabab extremists in response to an attack on Somali forces.

The U.S. Africa Command statement says the airstrike occurred on Saturday near Jilib in Middle Juba region.

The U.S. says Somali forces had come under attack by a "large group" of the al-Qaida-linked extremists.

The statement does not say how many Somali forces were killed or wounded. There are no reports of Americans killed or wounded.

Al-Shabab controls large parts of rural southern and central Somalia and continues to carry out high-profile attacks in the capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere.

The group claimed responsibility for the deadly attack on a luxury hotel complex in Kenya's capital on Tuesday.

The Ethiopian National Defense Force on Saturday confirmed an ambush by al-Shabab extremists on an Ethiopian peacekeeping convoy in neighboring Somalia and said Ethiopian forces are preparing a 'massive offensive' in response.

The statement rejected an al-Shabab claim that several Ethiopian troops were killed.

The ambush was reported as the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the deadly hotel assault in Nairobi and deadly attacks on forces inside Somalia.

Ethiopia contributes troops to a multinational African Union peacekeeping mission. It also has troops in Somalia independently under Ethiopian army command.

The statement said the ambush occurred when the convoy was traveling Burhakaba to Baidoa in Somalia's southwest.

A separate statement by the AU force said the ambush occurred on Friday and AU troops returned fire, killing four extremists and wounding several others.

Three soldiers with the AU force were wounded, the statement said.</s>The US military said it carried out an airstrike in Somalia that killed 52 al-Shabaab extremists, in response to an attack on Somali forces.

Al-Shabaab controls large parts of rural southern and central Somalia and continues to carry out high-profile attacks in the capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere. The group claimed responsibility for the deadly attack on a luxury hotel complex in Nairobi, Kenya on Tuesday.

A US Africa Command statement said the airstrike occurred on Saturday near Jilib in Middle Juba region. The US said Somali forces had come under attack by a “large group” of the al-Qaida-linked extremists.

The statement did not say how many Somali forces were killed or wounded. There were no reports of Americans killed or wounded.

Al-Shabaab asserted via its Shahada news agency that its attack on two Somali army bases killed at least 41 soldiers. It described the location as the Bar Sanjuni area near the port city of Kismayo.

There was no immediate comment from Somalia’s government.

In neighboring Ethiopia, state television cited the defense ministry as saying more than 60 al-Shabaab fighters had been killed and that four vehicles loaded with explosives had been “destroyed”.

Ethiopia contributes troops to a multinational African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia and has troops there independently under Ethiopian army command.

Al-Shabaab controls large parts of rural southern and central Somalia and continues to carry out high-profile suicide bombings and other attacks in the capital, Mogadishu, and elsewhere.

The US has dramatically stepped up airstrikes against al-Shabaab in Somalia since Donald Trump took office, carrying out at least 47 such strikes last year. Some have targeted top leaders or key financial officials. The extremist group funds its attacks with an extensive network of “taxation” and extortion.

In October, the US said an airstrike killed about 60 fighters near the al-Shabaab-controlled community of Harardere in Mudug province in the central part of the country.

The airstrikes hamper the extremist group but have not “seriously degraded al-Shabaab’s capability to mount strikes either inside or outside Somalia”, Matt Bryden of Sahan Research, an expert on the extremists, said after the Nairobi hotel attack.

Airstrikes alone cannot defeat the extremists, Bryden said, and must be combined with more ground-based attacks as well as a non-military campaign to win over residents of extremist-held areas.

The US on Saturday said it was committed to “preventing al-Shabaab from taking advantage of safe havens from which they can build capacity and attack the people of Somalia”.</s>The Somalia-based al-Qaeda linked terror group al-Shabaab attacked the luxury hotel Dusit-D2 in Nairobi, Kenya, on Tuesday, killing at least 15.

Al-Shabaab is considered the deadliest terrorist organization in Africa and has conducted several spectacular terrorist attacks in Somalia and Kenya.

The attack on Tuesday came three years to the day after al-Shabaab extremists attacked a Kenyan military base in neighboring Somalia, killing scores of people.

Tuesday’s attack comes on the third anniversary, to the day, of an al-Shabaab ambush on the El-Adde camp in Somalia, killed 170 Kenyan soldiers.

In April 2015, al-Shabaab killed 147 students at the Garissa University College in Kenya. ( “3-Apr-15 World View — Al-Shabaab kills 147 mostly Christian students in Kenya school”)

Al-Shabaab also conducted the horrific three-day terror attack on Nairobi’s upscale Westgate Mall, killing 67 people. ( “23-Sep-13 World View — Minnesota link to Kenya shopping mall attack raises U.S. fears”)

The reason that the Westgate Mall attack lasted for three days is that the Nairobi police were ill-prepared to respond to it, and received a great deal of criticism as a result. The Dusit hotel is less than 2 km away from the Westgate mall. Tuesday’s attack on the Dusit hotel was handled more efficiently by Nairobi’s police, though it still lasted several hours.

CCTV footage has emerged showing that there were four assailants who carried out the attack. The hotel is in a supposedly very secure part of Nairobi, but the attackers gained access to the hotel by hurling grenades at the security officers manning the gate.

The Dusit hotel complex consists of a number of buildings and many were attacked. Police went from building to building and rescued hundreds of people who were trapped in hotel rooms or offices.

One of the CCTV images captured what appears to be a U.S. Navy SEAL rescuing civilians and then returning to the scene of the fighting. The Pentagon has U.S. special forces in a number of countries in Africa, describing their mission as “advising and assisting.” In Kenya, the U.S. has a small presence at Camp Simba, where they reportedly train naval special forces.

Al-Shabaab has vowed retribution against Kenya for sending troops to Somalia since 2011. The al-Qaeda-linked group has killed hundreds of people in Kenya, targeted more than any other of the six countries providing troops to an African Union force in Somalia. Kenyans and AP and The Star (Kenya) and Business Insider

Al-Shabaab is a Somalia-based terror group that has pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda. In 2014, they debated changing allegiance to ISIS but rejected the change, resulting in the formation of a small splinter group. The group conducts massive terror attacks in Somalia, Kenya, and Tanzania. It has an estimated 3,000-6,000 members, including members that it has successfully recruited from the Somali diaspora in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In the case of the Westgate Mall attack, three terrorists were from the United States, including two from the Somali community in the twin cities (Minneapolis and St. Paul) region of Minnesota.

Al-Shabaab’s predecessors have been around in Somalia since the 1980s. During the 2000s, they were responsible for numerous pirate attacks on vessels off the coast of eastern Africa. Since 2007, the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), consisting of troops from Kenya, Burundi, Ethiopia, and Sierra Leone, have targeted the group. U.S. drone strikes and airstrikes have killed several of the group’s leaders.

Al-Shabaab’s targets are usually governmental, with the stated goal of ejecting Western influence and converting Somalia into an Islamic Sharia state.

The U.N. Security Council had ordered the withdrawal of AMISOM troops starting in October of last year, after which Somalia security forces were expected to begin taking over. However, the withdrawal was postponed until February of this year. However, a recent spate of successful attacks, despite the presence of AMISOM troops, has given credence to the view that Somalia security forces are too weak to take over, and the departure of AMISOM would result in the complete al-Shabaab takeover of Somalia. Jamestown (12-Oct-2018) and Council of Foreign Affairs (11-Dec-2018) and International Crisis Group (21-Sep-2018)
• New Somalia terror bombings again raise question of US military strategy in Africa (29-Oct-2017)
• US sends dozens of troops to Somalia, first time since Black Hawk Down (15-Apr-2017)

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Kenya, Nairobi, Somalia, al-Shabaab, Dusit-D2 hotel, Westgate Mall, El-Adde camp, Garissa University College, Westgate Mall, Minneapolis, African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM, Burundi, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone

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 Receive daily World View columns by e-mail</s>The US military said it launched an airstrike on al-Shabaab militants on Saturday in response to their attack on a Somali military base.

The U.S. Africa Command said 52 al-Shabaab fighters were killed in the strike and no civilians were harmed.

The militants launched an attack on Bar-Sanguni base early Saturday, according to the Somali military.

Regional security minister Abdirashid Hassan Abdinur had put the number of al-Shabaab killed in the successful fight to retake the base at 73.

Dozens of al-Shabaab militants were reported have been killed on Saturday as they launched an attack on a military base in Somalia, a government official said.

The militants began by detonating an explosives-packed vehicle at an entrance to the Bar-Sanguni base, said General Ali Mohamed Mohamud, a senior Somali army commander.

An intense exchange of gunfire followed but Somali soldiers were able to regain full control of the base located in Lower Juba province, he said.

There were contradicting tallies as to the number of people killed.

The general said seven Somali soldiers died, while al-Shabaab put the number at 15.

Al-Shabaab’s radio station did not say how many of its fighters died. (dpa/NAN)</s>The overnight attack on a hotel complex in Nairobi that left 14 dead was quickly claimed by the Islamic extremist group al-Shabaab, which has targeted Kenya with several devastating assaults in recent years, leaving hundreds dead. Here's a look at the group which has been called the deadliest in Africa:

Al-Shabaab, meaning "the youth" in Arabic, emerged in neighboring Somalia more than a decade ago as the chaotic Horn of Africa country was deep in warlord-led fighting. The extremist group, linked to al-Qaeda, has been fighting to establish an Islamic state in Somalia based on Shariah law. Its members are mostly Somalis but include many foreign fighters. Recently al-Shabaab has fought a splinter group of fighters who have claimed allegiance to the Islamic State organization.

Al-Shabaab is fighting Somalia's fragile central government, which is supported by a multi-national African Union force that expects to pull out in the next few years and leave security to Somalia's military. The extremists once controlled large parts of Somalia, including most of Mogadishu, the capital, but a concerted effort by the AU and Somali forces in 2015 pushed al-Shabaab out of most urban centers. The group still operates in large swathes of rural Somalia and mounts violent suicide attacks on high-profile targets such as hotels and checkpoints in Mogadishu.

Al-Shabaab is blamed for Somalia's deadliest attack, a massive truck bomb in Mogadishu in 2017 that killed well over 500 people.

Al-Shabaab has vowed retribution after neighboring Kenya sent troops into Somalia in 2011 to battle the extremists. The Kenyans' deployment came after al-Shabab kidnapped tourists in Kenya's popular Lamu resort area on the Indian Ocean near the Somali border, a blow to the lucrative tourist industry.

Tuesday's violence came three years to the day after al-Shabab attacked a Kenyan military base in Somalia, killing scores of people.

Al-Shabab has staged several attacks inside Kenya, including the 2013 attack on Nairobi's Westgate Mall in which 67 people were killed and the 2015 attack on Garissa University in which 147 people, mostly students, were killed. The extremists have also targeted schools and bus transport near the porous border with Somalia, at times singling out Christians.

This latest attack occurred a short distance from Westgate Mall and again appeared to target wealthy Kenyans and expatriates.

Shortly after US President Donald Trump took office in early 2017, he vowed to step up military action against al-Shabaab. Last year the US carried out nearly 50 airstrikes, some targeting top extremist leaders. The airstrikes may pressure al-Shabaab to stay on the move, but the extremists are still able to renew their ranks.

Al-Shabab continues to operate in rural areas across Somalia, enriching itself with a widespread system of "taxation" on travelers and cargo. It now competes with the new IS-linked fighters in extorting Somali businesses.

The latest Nairobi attack used "almost identical tactics" to al-Shabaab's frequent attacks on hotels in Mogadishu, said Matt Bryden of Sahan Research, an expert on the extremists. The airstrikes hamper the group but have not "seriously degraded al-Shabaab's capability to mount strikes either inside or outside Somalia," Bryden said. Airstrikes alone cannot defeat the extremists, he said, and must be combined with more ground-based attacks as well as a non-military campaign to win over residents of extremist-held areas.
Al Shabaab claims they killed over 57 Ethiopian troops in an ambush in Somalia. Ethiopian troops rejects that claim.