U.S. military says Somalia strike killed 30 al Shabaab fighters

FILE PHOTO: Somali security officers drive past a section of Hotel Hayat, the scene of an al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group militant attack in Mogadishu, Somalia August 20, 2022. REUTERS/Feisal Omar/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. military strike has killed approximately 30 Islamist al Shabaab militants near the central Somali town of Galcad, where Somalia's military was engaged in heavy fighting, U.S. Africa Command said in a statement.

The operation, which the U.S. military described as a "collective self-defense strike," occurred on Friday about 162 miles (260 km) north of the capital Mogadishu, where Somali national forces were under attack by more than 100 al Shabaab fighters, the statement said.