US air strikes target al-Shabab in Somalia

The US military conducted an airstrike against Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Shabaab jihadists, the first since President Joe Biden took office, the Pentagon said.

The US military command for Africa (Africom), in coordination with the Somali government, "conducted one airstrike in the vicinity of Galkayo, Somalia today against al-Shabaab," Pentagon spokeswoman Cindi King said.

The strike, 700 kilometers northeast of Mogadishu, targeted Shabaab Islamists, King said.

The strike is the first conducted by the US military in Somalia since January 19, when Africom announced it had killed three Shabaab jihadists in two strikes in Jamaame and Deb Scinnele.

The resumption of U.S. airstrikes against al-Shabab comes as military and intelligence officials in the U.S. and around the world warn of a growing threat from the al-Qaida-linked group.

Al-Shabab rebels were ousted from the capital, Mogadishu, in 2011 and have been pushed out of other key cities but still control large parts of southern and central Somalia and often target the capital with suicide bombings.

Pressure has been growing on Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo since the February elections failed to take place because of the lack of agreement on how the vote should be carried out. Two regional states have said they would not take part without a deal.

Critics accuse Farmajo, who is seeking a second four-year term, of delaying the election to extend his current mandate. The president has blamed unnamed foreign interventions.

Somalia has accused some of its foreign backers of undermining its sovereignty after the embattled government was threatened with sanctions over a decision to extend its mandate by two years.

Somalia has postponed elections that were were due to start on Sunday after months of delays in the deeply unstable Horn of Africa country.

Last week, the country's Al-Shabaab jihadists warned politicians against taking part in the elections, which were due to kick off after months of deadlock and delays.

The threat, in an audio message purportedly recorded by Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Umar Abu Ubaidah, underscores the security challenges facing the election process in the country.

Indirect parliamentary and presidential polls were due to open on July 25 with four days of voting for the upper house by state delegates. The election cycle was due to end with a presidential poll on October 10.