A military base used by the U.S and Kenyan troops in coastal Kenya was attacked by the Al-Shabaab Jihadi group. Kenyan authorities said the US aircraft and vehicles were destroyed in this attack. The Kenyan military said the pre-dawn breach was repulsed and at least 4 attackers were killed. There was black smoke above the base near the Somali border. The U.S Africa Command confirmed the attack on Camp Simba in Lamu County. A spokesman colonel Christopher Karns said Al-Shabaab has claimed the attack. The incident could cause severe casualties, but there was no report of U.S or Kenyan deaths. Pentagon said the camp has fewer than 100 U.S personnel.
An internal Kenyan police report said 2 fixed-wing aircraft, including a U.S Cessna and a Kenyan one, were destroyed along with 2 U.S helicopters and multiple U.S vehicles at the Manda Bay military airstrip. The report said explosions were heard at around at the dawn from the direction of the airstrip. Al-Shabaab claimed the responsibility and said the attack destroyed U.S equipment including aircraft and vehicles. Kenya’s military said, “The airstrip is safe. Arising from the unsuccessful breach a fire broke out affecting some of the fuel tanks located at the airstrip”. The Civil Aviation Authority of Kenya said the airstrip was closed for all operations.
It is noteworthy that Al-Shabaab is connected to al-Qaeda and based in neighboring Somalia, and launched a number of attacks in Kenya. The group has been the target of a growing number of U.S airstrikes during the administration of U.S President Donald Trump. The recent attack comes just after a week when an Al-Shabaab truck bomb in Somalia’s capital killed at least 79 people. The group also attacked a US military base inside Somalia last year. The extremist group has also attacked civilian targets in Kenya, including buses, schools and, shopping malls. The early Sunday attack comes days after a U.S airstrike killed Iranian top military commander and Iran promised retaliation. But, Al-Shabaab is a Sunni Muslim group and there is no connection to Shiite Iran.