The U.S. Africa Command has confirmed the death of two senior commanders of the al-Shabab extremist group in recent military operations in Somalia. A statement Wednesday says senior al-Shabab military commander Abdullahi Haji Da’ud was killed in a U.S. airstrike on May 27. The Pentagon last week announced that a U.S. drone strike had targeted him, but U.S. officials at the time said they couldn’t confirm if he was killed. The new statement also says a Somalia army unit ground operation on May 31 killed Mohamed Dulyadayn. He is believed to be the mastermind of the Garissa University attack in Kenya in April 2015 that killed 148 people. U.S. officials had said American forces provided some support to that operation. The al-Shabab extremist rebels are linked to al-Qaida.
