AFRICOM Strike Near Kurtunwaarey Ends 40-Day Pause in US Airstrikes on Al-Shabaab

US Africa Command, in coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, struck al-Shabaab targets in the vicinity of Kurtunwaarey, roughly 117km southwest of Mogadishu in Lower Shabelle region. The strike ended a roughly 40-day pause in US strikes in Somalia — the previous strike had targeted ISIS-Somalia on May 6, 2026. Task & Purpose reported this was the first of a cluster of at least four AFRICOM strikes over the following week (Kurtunwaarey, Route 109 northwest of Kismayo, and near Welmaro), with Somali media attributing roughly 14 al-Shabaab militants killed to these and related Danab special forces operations.