The commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), Gen. Michael Langley, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the United States will expand operations against ISIS in Somalia.
“The president and the secretary of defense have given me broad authority to target and strike with great force and speed,” Gen. Michael Langley said.
The commander said U.S. forces in Somalia had killed a number of ISIS leaders in an airstrike.
He noted that airstrikes against al-Shabaab had also been stepped up, which he said had increased their casualties.
“We are hitting hard, and we now have the ability to hit both al-Shabaab and ISIS very hard,” Gen. Michael Langley said.
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered airstrikes against ISIS in the Calmiskaad Mountains of Puntland, and al-Shabaab in south-central Somalia.
Trump said the move is part of an effort to eradicate international terrorism, noting that there will be no place for terrorist groups to hide.
