By MARY WAMBUI

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The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmiss) is reeling from the aftermath of Tuesday’s al-Shabaab attack in which 10 Burundian soldiers operating in Sector III were killed and several others wounded.

The attack happened in the same week that the US Africa Command (Africom) claimed there have been no civilian deaths from their drone strikes in Somalia.

The Burundian government said on Wednesday that 10 of its soldiers under Atmiss had been killed in a raid on their camp in the Eel Baraf village in Middle Shabelle, in Hirshabelle State, some 150km north of Mogadishu. It also said its soldiers had killed at least 29 Al Shabaab fighters.

Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye condemned the attack.

“There are no words strong enough to condemn the terrorist attack against the Burundian contingent of Atmiss,” said a presidential statement released on Wednesday.

The attack was roundly condemned by the African Union and the UN, as well as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.

Meanwhile, Africom said a notable reduction in America’s usage of drone strikes to fight Al-Shabaab in Somalia has resulted in fewer reports of civilian casualties in the country.

“In the latest quarterly civilian casualty assessment report period ending March 31, 2022, US Africa Command received no new reports of civilian casualties and there were no open reports carried over from previous quarters. There are currently no assessments open or under review,” Africom said in a statement.

A February 22 airstrike was a counter attack against the insurgents after they attacked partner forces in a remote location near Duduble, Africom said in the statement. It was the second attack during US President Joe Biden’s administration, after the first one in July last year near Galkayo.

When Biden’s administration took office in January last year, it placed new limits on drone strikes outside active war zones, requiring attacks to get direct authority from the White House.

Targeted attacks

The US deploys airstrikes to assist partner troops in Somalia. Targeted attacks have led to the killing of key Al Shabaab leaders. In February 2020, an airstrike killed Bashir Mohamed Qorgab, a leader in charge of one of the militia’s bases who was involved in operations targeting Kenya.

In March this year, Somalia announced that a joint operation between the Somali National Army and the US Military had killed more than 200 Al Shabaab militants in drone attacks targeting a settlement known as Hareri Guybadle about 300km north of Mogadishu.

The airstrikes have been criticised by a section of Somali citizens who say the attacks have claimed lives of innocent people.

In response to these claims, in April 2020 Africom began publishing quarterly reports of assessments of civilian casualties after every airstrike conducted in the country.

The command reported that on February 17, 2020, two civilians sustained injuries after a drone attack targeting the militia, another three in April 2020, and three in January last year.

“With every airstrike, we conduct a thorough pre-strike assessment to reduce the likelihood of civilian harm. Unfortunately, our January 1 airstrike, which was designed to protect re-positioning US troops and precisely hit its intended target, likely also caused injuries to three civilians nearby,” said Gen Townsend after releasing the assessment report.

On January 27, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin directed the undersecretary of defence policy to provide a Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response Action Plan by April 27, following reports that the country’s use of air raids against the Islamic State in Syria in 2018 may have resulted in the indiscriminate killing of civilians.

Africom commander Gen Townsend said protecting innocent civilians remains a vital part of the command’s operations.

In the past, human-rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have faulted the outcome of Africom’s probes, saying that they are inadequate and result in no accountability.

The attack came on the same week that the US Africa Command (Afrocom) claimed there have been no civilian deaths from US drone strikes in Somalia, meaning there has been a reduction in aerial bombardments targeting the militants.

The Burundian government said on Wednesday that 10 of its soldiers under ATMISS had been killed in a raid on their camp in the Eel Baraf village in Middle Shabelle, in Hirshabelle State, some 150km north of the Somali capital Mogadishu. It also said its soldiers had killed at least 29 Shabaab fighters.

Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye condemned the attack, on his Twitter handle.

“There are no words strong enough to condemn the terrorist attack against the Burundian contingent of ATMIS,” said a presidential statement released on Wednesday.

The attack was roundly condemned by both the African Union and the UN as well as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad).

Africom said a notable reduction in America’s usage of drone strikes to fight Al-Shabaab in Somalia has resulted in declined reports of civilian casualties in the country.

“In the latest quarterly civilian casualty assessment report period ending March 31, 2022, US Africa Command received no new reports of civilian casualties and there were no open reports carried over from previous quarters. There are currently no assessments open or under review,” the Command said in a statement.

The February 22 airstrike was a counter attack against the insurgents after they attacked partner forces in a remote location near Duduble, Africom said in a statement.

It was also the second attack during US President Joe Biden’s administration coming months after the initial one in July last year that took place near Galkayo in Somalia.

When Biden’s administration took office in January last year, it placed new limits on drone strikes outside active war zones requiring drone attacks to get direct authority through the White House.

The United States deploys airstrikes to assist partner troops that are on deployment to Somalia on self-defence basis with a view to degrading and eliminating Al-Shabaab elements in the country.

The targeted attacks have led to the killing of key Al-Shabaab leaders like in February 2020 when an airstrike killed Bashir Mohamed Qorgab, a leader in charge of one of the militia’s bases who was also involved in operations targeting Kenya.

In March this year, the Somali government announced that a joint operation between the Somali National Army and the US Military had claimed the lives of more than 200 Al-Shabaab militants in drone attacks targeting a settlement known as Hareri Guybadle about 300 kilometres North of Mogadishu.

The airstrikes have however not been devoid of criticism by a section of Somali citizens who have claimed that some have been indiscriminate and claimed lives of innocent lives.

In response to these claims, Africom in April 2020 began publishing quarterly reports of assessment of civilian casualties after every airstrike conducted in Somalia.

The command reported that on February 17, 2020 two civilians sustained injuries after a drone attack targeting the militia, another three in April 2020 and another three in January last year.

“With every airstrike, we conduct a thorough pre-strike assessment to reduce the likelihood of civilian harm. Unfortunately, our January 1 airstrike, which was designed to protect re-positioning US troops and precisely hit its intended target, likely also caused injuries to three civilians nearby,” said Gen Townsend after releasing the assessment report.

0n January 27, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd J. Austin III issued a memorandum directing the undersecretary of defence policy to provide a Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response Action Plan by April 27 following reports that the country’s use of air war against the Islamic State in Syria in 2018 may have resulted in the indiscriminate killing of civilians.

The action plan is expected to have a bearing on the conduct of Africom in Somalia. Africom commander General Stephen Townsend affirmed protecting innocent civilians remains a vital part of the command’s operations as it promotes a more secure and stable Africa.

“We have a moral obligation to ensure our processes do everything possible to mitigate civilian harm,” he said.

In the past, human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have faulted the outcome of Africom’s probes claiming that they are inadequate and result in zero accountability.