At 3:25 a.m. on 3 March 2008, two

BGM-109 Tomahawk The Tomahawk () Land Attack Missile (TLAM) is a long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is primarily used by the United States Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations. Under contract f ...

cruise missile A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhe ...

s launched by a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

warship hit the village of Dobley in Somalia. According to US military officials the target of the attack was an

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

leader. Dobley district commissioner Ali Hussein Nuir stated that Sheikh

Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki Sheikh Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki ( so, Hassan Abdullah Hirsii al-Turki, ar, حسن عبد الله حرسي التركي الجامعة; – 27 May 2015) was a Somali Islamist leader of al-Itihaad al-Islamiya (AIAI) and later of the Islam ...

, a local militant cleric was meeting with leaders of a

Mogadishu Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port ...

-based militant group nearby. Varying reports of casualties surfaced with villagers reporting that between four and six people were dead. It is unclear whether these casualties were targets or civilians. Villagers also reported that an aircraft had attacked them, but US military officials denied these reports merely stating that an attack had indeed occurred and that they were looking into the results. At least two previous attacks of a similar nature occurred in 2007 where American forces targeted suspected al-Qaeda operatives in Ras Kamboni as well as in Bargal. ''

Jane's Defence Weekly ''Jane's Defence Weekly'' (abbreviated as ''JDW'') is a weekly magazine reporting on military and corporate affairs, edited by Peter Felstead. It is one of a number of military-related publications named after John F. T. Jane, an Englishman who ...

'', writing in its 12 March 2008 issue, said the attack was reportedly carried out by a US Navy submarine, firing Tomahawks. ''Jane's'' said several news reports said the target of the attack was

Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan ) (4 April 1979, Mombasa, Kenya – 14 September 2009, near Baraawe, Somalia) was the leader of al-Qaeda in Somalia. He was listed on the FBI's third major "wanted" list, the FBI Seeking Information – War on Terrorism list, for his associatio ...

, sought by the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

in connection with the

2002 Mombasa attacks The 2002 Mombasa attacks was a two-pronged terrorist attack on 28 November 2002 in Mombasa, Kenya against an Israeli-owned hotel and a plane belonging to Arkia Airlines. An all-terrain vehicle crashed through a barrier outside the Paradise Hote ...

in Kenya against a hotel and a civilian airliner.

References

External links

US missile strike targets 'Al-Qaeda leader' in SomaliaAl-Qaeda Terrorist Leader Targeted in Somali TownUS launches strike in Somalia against al-Qaeda throughout, including aim of January 2007 US strikes
{{coord missing, Somalia Dobley Dobley Dobley Conflicts in 2008 March 2008 events in Africa Somalia War (2006–2009) Somalia–United States military relations Dobley

See also

References

External links