<p>Mogadishu: Somali and US forces have killed a senior leader of the militant Islamist al Shabaab group who had planned numerous attacks in Somalia and Kenya, Somalia's information minister said.</p><p>"Maalim Ayman ... was confirmed to have been killed in a joint operation by the Somali National Army with assistance from US forces on December 17th," Daud Aweis said on his X account late on Thursday.</p><p>"Ayman was accountable for planning multiple lethal terrorist attacks in Somalia and nearby countries," he said.</p>.Suicide bomber kills at least 7 in Somalia; Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group claims responsibility.<p>The US military's Africa Command (AFRICOM) had conducted an air strike, an AFRICOM spokesperson said, but added that the strike's target was yet to be confirmed.</p><p>The strike was conducted against the militant group near Jilib town in southern Somalia, AFRICOM and the Somali Information Ministry said.</p><p>Ayman was on a US State Department Rewards for Justice wanted list, with a $10 million reward offered for information leading to his arrest or conviction.</p><p>The department said he was responsible for preparing an attack on a military base in Kenya in January 2020 in which three Americans - one US military service member and two contractors - were killed. </p>
<p>Mogadishu: Somali and US forces have killed a senior leader of the militant Islamist al Shabaab group who had planned numerous attacks in Somalia and Kenya, Somalia's information minister said.</p><p>"Maalim Ayman ... was confirmed to have been killed in a joint operation by the Somali National Army with assistance from US forces on December 17th," Daud Aweis said on his X account late on Thursday.</p><p>"Ayman was accountable for planning multiple lethal terrorist attacks in Somalia and nearby countries," he said.</p>.Suicide bomber kills at least 7 in Somalia; Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group claims responsibility.<p>The US military's Africa Command (AFRICOM) had conducted an air strike, an AFRICOM spokesperson said, but added that the strike's target was yet to be confirmed.</p><p>The strike was conducted against the militant group near Jilib town in southern Somalia, AFRICOM and the Somali Information Ministry said.</p><p>Ayman was on a US State Department Rewards for Justice wanted list, with a $10 million reward offered for information leading to his arrest or conviction.</p><p>The department said he was responsible for preparing an attack on a military base in Kenya in January 2020 in which three Americans - one US military service member and two contractors - were killed. </p>