US drone strike ‘kills 150 militants’ in Somalia

The strikes were conducted by manned and unmanned aircrafts on Saturday

Al-Shabab recruits walk the streets of the Somalian capital, Mogadishu. (AFP)

A US drone strike has killed 150 suspected al-Shabaab fighters in Somalia, the Pentagon announced on Monday.

The strikes were conducted by manned and unmanned aircrafts on Saturday against the Raso Camp, 120 miles north of Mogadishu, where the al-Qaeda affiliated terror group supposedly built a training facility.

"The fighters who were scheduled to depart the camp posed an imminent threat to US and African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) forces in Somalia," Pentagon officials said in a statement.

US defense officials had been monitoring the camp for several weeks and said that more than 200 fighters were planning attacks against US and African Union forces.

"We continue to assess the results of the operation and will provide additional information as and when appropriate," the statement read.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said that the mission “is exactly the kind of counterterrorism strategy the president has laid out."

However, Earnest added that the Obama administration is unaware if the airstrikes had injured or killed any civilians in the area, USA Today reports.

“Avoiding civilian casualties is a very, very high priority, both for moral reasons, but also because terrorist organizations like al-Shabab will just use that for recruiting purposes."