Turkish Warplanes Reportedly Strike Near Basra as Somalia’s War Against Al-Shabaab Escalates

Mogadishu (WDN) — The skies over central Somalia have reportedly become a new front in the country’s intensifying war against Al-Shabaab, with Turkish F-16 fighter jets said to have carried out airstrikes near Basra, a strategically important area located between the Middle and Lower Shabelle regions, roughly 35 kilometers northwest of Mogadishu.

The reported strikes came as Somali government forces launched heavy ground operations against Al-Shabaab in and around Basra, raising the stakes in an offensive aimed at pushing the militant group away from key positions along the Shabelle River.

Local sources said the reported Turkish airstrikes targeted Al-Shabaab positions and suspected militant strongholds, particularly around settlements near the river. Initial reports indicated casualties among the militants, although the number of dead and wounded could not be independently verified.

The Somali Ministry of Defence separately said government forces were conducting a major offensive in the Basra area and claimed that several Al-Shabaab fighters, including two senior commanders, had been killed and weapons seized. However, neither the Somali nor Turkish government has officially confirmed that Turkish F-16s conducted the reported strikes, leaving questions over the precise nature and extent of Ankara’s direct involvement in the operation.