U.S. military strike eliminates senior ISIS leader in Somalia

A U.S. military strike in Somalia took out a senior leader of the Islamic State terror group, along with 10 more of the organization's militants, the Biden administration announced.

U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced the strike on Thursday, asserting there were no civilian casualties.

"Given the remote location of the operation, the assessment is that no civilians were injured or killed. Protecting civilians remains a vital part of the command's operations to promote greater security for all Africans," Africom stated.

The strike occurred Wednesday evening on the orders of President Joe Biden, following recommendations from both Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, NBC News reported.

"On January 25, on orders from the President, the U.S. military conducted an assault operation in northern Somalia that resulted in the death of a number of ISIS members, including Bilal-al-Sudani, an ISIS leader in Somalia and a key facilitator for ISIS's global network," Austin said, per CNN. "Al-Sudani was responsible for fostering the growing presence of ISIS in Africa and for funding the group's operations worldwide, including in Afghanistan."

"No civilians were harmed as a result of this operation. We are grateful to our extraordinary service members as well as our intelligence community and other interagency partners for their support to this successful counterterrorism operation," he continued.