U.S. soldier killed in Somalia

A U.S. service member was killed Thursday in Somalia during an operation against the terrorist group al-Shabaab, according to a statement by U.S. Africa Command released today. The death is the first U.S. combat casualty in Somalia in nearly 25 years. The service member, part of an advise-and-assist mission with Somalia’s military, was killed near Barii, about 40 miles west of the capital, Mogadishu. A Somali intelligence official said U.S. forces raided an al-Shabaab hideout Thursday night, attempting to capture or kill extremist fighters. In April, both Somalia and the United States declared new efforts to fight the al-Qaeda-linked extremist group. The U.S. military announced it was sending dozens of troops to Somalia, the largest deployment since the United States pulled out of the country following a 1993 operation which led to the deaths of 18 American soldiers.