Somalia - Inquiries on Air Strike Reports

S E C R E T NAIROBI 000621 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S FRAZER E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/02/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL SO SUBJECT: Somalia - Inquiries on Air Strike Reports Classified by Special Envoy John Yates for Reasons 1.4 (b, d) -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (S) Post has received several inquiries from media outlets and other diplomatic missions regarding reports of air strikes in Dhoble, Somalia on night of March 2 or early morning March 3. Most press reports cite local residents allegations that "missiles" were launched by a U.S. plane. Press reports claim several killed and wounded as well as the destruction of at least one building. End Summary. -------------- Summary of Inquiries -------------- ¶2. (C) Post has received the following inquiries from media and press outlets: - BBC World, Nairobi Bureau. - German International Press, Nairobi Bureau. - Associated Press, Nairobi Bureau. - International Committee of the Red Cross. - Voice of America, Nairobi Bureau. - German News Agency, Nairobi. - Los Angeles Times, Nairobi. ¶3. (C) Post also received the following calls: - Mohamed Amin Osman, a businessman in Dhoble, reported early on March 3 that a missile hit a residential area last night. He said only a few people were injured because the house that was hit was empty because people were sleeping outside given the heat. Osman, who called PolOff a week ago seeking help for his efforts to organize locally based militia to counter the fast-spreading extremists in Lower Juba, said that aircraft and missiles cannot help because they cannot tell who are civilians and who are "the other guys." - Pascal Hundt, Head of Somalia Delegation for International Committee of the Red Cross, called this morning to say he was contacted early in the morning from someone in Dhoble who said there was a missile attack at around 3 am. -------------- Post Action -------------- ¶3. (C) Post has drafted press guidance and sent it to Washington via classified email. We await guidance on what response we can offer to the press outlets and diplomatic counterparts who have inquired on this issue. We expect there will be many more in coming hours and that jihadist web sites will begin to invent non-factual and lurid details. RANNEBERGER