“Since Jan. 5, U.S. Africa Command and our partners have pursued those responsible for the attack on U.S. and Kenyan forces at Manda Bay,” AFRICOM commander Army Gen. Stephen Townsend said in a statement Tuesday. “This strike demonstrates that we will continue to relentlessly pursue those responsible for Manda Bay and those wishing to do harm to Americans and our African partners.”
The command said a senior leader of the violent extremist organization and his wife, also a member of al-Shabab, were both killed in precision airstrikes on Feb. 22. The command did not provide names of those killed.
Al-Shabab militants attacked Manda Bay Airfield on Jan. 5, resulting in the deaths of Army Spc. Henry Mayfield Jr., 23, and two U.S. Department of Defense contractors, Dustin Harrison, 47, and Bruce Triplett, 64.
In response, the command initiated a senior-leader-led investigation evaluating the circumstances leading up to the attack.
Although the report has not been released, multiple sources from the Marine Raider community told Marine Corps Times that approximately a dozen Marines from the 3rd Raider Battalion who were based in Camp Simba spearheaded the counterattack against the militants.
But due to the fact that Camp Simba is roughly a mile from the airfield at Manda Bay, the New York Times reported on Jan. 22 that the Marines’ response time was delayed.
AFRICOM challenged the Times’ description of the attack, noting that the Marine Raiders’ response was “timely and effective.”