At least one Green Beret killed, several other US service members wounded in gunfight in Somalia

Special Operations Command

• At least one US special operations service member was killed and four US service members were wounded after an enemy attack in Somalia.
• Enemy forces used mortars and small-arms fire to attack the US-Somali-Kenyan coalition force.
• The coalition force was conducting a "multi-day operation" to clear al-Shabaab, an Islamist militant group, from nearby villages.

At least one US special operations service member was killed and four US service members were wounded after an enemy attack in Jubaland, Somalia, according to a statement from US Africa Command (AFRICOM).

One US service member reportedly received sufficient medical care at the scene and three others were transported out of the area to receive treatment.

A coalition comprised of around 800 US, Somalian, and Kenyan forces came under attack by mortar and small-arms fire at around 2:45 p.m. local time, AFRICOM said. One coalition service member was wounded.

The coalition forces were conducting a "multi-day operation" to clear al-Shabaab - an Islamist militant group - from villages and establish a "permanent combat outpost" around 217 miles southwest of Mogadishu.

The role of US troops during the operation was to provide aerial surveillance and to provide other assistance to the coalition group. The US's role in AFRICOM's area of responsibility has come under heavy scrutiny following an October ambush in Niger that left four soldiers dead.

On Monday, the US military said it killed 49 members of al-Shabaab in three separate airstrike over a period of 12 days. The US said no civilians were killed during the strikes.