The first U.S. military casualty in Somalia for over 20 years was a Navy SEAL who died during an operation against Al-Shabab, the Pentagon has said.
Senior Chief Special Warfare Operator Kyle Milliken, 38, of Falmouth, Maine, was killed on Friday during an operation against the Islamist militants “in a remote area approximately 40 miles west” of the Somali capital Mogadishu, according to a Department of Defense statement circulated on Saturday.
The death, reported on Friday, is the first confirmed U.S. military death in Somalia since the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu. Somali militiamen shot down two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters during the battle and killed 18 U.S. soldiers, dragging some of their bodies through the streets of Mogadishu after the battle. The deaths prompted then-U.S. President Bill Clinton to withdraw from Somalia in 1994.
President Donald Trump has ramped up operations against Al-Shabab, an affiliate of the global militant group Al-Qaeda, since coming into office. The president signed off on a Pentagon request to loosen restrictions on U.S. drone strikes in Somalia, meaning that the military requires less high-level vetting to obtain authorization for attacks on Al-Shabab.