NAIROBI (Reuters) - The U.S. military killed six al Shabaab militants in Somalia when it launched two airstrikes against targets near Haradere town in Galmudug state to the northeast of the capital, it said on Thursday.

A weapons cache was destroyed in a second airstrike on Wednesday, the U.S. military said. Another 37 militants had been killed in two other airstrikes this week.

The United States has ramped up operations in Somalia since last year after President Donald Trump loosened the rules of engagement. It has conducted more than two dozen such airstrikes in 2018.