(CNN) The US military said Saturday that an airstrike near the Jilib, Middle Juba Region of Somalia killed more than 50 al-Shabaab militants.

Al-Shabaab is an al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group.

US Africa Command, which oversees US military operations on the continent, said the airstrike was conducted "in response to an attack by a large group of al-Shabaab militants against Somali National Army Forces" on January 19. The US military said they "currently assess this airstrike killed fifty-two (52) militants" and that they assess that no civilians were killed or injured in the strike.

Al-Shabaab recently claimed responsibility for a terror attack in Nairobi, Kenya, on January 15. Men armed with guns and explosives stormed a hotel complex in the Kenyan capital killing at least 21 people.

The Department of Defense estimates there are 3,000 to 7,000 al-Shabaab fighters and 70 to 250 ISIS fighters in Somalia, as of August 2018.

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