The Pentagon announced Friday that it has confirmed a senior al-Shabaab leader was killed in a U.S. airstrike in July in Somalia.

"We can now confirm that that strike killed one of their senior leaders, Ali Muhammed Hussein, also known as Ali Jabal," said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman."Ali Jabal was a senior al-Shabaab terrorist and one of the top leaders of the organization, responsible for leading al-Shabaab forces in the Mogadishu and Banaadir regions, in planning and executing attacks against the capital Mogadishu," Davis said. "His removal disrupts a-Shabaab's ability to plan and conduct attacks in Mogadishu and to plan and coordinate attacks with al-Shabaab regional commanders."The strike, which sources say was carried out by a U.S. drone, was conducted in Tortoroow, in southern Somalia about 8 pm Eastern time Saturday night, which was Sunday morning in Somalia.The drone strike was conducted under new authorities granted by President Trump in March, which allow U.S. military forces to go after al-Shabaab within a defined area in Somalia in support of partner forces.