A Dec. 2 US airstrike killed a senior leader of al Shabaab in Somalia, the Pentagon announced on Monday. The airstrike targeted Abdirahman Sandhere, also known as Ukash, along with two other al Shabaab operatives, said Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, who called the airstrike a “significant blow” to the al Qaeda-aligned group. The Pentagon on Monday also confirmed that two US Air Force F-15s from RAF Lakenheath, England, conducted an airstrike in Libya on Nov. 13 that killed Abu Nabil, the senior leader of ISIS in Libya. Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said the strike is not the first in Li?bya, but is “the first US strike against an ISIL leader in Libya.” During his Dec. 6 address to the nation on national security, President Obama said the US military “will continue to hunt down terrorist plotters in any country where it is necessary.” (See also: ISIS in Libya and Obama: We are at War with ISIL.)
USAF to Cut F-35 Buy in Future Years Defense Plan
May 14, 2021
The Air Force wants to scale back buys of the F-35 over the next five years, hoping to get sustainment costs down and to wait for the more capable Block 4 version, according to talking points prepared for Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. The reduced buy will…