Four Somali civilians from one family killed in UAE drone strike

MOGADISHU, Oct. 11 (YPA) – Four members of a Somali pastoralist family, including two children and a pregnant 17-year-old girl, were killed in a drone strike on their home in the Cal Miskaad Mountains in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region on January 26, 2025, according to an investigation published by Drop Site News.

According to the investigation, the family was eating dinner inside a traditional hut near Toga Jaragou when the strike killed Ladan Abdi Ismail, her 13-year-old son, Abdusamad Yusuf Mahmoud, seven-year-old Mohamed Abdiqani Mohamed, and 17-year-old Hawa Ahmed Salah, who was four months pregnant.

An eight-month-old infant survived, while five other family members were injured. Among the wounded was a pregnant woman who reportedly continues to suffer from her injuries and has shrapnel lodged in her neck.

The report cited four Puntland security officials who accused the UAE of carrying out the strike using drones launched from a military base at Bosaso Airport as part of operations targeting Islamic State fighters in the Cal Miskaad Mountains. The information provided did not indicate whether the UAE had issued an official response to the allegations.

The family had reportedly left their ancestral home in Dadar after government orders urged residents to relocate to an area considered safer. They were struck at their displacement site.

The attack burned down the family’s hut and destroyed its property, including six camels and around 400 goats, their primary source of livelihood.

Survivors were transported on camels to the town of Balyidhidin before being evacuated to Bosaso for medical treatment, amid difficulties conducting rescue and documentation efforts in the remote mountainous area.

Puntland officials described UAE drone operations as catastrophic and reckless, criticizing was inadequate target verification before strikes were carried out.

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