US drone strike kills 16 in Somalia

A US drone strike has killed at least 16 civilians and injured 50 others in southern Somalia near the border with Kenya, Press TV reports.

The drone attack took place near the city of Afmadow, located in the middle of Somalia’s Juba region.

Drone strikes in Somalia make the lawless state the sixth country where the US military has used remote-controlled aircraft to conduct such deadly strikes.

The US has now employed drones in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Libya, Iraq and Yemen to launch aerial bombings.

Washington claims the airstrikes target militants, even though most of such attacks have resulted in civilian casualties.

Somalia has been without a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.