US service member, DoD contractors killed in attack on Kenyan military base

A U.S. service member and two Defense Department contractors were killed during an attack on a Kenyan military base on Sunday, U.S. Africa Command announced in a statement.

The attack on the Manda Bay Airfield in Kenya was conduced by members of the Somalia-based al Shabaab terror group.

“Seven aircraft and three military vehicles were destroyed in the attack,” al Shabaab said in a statement in which it claimed responsibility for the assault.

Two other DoD personnel were wounded in the attack, AFRICOM said. The wounded Americans are currently in stable condition and being evacuated from the country.

Fewer than 150 U.S. service members were present at the base at the time of the attack, an AFRICOM spokesman told Reuters.

The names of the fallen and the wounded are currently being withheld as part of the Pentagon's regular next of kin notification process.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of our teammates who lost their lives today,” Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander of U.S. Africa Command, said in a statement. “As we honor their sacrifice, let's also harden our resolve.”

“Alongside our African and international partners, we will pursue those responsible for this attack and al-Shabaab who seeks to harm Americans and U.S. interests,” he added. “We remain committed to preventing al-Shabaab from maintaining a safe haven to plan deadly attacks against the U.S. homeland, East African and international partners.”