GLOBAL ECONOMY

US military member killed in Somalia on anti-extremist work

Associated Press
Published | Updated

FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2009 file photo, al-Shabab fighters sit on a truck as they patrol in Mogadishu, Somalia. The U.S. military said Friday, May 5, 2017 that a service member has been killed in Somalia during an operation against the extremist group al-Shabab as the United States steps up its fight against the al-Qaida-linked organization. (AP Photo/Mohamed Sheikh Nor, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011 file photo, hundreds of newly trained al-Shabab fighters perform military exercises in the Lafofe area some 18 km south of Mogadishu, in Somalia. The U.S. military said Friday, May 5, 2017 that a service member has been killed in Somalia during an operation against the extremist group al-Shabab as the United States steps up its fight against the al-Qaida-linked organization. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Oct. 30, 2009 file photo, al-Shabab fighters sit on a truck as they patrol in Mogadishu, Somalia. The U.S. military said Friday, May 5, 2017 that a service member has been killed in Somalia during an operation against the extremist group al-Shabab as the United States steps up its fight against the al-Qaida-linked organization. (AP Photo/Mohamed Sheikh Nor, File) (The Associated Press)

The U.S. military says a service member has been killed in Somalia during an operation against the extremist group al-Shabab.

A statement Friday from the U.S. Africa Command says the service member was killed Thursday during the operation near Barii, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of the capital, Mogadishu.

The statement says U.S. forces were conducting an advise-and-assist mission with Somalia's military.

Both the United States and Somalia in recent weeks have stepped up efforts against the al-Qaida-linked extremist group. President Donald Trump has approved expanded military operations against al-Shabab there.