Shabaab tight-lipped on leader's fate after US air strike

Nairobi - Somalia's al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab rebels were Tuesday tight-lipped over the fate of their leader, the day after a US air strike against senior members of the Islamist militia.

"Let the Americans say that they have killed Shabaab’s leader. So far the Americans just gave us rumours," a senior Shabaab official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The official refused to make any further statement on the fate of the group's leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane.

Officials said on Tuesday that US forces carried out air strikes against a gathering of senior Shabaab officials, and that Godane was thought to be among them.

The Pentagon confirmed an "operation" was carried out on Monday against the hard-line militia, and that it was "assessing the results".