Horn of Africa

Raffaello Pantucci, a senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said that while Somalia has been an “attractive battlefield” for British and foreign jihadists in the past decade, its magnetism has extended beyond the Somali diaspora. He added: “Somalia remains a place of potential interest, though these days other places appear more attractive. The history of British jihadis in Somalia and the leadership there of both Shabaab and Isis mean links exist which can always be picked up.”

“This could easily be the result of a white phosphorus munition. It is possible that high explosive munitions caused some fires. But this seems more like an incendiary weapon like white phosphorus,” said Dan Kaszeta, a chemical and biological specialist at The Royal United Services Institute, a defence think tank.