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Battle of Guriel

Battle of Guriel was a battle between Al-Shabaab militants, and between retreating Ethiopian Army soldiers and Ghanaian and Burundian UN peacekeepers. 14 UN peacekeepers were killed, and 4 Ethiopian soldiers killed. It resulted in the Islamists taking Guriel. It is a small city 500km from Mogadishu.

The US then mounted Operation Gabriel, with the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment and the 7th Infantry Division providing some 1,550 troops. They where supported by Marine F-35 aircraft, and AH-1W Cobra gunships. US suffered some 10 killed and 43 wounded, while insurgent losses where estimated at 100 killed.

The insurgents used dug-in positions with NSV machine guns, as well as booby traps and improvised explosive devices, along plus several T-55 tanks captured from the Ethiopian Army.

In addition to Somali fighters, several Chechen and Indonesian fighters were also found based on passports recovered from the dead fighters.

The warship USS McFaul provided offshore artillery support in support of the Marines.