MOGADISHU, Jan. 17 -- Somali and U.S. security forces killed two al-Shabab militants on Thursday in an airstrike about 25 km north of Qunyo Barrow in southern Somalia, said a Somali government official.

The airstrike was conducted by the Somali government in coordination with the federal member states and the U.S. military, Somali government spokesman Ismael Mukhtar Omar said in a statement Thursday evening.

No civilians were killed or injured in the attack, Omar said.

"This strike and other recent battlefield successes show the FGS (Federal Government of Somalia) and its partners' resolve in bringing to justice those who terrorize and exploit the citizens of Somalia and its East African brothers and sisters," he said.

This is the second airstrike in 2020 in Somalia after the U.S. military conducted a record 63 strikes in the Horn of Africa nation last year.

The U.S. strikes have largely targeted al-Shabab figureheads based in southern and central Somalia where the group still maintains a strong grip in some regions.

The group has recently increased its attacks in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, targeting hotels and other public places.