MOGADISHU, Somalia — By US accounts, it was a devastating airstrike against Islamic militants in Somalia, with more than 150 fighters killed in a training camp. But the weekend attack probably won’t diminish Al Shabab’s ability to continue a wave of bloodshed.

African Union ground forces succeeded in ousting Al Shabab fighters from Somalia’s capital in 2011 and protecting the weak government. Since then, however, they have been unable to stop other violence: assaults on AU forces, including one that killed up to 200 Kenyan soldiers in January, frequent suicide attacks on civilians in Mogadishu, and an unsuccessful bid to bring down an airliner with a bomb.

The forested military training camp, 125 miles north of Mogadishu, was Al Shabab’s main planning base, a Somali intelligence official said Tuesday.

Somalia’s intelligence service cooperated with the United States in its airstrike, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media on this matter.

US forces had been watching Raso Camp for several weeks, said Navy Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman. It appeared that their training was ending and the operational phase of a suspected attack against African or US personnel was about to start, he said.

Previous strikes have killed Al Shabab leaders. Yet the group came back with ferocity.

Associated Press