US forces have "likely killed" a top al-Qaeda suspect during a US military raid in Somalia, a US official has told the BBC.

一位美国官员接受BBC采访时说道，美军在索马里一次突击搜查中，“很有可能”杀死一位顶级基地组织嫌疑犯。

Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan

The suspect, Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, is wanted over 2002 attacks on a hotel and an Israeli airliner¹ in the Kenyan port of Mombassa.

He has been on the FBI's list of top suspects for years.

The claim followed earlier reports that foreign troops had attacked Islamist militants² in southern Somalia.

A second US official said US special forces carried out the attack early on Monday Washington time.

The official said the operation had been "successful" and he believed Nabhan was dead.

The earlier reports said the troops wore uniforms with French insignia（徽章，袖章）, and had attacked a vehicle carrying Islamists from the al-Shabab group.

A French military spokesman denied his country's forces were involved.

The reason for the confusion（混乱，混淆） over the identity of the troops was not immediately clear.

'Helicopter strike'

Witnesses said the soldiers took away two men, and two bodies were left in the road after the attack in the southern coastal³ town of Barawe.They said the attack had been carried out by helicopter.

Reuters（路透社） news agency cited a US official as saying special forces had flown by helicopter from a US navy ship and fired on a vehicle that they believed was carrying Nabhan.

He added that the body believed to be Nabhan's had been taken into custody⁴（拘押）.

Spanish news agency Efe and Reuters also reported witnesses and al-Shabab sources as saying the Kenyan-born Nabhan had been killed.

Al-Shabab are said to have links to al-Qaeda, and to have been reinforced with foreign fighters.

Kenyan-born Nabhan is suspected of bombing of an Israeli-owned hotel in Kenya and a failed attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner in 2002.

Some reports say he is also linked to two attacks on US embassies in the region in 1998.

The US, which like France has troops stationed in neighbouring Djibouti, has carried out air strikes against Somali Islamist groups it accused of links to al-Qaeda in recent years.

Monday's assault comes several weeks after a French security adviser⁵ held by militants in Mogadishu managed to get free. A colleague seized at the same time remains⁶ in captivity（囚禁，被关）.

Somalia has not had a functioning central government since 1991.

Rival Islamist factions⁷ are battling forces loyal to the weak UN-backed government, which controls only small parts of the capital Mogadishu.