20111029
Press TV
Kenya's fighter jets have pounded the positions of al-Shabab fighters in southern Somalia several times, killing at least 41 people, Press TV reported.

Kenyan fighter jets pounded the outskirts of Kismayo, a strategically important port city on Somalia's Indian Ocean coast located some 500 kilometers (310 miles) south of Mogadishu, on Thursday.

At least 32 al-Shabab fighters and nine civilians were killed in the attack.

The Kenyan force appears to have made significant gains in its offensive and is advancing toward taking full control of Kismayo.

Meanwhile, Somalia's al-Shabab fighters have threatened revenge attacks against Kenya for deploying military troops into the largely lawless country.

Al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Mukhtar Ali Robow Abu Mansur said on Thursday that his forces will invade neighboring Kenya should Kenyan forces seize Kismayo.

Just over a week ago, Kenya dispatched soldiers over its border into Somalia to pursue al-Shabab fighters.

Nairobi accuses the fighters of being behind the kidnapping of several foreigners in its territory, including the abduction of a French woman who later died in captivity.

However, the militant group has denied involvement in the incidents.

There are mounting indications that the United States and France are aiding the Kenyan operation.

Somali President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed has said his transitional government is opposed to Kenya's military incursion into Somalia.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.