Region
Jamaame (Jamame, Giamama)
Jamaame is a farming town on the lower Jubba River in Lower Juba, 53 km from Kismaayo, almost on the equator. The UNDP put the population at about 129,000 in 2005. Al-Shabaab has held it since 2014, and a US airstrike there on 15 November 2025 killed at least 12 civilians, according to The Guardian.
Where it is
Jamaame is the centre of Jamaame district in the Lower Juba region of Jubaland (Wikipedia: Jamame). It lies between the Indian Ocean to the east and the farmland along the Jubba River to the west, 53 km from the port of Kismaayo (Wikipedia: Jamame). The equator passes over the town, at about 0.07°N, 42.75°E and 10 m above sea level (Wikidata). Jamaame airstrip is about 1 km south of the town (Wikipedia: Jamame).
Under Italian rule the town was called Giamama, and earlier Villaggio Regina Margherita (Wikipedia: Jamame).
People and farming
The UNDP estimated the population at about 129,149 in 2005 (UNDP 2005). Many farms surround the town (Wikipedia: Jamame). The lower Jubba valley is described as the most fertile part of Somalia, growing maize, sesame, beans and fruit, and in the past bananas for export (Wikipedia: Jubba River; Wikipedia: Shebelle River). A 2015 letter from the town described daily life there under al-Shabaab (Horseed Media, 2015).
Who controls it
Al-Shabaab has controlled Jamaame since 2014 (Wikipedia: Jamame). Kismaayo, the capital of Jubaland, is held by Jubaland and federal forces (Lower Juba region page).
Fighting and airstrikes
- June 2018: US special forces and al-Shabaab fighters clashed near Jamaame, and one American soldier was killed (New York Times, June 2018).
- US strikes: the US Africa Command has announced airstrikes on al-Shabaab targets in the Jamaame area (AFRICOM press release).
- 15 November 2025: The Guardian reported that a US airstrike in Jamaame killed at least 12 civilians, eight of them children. A resident said a school and at least 18 homes were destroyed. The paper reported it as the largest number of civilians killed by a single US action in Somalia in 18 years, and that no investigation appeared to have taken place (The Guardian, June 2026).
Sources
Sources
- Wikipedia: Jamame · en.wikipedia.org
- Wikidata · wikidata.org
- UNDP 2005 · web.archive.org
- Wikipedia: Jubba River · en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia: Shebelle River · en.wikipedia.org
- Horseed Media, 2015 · horseedmedia.net
- New York Times, June 2018 · nytimes.com
- AFRICOM press release · africom.mil
- The Guardian, June 2026 · theguardian.com
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