KENYAN fighter jets have attacked two bases belonging to Islamist al Shabaab insurgents in Somalia, killing at least 80 militants and destroying vehicles and equipment, peacekeepers there said.

The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) said: "The air strikes in Anole left more than 30 al Shabaab fighters dead." More than 50 rebels were killed in a raid on Kuday, it added.

Kenya first sent its troops into Somalia in 2011 after several attacks inside its territory, and later joined the peacekeeping force.

AMISOM said al Shabaab had lost control of more than 10 major towns in the new push by African troops, including soldiers from Uganda, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Burundi and Sierra Leone.

Officials and diplomats have said towns cleared of Al Shabaab are in a dire state, with food stocks emptied and largely abandoned by their inhabitants.

Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for last week's attack on the Kenyan coastal town of Mpeketoni that killed about 65 people.