MOGADISHU, Somalia Sep 14 (Garowe Online) - At least four people were killed Monday in southern Somalia after unknown foreign army helicopters attacked a vehicle, killing passengers on board, Radio Garowe reports.

The attack took place in Barawe district, in Lower Shabelle region, where a vehicle reportedly driven by Al Shabaab insurgents from the southern port of Kismayo was hit by missiles.

"The helicopters unexpectedly touched down on the ground and opened fire…I saw four dead bodies," said a witness who did not wish to be named in print.

Sources close to Al Shabaab insurgents in Mogadishu tell Garowe Online that the insurgent group's official in charge of the regions, identified as Sheikh Hussein Ali Fidow, was among the dead.

Unconfirmed reports said foreign fighters were also killed in the attack, although such reports could not be independently verified.

The French military has denied involvement in Monday's bold attack.

U.S. warplanes bombarded a house in central Somalia in 2008, killing the leader of Al Shabaab, Sheikh Aden Hashi Ayro, among 20 other people.

Al Shabaab, which is listed as a terrorist organization in the U.S. and Australia, controls much of southern Somalia, including the key towns of Kismayo, Marka and Baidoa.

Source: Garowe Online