Mogadishu – Somalia’s government said that its national army killed at least 49 al-Shabab fighters during a military operation in the country’s southern Lower Shabelle region.
According to the Ministry of Information, elite Somali forces, working alongside the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) and “international security partners,” targeted militant positions in the village of Bulo-Madino on Tuesday evening.
The operation destroyed several vehicles and a weapons cache used by the al-Qaeda–linked group.
Residents in Afgoye district, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) northwest of the capital Mogadishu, reported hearing powerful explosions late Tuesday that shook the ground, though they were unclear about the exact targets or casualties.
“Last night, the whole earth shook. We heard two huge air strikes,” said Ali Farah, a local bus driver.
The United States military, which has carried out multiple airstrikes against al-Shabab this year, said it was not involved in Tuesday’s operation.
Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre said in a separate statement that government forces have killed more than 600 al-Shabab fighters, wounded 1,200 others, and retaken 68 settlements over the past three months as part of what he described as a “comprehensive military, economic, and ideological war” aimed at dismantling the insurgency.
Lower Shabelle remains one of al-Shabab’s long-time strongholds, where Somali forces backed by international allies have intensified operations to reclaim rural areas and cut off the militants’ supply routes.
