​Somalia: Gunmen abduct 9 people near coastal town in Puntland

BOSASO, Somalia- Unidentified Gunmen kidnapped 9 civilians near Qandala coastal town located east of Bossaso city in Bari region on Friday, Garowe Online reports.

The people were kidnapped during the night when the gunmen stopped a lorry truck ferrying passengers at Maregale, located about 28 kilometers away from the port town of Qandala.

Sources said Puntland soldiers are among those abducted by the suspected ISIL gunmen, with some reports say that they have managed to escape from the kidnappers later in the night.

The truck was carrying 16 passengers, including off-duty Puntland soldiers coming from Qandala town, during en-route to Bosaso city before it was ambushed by the armed assailants.

There has been no claim of responsibility, but the area is considered a hotbed for pro-Islamic state militants who were driven out from Qandala by Puntland state forces last year following offensive.

Qandala town official Shirin Mohamed Quurshe told media on Saturday, that they deployed additional forces to the area where the incident occurred last night to set free the remaining 4 hostages.

So far Puntland government has not released any statement in regard to the recent developments in Bari region.

Puntland, located northeastern of Somalia has been relatively stable compared to the rest of Somalia but attacks by the terrorist groups are posing serious risks to the stability of the region.

GAROWEONLINE