Al-Shabaab explosives intercepted in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Hawk-eyed security officers from Gedo region intercepted a vehicle carrying bomb-making materials within Dolow District in Gedo region, averting a would-be devastating attack in Jubaland state ahead of the operations against Al-Shabaab militants in the area.

The security teams seized explosives in a car following an operation conducted in the region, local officials said. Dolow is a strategic region given the proximity to neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia which are directly involved in peacekeeping missions within the Horn of Africa nation.

Mohamed Hussein Abdi, the Dolow District Commissioner, said security forces received a tip-off from vigilant locals, significantly helping them to thwart the attack. Jubaland has lately been safe given security surveillance across strategic villages.

In his address, the commissioner lauded security forces for their commitment to the fight against Al-Shabaab noting that the incident gives confidence to security forces ahead of the second phase of operations against the militants. The second phase is set to commence in due course, he added.

The incident, authorities confirmed, occurred just a day after security forces discovered a landmine the group had planted on the main road in the Dhobley district of the Gedo region. The region is under the command of the Kenya Defence Forces [KDF] serving in Sector II of ATMIS.

Campaigns against the Al-Shabaab militants within Jubaland will coincide with those in Southwest but the national army has delayed them due to logistical challenges. Right now, hundreds of the Somali National Army [SNA] soldiers are in central Somalia, helping in combing the region.

The operations were first initiated in central Somalia where close to 3,000 Al-Shabaab militants died moments after President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud took over. The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] and the US Africa Command are also set to join the onslaught.

GAROWE ONLINE