Somalia: Intelligence raid hits Al-Shabaab gathering, 33 killed

MOGADISHU, April 22, 2026 – Somalia’s national intelligence agency said Wednesday that a string of coordinated operations supported by international partners killed at least 33 Al-Shabaab fighters in the country’s central Middle Shabelle region.

The National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) said the "planned operations" targeted the village of Guulane, where militants had reportedly gathered to coordinate a fresh wave of attacks.

According to a NISA statement, an initial precision strike hit a residence housing senior commanders and foot soldiers. The agency said 15 militants were killed in the blast, which Intelligence officials claimed they had received credible information that nearly 90 fighters had assembled in Guulane prior to the intervention.destroyed a site used for "mobilising fighters and planning acts of terror."

"Follow-up operations then targeted additional militants attempting to take cover in the surrounding area, resulting in the deaths of more than 18 further fighters," the statement added.

Security forces also reported destroying a pickup truck mounted with a machine gun commonly used by the Al-Qaeda-linked insurgents, which was being used to transport personnel and supplies.

Intelligence officials claimed they had received credible information that nearly 90 fighters had assembled in Guulane before the intervention.

The Somali government, which has been engaged in a "total war" against the Islamist group since 2022, frequently conducts such operations alongside foreign allies—typically involving US drone strikes or Turkish air support—to blunt Al-Shabaab’s ability to strike the capital, Mogadishu.

NISA accompanied its report with a fresh appeal to the public, urging citizens to use designated hotlines to report movements of both Al-Shabaab and the smaller Islamic State (ISIS) presence in the country.

Al-Shabaab has been fighting for more than 17 years to topple the fragile central government, and while they have been pushed out of many major cities, they maintain a lethal presence in rural pockets of central and southern Somalia.

GAROWE ONLINE