Somalia's army increases pressure on Al-Shabaab ahead of election

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The Somali National Army [SNA] continued with an onslaught against the Al-Shabaab militants on Saturday, this time targeting the Hiraan region in Central Somalia, where the militants have been controlling with impunity.

On Saturday morning, state media said, at least six Al-Shabaab militants were killed and several injured during an operation near Bula Burte town in Hiraan, with those injured now firmly in the custody of the military, which will interrogate them once they recuperate.

Hussein Hassan Jodah, SNA Commander in the area told Somali National News Agency that the forces destroyed bases for the terrorist militant group of al-Shabaab in the area during the operation which lasted several hours.

“SNA forces killed 6 al-Shabaab terrorist militants and injured several others and destroyed its bases near Bula burte town early on Saturday morning, we are still pursuing the operation against them," Jodah said, adding that the operation was still active.

He did not comment on whether there were casualties on SNA forces so far. However, fatalities or injuries on the military side are usually a closely guarded secret, and only top commanders are allowed to issue such statements.

But al-Shabaab militants said they attacked SNA and Djiboutian forces’ bases in Bula burte and Jalalaksi towns in the same region with mortar shells mid-last night. The operation by the Somali forces comes hours after the attack from al-Shabaab militants.

During the holy month of Ramadan, the attacks by Al-Shabaab had significantly reduced in Somalia, but in recent weeks, the group seems to have activated its raids across the country. It mostly targets security forces and senior government officials.

The Al-Shabaab raids continue even as the African Union Mission Forces plan an imminent exit from Somalia upon full implementation of the Somali Transition Plan [STP]. It's expected that by December, the SNA forces will take over security responsibilities in Somalia.

Although Al-Shabaab still controls large swathes of rural central and southern Somalia, the group has been significantly degraded by the allied military teams. Several towns and villages have been liberated from the Al-Shabaab militants.

GAROWE ONLINE