Over 100 Al-Shabaab militants neutralized in the last 48 hours— Somali govt

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: The Somali government has issued a press release detailing the outcome of offensive operations carried out by the army alongside pro-government militia in Middle Shabelle region in the last 48 hours.

The government has put the number of Al-Shabaab militants neutralized in the operations at 100, including their ringleaders.

The army, with the support of international troops, was also able to destroy several vehicles laden with explosives and seized a large cache of weapons in separate operations conducted in Masajid Ali-gudud and Bur-olow, Deputy Information Minister Abdirahman Al-Adala said.

The government said the first operation, which began on October 22, targeted a garage and a house where members of the group, together with their seniors, were holed up. 21 members of the group were killed in the operation, including a member identified as Abdullahi Ali Araale.

Subsequent operations also saw the killing of 11 members of the group in Masajid Ali-gudud, while several others, said by the government to be led by a senior Al-Shabaab operative identified as Abdulle Saneey, were also felled in Bur-olow.