Al-Shabaab takes control of Goofgaduud town, south western Somalia

Al-Shabaab has taken control of the strategic town of Goofgaduud, 30 kilometers outside Baidoa town, residents said on Sunday.

The government troops who have been controlling the town left Saturday evening after engaging fierce fighting the militants.

“The government troops withdrew from the town and now heavily armed Al-Shabaab fighters are manning the town’s major check-points,” said one of the residents who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Residents said the militant Islamist group raised its flags inside the town and started to preach to residents using loudspeakers.

The capture of Goofgaduud town adds to a dozen other villages the militant group has wrested control following withdrawal of Somali troops.

Al-Shabaab was ousted from the capital, Mogadishu, in August 2011, but still has a presence in large areas of southern Somalia and often stages attacks across the country.