Somali Commandos Kill 17 Al-Shabaab Fighters in Lower Shabelle Operation
GOOBJOOG NEWS| LOWER SHABELLE: Somalia’s elite Danab Special Forces killed 17 Al-Shabaab fighters during a planned military operation in the Lower Shabelle region on Sunday, the Ministry of Defence said, as government forces continue an intensified campaign against the militant group across southern and central Somalia.
In a statement issued on Monday, the ministry said the operation was carried out in Sablaale district, targeting locations where Al-Shabaab militants were gathered.
According to the ministry, all 17 militants killed were senior members of the group who played key roles in coordinating its operations.
The statement added that Danab forces also destroyed two sites allegedly used by Al-Shabaab to disseminate extremist ideology, recruit new members and plan terrorist attacks.
“The Ministry of Defence and the Somali National Army reaffirm their commitment to continuing operations targeting the leaders, militants and networks of Al-Shabaab until the threat they pose to the Somali people is eliminated,” the statement said.
The government did not report any casualties among Somali forces, and the figures provided have not been independently verified.
The latest operation comes amid an increase in military pressure on Al-Shabaab. Earlier this week, the Somali government said the Somali National Army, working alongside international partners, carried out airstrikes in the Middle Shabelle region that killed 26 Al-Shabaab fighters and destroyed combat vehicles and boats used by the group.
The military campaign has also extended to areas around the Kenya-Somalia border. Kenyan authorities said over the weekend that their special forces, supported by air assets, killed 11 suspected Al-Shabaab militants in Mandera County after targeting what they described as a temporary militant camp believed to be preparing attacks on border communities.
Somali authorities say the renewed operations are aimed at degrading Al-Shabaab’s command structure, disrupting its logistics and preventing planned attacks as government forces seek to reclaim remaining militant strongholds in Lower Shabelle, Middle Shabelle, Hiiraan and other parts of southern Somalia.
Al-Shabaab, an al Qaeda-linked insurgent group, has been waging an armed campaign against Somalia’s federal government for more than a decade and continues to carry out bombings, assassinations and raids despite sustained military operations by Somali forces and their international partners.