Somalia dispatches first airplane with heavy weaponry to Puntland

One of the two airplanes with heavy weaponry to the semi autonomous state of Puntland to reinforce the local forces in the ongoing clash with Al-Shabaab militants who are alleged to be affiliated to ISIL, has taken off taken from Adan Adde international Airport in Mogadishu an hour ago.

During the loading of the weapons, Somali National Army (SNA) commander, Ali Baashi Mohamed said Somali government dispatches weaponry to Puntland as reinforcement.

He pointed out that Al-Shabaab could reached for two reasons, they sending foreign fighters who fought along with them, back their countries by sea or the group wants to divert its operation middle Asia countries.

The deployment of military support to Puntland follows four days of clashes between Puntland forces and Al-Shabaab militants who briefly seized the coastal town of Gara’ad Tuesday before they were flushed by Puntland troops.

Puntland indicated Wednesday that it had killed more than 20 Al-Shabaab fighters, who were reported to be associated with Islamic State of the Levant and Iraq, ISIl who are based in Iraq and Syria. Boatloads of armed militants disembarked into several remote coastal villages in Puntland on Monday evening.

The militants are said to have tried to head to Galgala mountains in Bari region where the ISIL de facto leader in Somalia Abdulkadir Mumin  announced last year the group’s allegiance to ISIL.