Leading Somali military officials have confirmed that two attacks launched by members of the al-Shabaab radical group (part of al-Qaeda terrorist organization, banned in Russia) near the capital of Mogadishu were repelled by the army, Somali news portal Garowe Online reported on Saturday.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th January, 2020) Leading Somali military officials have confirmed that two attacks launched by members of the al-Shabaab radical group (part of al-Qaeda terrorist organization, banned in Russia) near the capital of Mogadishu were repelled by the army, Somali news portal Garowe Online reported on Saturday.
In the early hours of Saturday morning, al-Shabaab militants attacked a Somali National Army (SNA) camp in the town of Afgoye, approximately 19 miles southwest of Mogadishu, the portal stated.
"They attacked the town and our forces responded. The fighting lasted a while before our forces defeated them," senior SNA official Osman Aden told the news portal.
Saturday's attack marked the second consecutive night of clashes between Al-Shabaab and the SNA. According to the portal, the militants launched their first attack in the early hours of Friday morning in a village near the town of Haji Ali, in the middle Shabelle region. At least 16 al-Shabaab militants were killed in the fighting as the attack was repelled; the portal reported citing military sources.
Gen. Mohamed Ahmed Taredishe, commander of the Somali National Army (SNA)'s 27th battalion, stated that the area was now under full army control, although four soldiers had died in the fighting, the portal reported.
For decades, Somalia has witnessed a bloody conflict between the al-Shabaab terrorist group and the government forces. Al-Shabaab has sworn allegiance to al-Qaeda and has launched attacks domestically and in other African countries.
