Somalia intensifies operations against Al-Shabaab

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The war against al-Shabaab militants has intensified in Somalia, with the national army taking operations further southwards, targeting breeding cells of the militants, who have continued to wreak havoc in the Horn of Africa nation.

On Saturday, state media reports, the Somali National Army activated operations within the Bay region, which has been a major stronghold for the militants. The operation targeted Goof-gaduud Burey village, officials told the state media.

Ahmed Mohamednur alias Ahmed Dhagey, the commander of the 47th Brigade of infantry troops, said the operation also extended to rural villages including Misgale, Warta, Kormar, Durow, and more areas under the Bay region.

The areas that the SNA conducted operations and cleared were used by the terrorist militants to recruit militias and collect extortion from the local people, state media reports. Al-Shabaab survives on extortion, which the government is keen to eliminate.

The Somali National Army and the Local forces are conducting operations in all areas where the Al-Shabaab terrorists are hiding, and any other location they used to extort the people. During the operation, the national army managed to flush out militants who had been hiding in the villages.

Security teams are preparing for the second phase of operations against Al-Shabaab which will mainly focus on the elimination of the militants in Jubaland and Southwest states. The US Army and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) soldiers are pushing for the liberation of the country.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud believes that by the end of this year, most parts of the country will have been liberated from the Al-Shabab militants. Already, some ATMIS soldiers have started leaving the country in compliance with the Somali Transition Plan.

GAROWE ONLINE