Al-Shabaab launches coordinated attacks in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Al-Shabaab militants carried out coordinated attacks in the country, on Saturday, officials said, noting that the group was targeting government officers and innocent civilians as it tried to seize more territories.

The militants were targeting government installations and the Somali National Army in Awdheegle, in the Lower Shabelle region, officials said, adding that heavy clashes ensued thereafter, leading to massive casualties.

The attack resulted in a heavy clash, with explosions accompanying the fighting, residents said, while acknowledging the intensity of the clashes which comes at the time the Somali National Army is pursuing the militants in the country.

Both sides involved in the confrontation are reported to have suffered casualties, including deaths and injuries, reflecting the instability in the volatile region, officials said. This was the second attack launched by the group this morning on two areas near the capital city.

Earlier, the al-Shabaab militants launched a pre-dawn attack Saturday on the Hawo Abdi area, located about 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of Mogadishu, engaging in a heavy battle with government forces, according to residents.

With the help of the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia along with the US Africa Command, the Somali National Army has managed to liberate several strategic towns across the country from the group.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud recently extended the amnesty for the members of the group who are willing to withdraw. The president said his administration was ready to recent those ready to defect from the notorious group.

Al-Shabaab group is fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia which has struggled to install stability for the last three decades. The al-Shabaab however, has lost large swathes of rural central and southern regions.

GAROWE ONLINE