Jan. 17 (EUROPA PRESS) –
At least 20 Somali soldiers have died this Tuesday in an attack carried out by Al Shabaab against a military base located in the town of Hauadley, in the Middle Shabelle region, just a day after the terrorist group lost control of the key city of Harardhere.
According to information collected by the Somali news portal Jowhar, among the dead is the commander of an Army battalion identified as Colonel Abshir Mahmud Mohamed. The attackers have also set fire to several military vehicles and looted weapons at the base.
The head of the Somali Army, Odoua Yusuf Rage, has stated that the fighting has resulted in 21 members of the terrorist group. “We have killed 21 Al Shabaab terrorists and wounded others at the Hauadley military base in the Middle Shabelle region. Our forces resisted and fought the terrorists as soon as the Army learned of the group’s intentions to attack the base “He has stated,” he said.
Al Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the attack and has stressed that it has briefly taken control of the base, which would again be in the hands of the Army, as Rage has indicated, as reported by the Somali state news agency SONNA.
The attack was carried out with at least three car bombs that exploded at the base, which is home to Somali troops and local militiamen allied with the central government. After that, there has been an assault against the facilities, according to the Somali news portal Garowe Online.
The Somali government assured on Monday that its forces had taken control of Harardhere, in the Mudug region, after clashes with Al Shabaab, as reported by the Somali state news agency, SONNA. “I can confirm that I am in Harardhere, in the Mudug region, in Galmudug state. The forces liberated Galad in the morning. Our forces fully control these cities,” Somali Defense Minister Abdukadir Mohamed Nur said.
Nur himself stressed this Tuesday that government forces have taken control of El Dher, in the Galgudud region, after the flight from the Al Shabaab area. In this way, there are three towns taken by the Army and the allied forces during the last 24 hours.
During the day on Monday, a car bomb attack was also perpetrated against a military base in the city of Halgan, located in the center of the country, days after similar attacks against two nearby towns that left at least 15 dead.
The attack left several dead, including the head of the Criminal Investigations Department in Baladueine, Jamal Ahmed Yama, according to the Somali Guardian news portal. Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.
Somalia has increased offensives against Al Shabaab in recent months with the support of clans and local militias as part of a series of decisions taken by the president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who promised upon taking office to put the fight against terrorism at the center of his efforts to stabilize the African country.
