The Army claims to have killed 60 Al Shabaab members in an operation in central Somalia

May 2. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The Somali Army and local pro-government militias have killed 60 suspected members of Al Shabaab on Tuesday in new fighting with the terrorist group in the surroundings of the city of Harardhere, located in the state of Galmudug (center).

The head of the Army, Odoua Yusuf Rage, has detailed in statements to the Somali news agency SONNA that the military “had prior intelligence information on the movement of terrorists and launched a special operation in the area.”

Likewise, he stressed that several members of Al Shabaab, which maintains ties with the terrorist organization Al Qaeda, have been arrested during the operation, while a vehicle has been seized and a truck with explosives has been destroyed.

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.