Friday March 19, 2021
Somalia’s army soldiers and peacekeepers from AMISOM enter the town of Barawe during the second phase of Operation Indian Ocean. (Getty Images)
Somali National Army (SNA) on Thursday arrested six al-Shabab militants in an offensive in Lower Shabelle, Somalia’s southern region, a military officer confirmed.
The army conducted the operation in villages in the region including Busley, Warta Mursal and Harbiga, and captured a number of militants, said Ali Abdullahi Halac, commander of SNA’s 64th Unit division.“During the operation, we apprehended six al-Shabab militants with their weapons and we destroyed bases used by the militants in the region,” Halac told journalists.
He added the army will maintain the operations against al-Shabab cells in the region.
The latest incident came amid sustained operations by government forces against al-Shabab in southern regions where the militants are still holding swathes of rural areas, conducting ambushes, and planting landmines.