Somalia: Ground and Air Operation Target Al-Shabaab Base in Central Somalia

Caad — The government forces backed by local clan militia engaged in a heavy battle with Al-Shabaab in the southern Mudug region, military sources and residents said.

An airstrike was reported coincided with the ground operation targeted Jeeh village, where Al-Shabaab fighters were re-grouping to launch an ambush attack on the government base.

The exact number of casualties remained unclear as the defense ministry and Al-Shabaab did not release a statement regarding the raid and the subsequent suspected US airstrike.

The Turkish-trained Gorgor, an elite military unit carried out the offensive with the help of the US military, which provided air support to SNA in the war against Al-Shabaab militants.

Since last year, the Somali army has been gaining victory in the fight against Al-Shabaab, due to a well-coordinated operation that is overseen by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

In an effort to finally push al-Shabaab completely out of central Somalia, on 6 August 2022, the federal government announced the start of the ‘second phase’ of the counter-insurgency campaign, codenamed Operation Black Lion, in Hirshabelle and Galmudug states.

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud relocated the command center of the counter-insurgency campaign from Mogadishu to Dhuusamareeb, Galmudug’s regional capital.

As part of the operation, security forces have been targeting al-Shabaab’s main command centers in central Somalia after they failed to dislodge the militants from Hirshabelle and Galmudug states during the first phase of the counter-insurgency offensive and the expansion to Galmudug state.