BAIDOA (Halbeeg News) – At least 45 al-Shabaab have been killed and over a dozen wounded in separate clashes with Somali National Army (SNA) forces in the Southwest State of Somalia.
According to a statement by the Defense Ministry, the operations were conducted in collaboration with international partners. The operations took place in Gofgudud and Wajid areas.
The commander of Sector 60 of the army Brigadier General Hassan isack Omar who spoke to VOA Somali service said airstrikes carried out by international partners took place in the two areas.
According to Omar, al-Shabaab suffered heavy losses as a result of the airstrike.
The operations came barely 24 hours after al-Shabaab claimed to have killed over eight Ethiopian soldiers in an ambush which took place in the Bakool region.
Al-Shabaab which has been fighting Somali forces and African Union troops for over a decade is trying to show the government that the second phase of the operation will be tough and not as easy as the first one.
Somalia’s government says it plans to launch a second offensive against al-Shabab with the support of neighbouring countries such as Kenya, Djibouti, and Ethiopia.
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