Three Al-Shabab commanders were on Friday killed in central Somalia following deadly clashes between local militias backed by Somali National Army (SNA) and Al-Shabab fighters, military official confirmed.
The fighting initially broke out between Al-Shabab and local herders in El-Bula’ale village, 35 KM away from Mahas town after Al-Shabab started extorting taxes from local residents in rural areas in Mahas district.
Military officials in Hiiraan region dispatched reinforcement troops to areas, who fought alongside the herders against Al-shabaab fighters.
Mohamed Ahmed Teredishe, the commander of the 43rd Battalion said over thirty Al-shabab fighters including Al-shabab head of tax collector and two other commanders were killed during the battle.
“The local herders backed by Somali forces killed 32 Al-shabab fighters including Ahmed Nur Ciribay, the group’s head of Zakawat and two other ring leaders in fighting that lasted for hours,” Teredishe said.
Teredishe said the group had recently stepped up its attacks to extort money from the locals.
“After losing many towns to Somali government soldiers and AMISOM troops, Al-shabab started robbing the local people,” the commander noted.
Another resident, Dahir Muse Osoble who spoke to VOA Somali said the pastoralists in Kaadiley, Lebi Butale, Bulucle and Muse Geel villages engaged gun battle with the group’s fighters over Zakawat.
“We took up arms to defend ourselves and our livestock from the militants’ flagrant aggression, with the backing Somali National Army,” Osoble said.
Al-shabab which once controlled large swath of land in central and South Somalia is accused of recruiting underage children as child soldiers and impose heavy tax over the pastoralists according Human Right Watch and UN reports.
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