Two al-Shabaab fighters have defected to local Somali authorities in Hiiraan region. In a statement, Somali Ministry for Defense said the military officials In Beledweyne town had received the defectors.
While the ranks of the defectors are yet to be released, the individuals are believed to offer information that will be instrumental in defeating al Shabaab and especially its networks in the south and central Somalia.
The move comes a week barely after a senior al-Shabaab official surrendered to the government forces in Jubbaland state. Aden Abdi, known as Aden Obe, defected from the group and surrendered to the government forces.
Somali forces backed by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) intensified operations on al-Shabaab militants in central and southern Somalia conducting consecutive offensives to flush the militants out of these regions.
