Thursday 19/4/2018: Somali national army (SNA) has intensified military operations aimed at wiping out Al-Qaeda (AQ) linked Al-Shabaab combatants in the areas between Bal’ad and Jowhar towns in Middle Shabelle region.
According to Qasim Moalim Nur, who is the commissioner of Bal’ad, the operation is jointly being carried out by Somali forces backed by AU soldiers.
The military operation comes following a number of Al-Shabaab ambush attacks against Somali and AMISOM forces in the main road linking Bal’ad to Jowhar in the past few months which have successfully been repulsed.
On Wednesday 18/4/2018, Somali forces captured five villages in Middle Shabelle region after pushing Al-Shabaab militants who have been occupying the areas of Qorah Madobe, Waraxley, War-Cise and Qab-duco and Qordhere villages.
Nur emphasized that they want to enforce the security forces in the main streets and bar Al-Shabaab from continuing the raids targeting the convoys of the allied troops. The military counter operations will significantly reduce Al-Shabaab influence in the region.
