An al Shabaab attack in the northern town of Galkayo in Puntland state in Somalia left four people killed including the regional governor who was the target of the attack. The attack is not the first of its kind as security officials have been re-evaluating the state of security as the group seems to resurge in the north.
Ahmed Muse Nur, who had been serving as the Mudug governor since May 2019, was confirmed dead along with his brother and a bodyguard in an attack which Somalia-based Al-Shabaab militants have immediately claimed responsibility.
The militants used a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device that rammed into the governor’s convoy as it drove out of the office building. Preliminary intelligence indicated that the vehicle was laden with enough explosives to decimate anything its vicinity which made the rescuing of the victims virtually impossible.
This is the second attack targeting a high ranking official within Puntland, and it comes amid ongoing operations to flush out both Al-Shabaab and ISIS-Somalia from the region, which has traditionally enjoyed stability. In March this year, Abdisalan Hassan Hersi, governor of the Nugaal region, succumbed to his wounds after being rushed to hospital in Garowe, the capital of Puntland where a similar attack was launched by the militants near a police station.
Historically, militants in Puntland are known to conduct attacks targeting high-ranking government officials when they feel pressure from security forces. Recent weeks have seen the group suffering losses especially in Bossaso where operations have been underway to root out the militants.
