The Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ) has mourned the death of a journalist who was embedded in SNA Company at the time of attack on government army’s base on the outskirt of the Somali capital, Mogadishu.
In a statement, FESOJ eulogised Gacal Abdulle Gacal, a cameraman, was among those killed on Wednesday 14th August 2019 when Al-Shabaab attacked a military base in Awdhegle town of Lower Shabelle region.
The agricultural town which is located about 70 kilometre south of the capital, Mogadishu was recaptured by Somali Special Forces last week after years of Al-Shabaab control.
FESOJ confirmed that Gacal was among several people killed in suicide blast (SVBIED) that was targeted to Somali government soldiers’ base.
The journalist was working with a radio of Somali National Army and previously worked as a cameraman with Somali National Television.
The Al-Qaeda affiliated Shabaab claimed to have killed at least 50 Somali Special Forces in a two-man Istishadi raid, and destroyed 8 army’s tactical vehicles. Somalia media reported about 10 SNA killed and several others wounded.
On 13 July 2019, a suicide bomber rammed a car bomb into the Asasey Hotel in the southern port city of Kismayo and gunmen then stormed the building in the autonomous Jubbaland region killing at least 26 people, among the victims was prominent Somali-Canadian journalist Hodan Naleyah, founder of Integration TV, and Mohamed Sahal Omar, a reporter from SBC TV in Kismayo.
