Civilians gather as smoke billows from a shop hit by artillery following clashes between Somalia’s federal troops and armed opposition groups, in Baidoa, Somalia, August 17, 2026 [Reuters]
Heavy fighting erupted in Baidoa on Thursday as Somalia’s military said it had repelled an assault by two armed groups in the largest city of the country’s South West State.
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In a statement posted on X, the Defence Ministry said “militias” loyal to ousted Governor Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen launched the attack early in the morning.
“The assault opened with explosions aimed at terrorising civilians, but army forces responded and dealt the attackers a heavy defeat, the ministry said.
The violence adds to a widening political and security crisis in Somalia, where several deeply divided states oppose President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s authority. The president is also confronting a long-running rebellion by al-Shabab, the armed group that controls large areas of central Somalia.
The federal government deployed troops in March to remove Laftagareen from office.
Laftagareen made an unsuccessful bid to retake the state in May. In August, forces aligned with him clashed with federal troops over control of Baidoa.
Thursday’s battle continued for several hours. Residents told AFP that gunfire and explosions echoed across different parts of the city, prompting people to stay inside their homes.
A spokesperson for the pro-Laftagareen forces told AFP that their fighters had seized parts of Baidoa and that combat was continuing.
But several residents separately told AFP that the city had returned to calm after six hours of fighting.
The Defence Ministry said it was assessing the number of fighters killed and would publish figures “once the assessment has been completed”.
It also alleged that the armed groups were operating in coordination with “al-Shabab terrorists”.
Laftagareen was one of the opponents of President Mohamud’s efforts to guide Somalia toward democratic elections, replacing the existing system in which clan elders play a central role.
