MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali government forces captured nine villages from al-Shabab in western Hiiraan after militants withdrew ahead of a planned military advance, military officials said Sunday.
The army moved into areas surrounding the El Adde settlement as part of a broader offensive to weaken the group’s long-standing hold over parts of the region. Officials said troops faced no resistance because al-Shabab fighters abandoned their positions before the units arrived.
- Advertisement -
A senior officer involved in the operation said the push unfolded as planned and included the demolition of defensive structures long used by the group to fortify rural strongholds. “The operations began smoothly with no major security issues. We secured nine locations and dismantled many of the enemy’s defensive positions,” he told local media.
The officer said government troops are now pursuing militants who fled and intend to remove the group from all remaining pockets it controls in western Hiiraan.
Al-Shabab has maintained significant bases in parts of Hiiraan for years, using remote terrain to support recruitment and logistics. The government’s campaign in the region is part of a wider effort to reclaim rural areas, disrupt militant networks and restrict the group’s ability to organize attacks across central Somalia.
Sunday’s advance around El Adde underscores the Somali army’s strategy of pressing into the countryside where the group has relied on layered defensive works, local familiarity and difficult roads to resist government operations. By entering positions vacated by militants and destroying fortifications, officials say the military aims to prevent rapid re-infiltration and to complicate the group’s ability to reconstitute staging sites.
Authorities did not immediately provide further details about the specific villages secured or the duration of the operation. No clashes were reported by officials during the advance.
Somali security forces have stepped up pressure across central regions in recent months as part of a campaign to thin al-Shabab’s presence away from towns and main supply routes. Military officials say limiting the group’s rural depth is critical to disrupting planning, recruitment and the storage of explosives used in attacks.
- Nine villages were secured in western Hiiraan after militants withdrew ahead of the army’s approach, officials said.
- Troops entered areas around the El Adde settlement without resistance and destroyed several defensive positions.
- A senior officer said units are pursuing fleeing fighters and intend to clear remaining pockets of militant control in the region.
- The operation forms part of a wider government push to reclaim rural ground and restrict al-Shabab’s logistics and mobility.
Officials said operations will continue as units work to consolidate control and pursue militants who left their positions. The government has framed the campaign in Hiiraan as central to weakening al-Shabab’s ability to plan and execute attacks from remote areas.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
