Somalia reports strike on al-Shabab with international support

Wednesday April 15, 2026

Armed al-Shabab fighters ride on pickup trucks [File: Farah Abdi Warsameh/AP Photo]

Somalia’s army says it has killed 27 al-Shabab fighters in what it described as a “large-scale operation,” according to the Ministry of Defence.

In a statement on Tuesday, the ministry said the assault took place in the autonomous state of Jubbaland and was backed by international partners who conducted air strikes.

The statement did not name the international partners involved, but the United States has helped Somalia in its fight against al-Shabab in the past.

The ministry said the operation was carried out with Jubbaland security forces across the Lower Jubba and Middle Jubba regions.

It said the districts of Jilib, Xagar and Afmadow were targeted, adding that Somalia had inflicted a “major blow” on al-Shabab and killed “key members” of the armed group.

The Somali army also “seized weapons and military equipment, including BKM machine guns, RPGs and AK-47 rifles, as well as landmines that the terrorists had intended to use against civilians”, the statement read.

The Defence Ministry said the operation was continuing as forces worked to “pursue the remaining Al-Shabaab elements, in order to ensure security, stability and the safety of civilians living in Somalia”.

Long fight

Somalia’s federal government has been locked in conflict with al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda-linked group, since 2007. The armed group seeks to overthrow the central government and enforce its strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Last year, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud told Al-Jazeera the group is “destroying Somalia and destroying the Somali people”.

He urged al-Shabab to “stop the terror” and said the group was leaving the country “weak”.

Al-Shabab is regarded by the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) as the “largest, wealthiest, and most lethal” al-Qaeda-affiliated organisation in the world, and it controls large swaths of southern and central Somalia.

Between January and July 2025, almost 60,000 people were displaced by fighting between government forces and al-Shabab in Somalia’s Middle Shabelle region.

Over the years, the group has also claimed attacks in Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti.