Somali army repels al-Shabaab attack on military base, killing many

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA): The Somali army has said that an al-Shabaab group attack on a military base in the central province of Galgadud was repulsed, killing a number of them.

The al-Qaeda-affiliated group al-Shabaab attacked the military base in the recently liberated town of Masagaway in Galmudug state, which housed newly deployed soldiers trained in Eritrea, the Somali National Army (SNA) said in a statement.

“The Somali National Army has prevented the ‘Khawarij’ (Muslim extremist sect) militias who tried to attack the town of Masagaway in the Gal-gaduud region, and a number of militants were killed there. The National forces continue to pursue the militant group,” it said.

The al-Shabaab group accepted responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on its propaganda website, claiming that it killed over 70 soldiers in the attack and an ambush.

It also claimed to have briefly seized the military base and taken military equipment.

The group’s claim could not be independently verified because of the region’s security situation.

It was al-Shabaab’s second major attack in the Horn of Africa country in less than a week.

On Friday, the group carried out a deadly attack on an African Union forces’ base in the Lower Shabelle region.

The base in the town of BuloMarer, 110 kilometers south of the capital Mogadishu, was manned by the Ugandan forces serving under the African Union mission in the country.

The group has been fighting against the Somali government and the African Union mission in the country since 2007.

For years, Somalia has been plagued by insecurity, with the main threats being the groups, al-Shabaab and ISIS.