Somali operation kills at least 3 al-Shabaab leaders: Official

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) – At least 10 al-Shabaab group members, including three senior commanders, were killed when Somalia’s national intelligence and security agency conducted a new operation in the central province of Hiran, an official said Wednesday.

The operation against the al-Qaeda-affiliated group was conducted with support from international security partners near Burweyn.

Security officer Mohamed Abdiaziz in Hirshabele state told Anadolu that the operation targeted “terrorists” traveling in a car belonging to a ring leader identified as Ibnu Bashir who led the group’s police in of Hiran region.

He said airstrikes were involved in “a well-planned and executed operation and killed three key al-Shabaab leaders.”

The Somali government said among those killed was the chief of al-Shabaab’s health department in the region who was identified as Muhsin. And Anas, who was the leader in charge of the group in the Jalalaqsi area of Hiran.

Hiran is a region that has seen increased military activities against the group and is the epicenter of a militia uprising against the group.

President Hassan Sheikh Mahamud declared an “all-out war” against al-Shabaab last year. Government forces, backed by residents, have liberated large swathes of territories from the group including the strategic coastal town of Haradhere that had been under the group’s control for more than a decade.

Since military operations against al-Shabaab have intensified, the group has increased attacks.