Mogadishu, April 4 Somali security forces, backed by international partners, killed nine al-Shabaab militants during coordinated operations in southern Somalia, officials said Saturday.
The National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) said the operations in the town of Kunyo Barrow and the Tugarey area of the Lower Shabelle region also destroyed six generators that the militants were using to make mines and explosives.
"Such planned operations are part of ongoing efforts to destroy terrorist bases and disrupt the group's activities in order to prevent terrorist attacks," NISA said in a statement.
NISA said the first operation in Kunyo Barrow targetted an al-Shabaab facility that housed large machines used to manufacture mines and explosives, where six terrorists were killed, Xinhua news agency reported. It added that three other terrorists, who were found hiding in the forest, were killed in an operation in the Tugarey area.
The al-Shabaab extremist group was driven out of the capital, Mogadishu, in 2011, but the militants are still hiding in rural areas, where they continue to carry out ambushes and plant landmines.
On Friday, the African Union mission revealed that the AU Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) and the Somali National Armed Forces have captured a senior al-Shabaab commander during a joint operation in the southern region.
The AU mission said the suspect, identified as Salaad Cusmaan Macalin, also known as Sahm, was apprehended on Thursday on the northwestern outskirts of Mubarak.
"Initial interrogation findings indicate that one of his associates, identified as Ismaaciil, a Kenyan national, had volunteered for a suicide mission as part of a planned attack," AUSSOM said in a statement.
AUSSOM said 40-year-old Salaad was captured while scouting defensive positions in preparation for an attack.
He was accompanied by a group of fighters, including 17 foreign militants recently deployed from al-Shabaab's command centre in Jilib, Middle Juba region, while another individual linked to the group, identified as Salman, managed to evade capture during the operation.
The suspect joined al-Shabaab in 2009 and is considered an influential operational leader involved in planning and executing militant activities, particularly in Mogadishu and surrounding areas.
AUSSOM Sector One Commander Jackson Kayanja commended the joint forces for the successful operation, praising their vigilance and professionalism.
Kayanja also urged local leaders and communities to actively support security forces in countering terrorist threats and strengthening stability across Somalia.
--IANS
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