Somali government forces backed by local clan militia forces recaptured several villages in Hiiraan and Middle Shabelle regions under Hirshabelle regional state.
General Abdullahi Ali Aanoud, the spokesman for the Somali army, said at a press conference in Mogadishu that the joint forces liberated villages of Gulane, Darusalam, Harga-Dhere and Mabah, located in the Hiran and Middle Shabelle regions.
Mabah is the last village in eastern Hiran that was under control of al-Shabab, according to Somali state-run news agency Sonna.
Anod said six al-Shabab fighters were killed in the middle Shabelle region, while 10 were killed during a firefight between the army and the group that took place in the Hiiraan region.
The spokesman added that the army was approaching the last areas under al-Shabab in the Middle Shabelle region, as the operations against the militants will continue until al-Shabab is removed from all areas of the Hirshabelle administration.
According to reports obtained by Hiiraan Online from the Middle Shabelle region, the joint forces were on the verge of retaking Aden Yabal District, one of Al-Shabaab’s strongholds.
Two days ago, Somali forces killed about 40 al-Shabab fighters in the Middle Shabelle region in the latest clashes in a monthslong offensive that aims to weaken the grip of the Islamist militant group.
Ministry of Information described it as a planned operation in a forest near the village of Ali Foldhere in Middle Shabelle on Wednesday night, but al-Shabab and one clan fighter said the fighting arose from an attack by the militants.
