More than 40 Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in fighting in Baidoa, the South West State government has said
Somali forces have “decisively defeated” militias allegedly operating alongside Al-Shabaab after they launched an attack on Baidoa, the capital of South West State, the authorities have said.
The assault began at around 4:15 a.m on Thursday with explosions intended to cause panic among civilians, the East African nation’s Defense Ministry said in a statement. Fighting continued for several hours before subsiding in the afternoon.
The ministry said government troops inflicted heavy losses on fighters loyal to former South West State President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen. It did not provide a casualty figure, but said an assessment was underway.
In a separate statement on Thursday, the South West State government said the attack began with two vehicle-borne explosive devices. It said its forces killed more than 40 Al-Shabaab fighters, wounded several others, and seized weapons and military equipment. Bay Regional Hospital received 71 wounded people, including 15 women, and one dead civilian, emergency department head Abdikafi Omar Mohamud told AP. Residents reportedly fled their homes as gunfire and explosions spread into residential areas.
Laftagareen’s camp acknowledged launching the assault. Former regional spokesperson Ugaas Hassan Abdi Mohamed told BBC Somali that it was a “planned” operation intended to incapacitate forces he accused of invading the country. He said two fighters from his side were killed and five others wounded.
The latest violence follows a prolonged standoff between Mogadishu and Laftagareen. The federal government rejected his disputed reelection in March and took control of Baidoa on March 30, prompting Laftagareen, who had governed South West since 2018, to announce his resignation. Regional lawmakers elected former Somali parliament speaker Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur Madobe as president of South West State in June.
In August, at least four civilians were killed and 98 wounded when militias attacked government positions around the city. The federal authorities said nearly 30 attackers were killed, while regional officials put the toll at about 50. Both blamed Laftagareen loyalists and Al-Shabaab, allegations the former leader has repeatedly denied.
Baidoa, which is about 245km northwest of Mogadishu, hosts more than half a million people displaced by conflict and drought. Al-Shabaab has waged an insurgency against Somalia’s government for nearly two decades and continues to control territory in parts of the country.
