Al-Shabab has seized Mahas town in Hiran region on Sunday following a dawn attack that started with suicide explosions.
The group claims it killed 63 Somali troops and wounded 84 others. The claim could not be independently verified.
Somalia’s defence ministry confirmed the loss of Mahas, saying government and allied Ma’wisley fighters are regrouping on the outskirts and preparing a counteroffensive.
The ministry added that Al-Shabab suffered heavy losses in the fighting, without offering specific casualty numbers.
Al-Shabab released images purporting to show its fighters in Mahas, in what analysts describe as a staged effort to project territorial control.
The armed group also took the nearby town of Mokoqori earlier this month, amid a renewed push to reclaim ground lost last year.
On Friday, Al-Shabab captured Sabid and Anole, two villages south of Mogadishu, signalling growing momentum in its south-central Somalia campaign.
The latest gains mark a significant escalation by the group, challenging government narratives of steady territorial recovery in recent months.
