At least seven Al-Shabab fighters, including local commanders, were killed when pro-government militia launched an attack on a militant base in central Somalia’s Hiiraan region, local officials said.
Ma’awisley fighters attacked an Al-Shabab hideout in Goobo area near Maxaas town, recovering four AK-47 rifles and two pistols after the raid, officials said.
Residents said the fighters later withdrew from the area and returned to their base as security forces monitored possible militant movements nearby.
“The situation remains tense, and operations against Al-Shabab continue in several parts of Hiiraan,” a local security source said.
The raid follows a recent operation in which a senior Al-Shabab commander, Ali Ahmed Guure, was killed. Authorities described him as one of the group’s most feared figures, accused of targeting civilians and travelers across the region for more than a decade.
The government has accused Guure of being responsible for numerous atrocities in Hiiraan, where local militias have become a force in the fight against Al-Shabab
