Photo: Somali National Army.
Addis Ababa – Soldiers of the Somali National Army (SNA) have killed forty-three al-Shabaab militants during an overnight operation conducted in the Aborey area in Bula-barte district of central Somalia, a government statement said on Sunday.
According to the statement from the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, government troops engaged the militants who were allegedly plotting attacks in the area.
Five SNA soldiers were wounded during the skirmish with the insurgents.
SNA radio reported over the weekend that the military operation was carried out in Aborey village after intelligence was received about the presence of the militants.
Aborey is an area that government troops recently liberated from al-Shabaab and a key location used by the insurgents to access the east of the country.
The ministry said more than 150 al-Shabaab militants have been killed in recent onslaughts mounted by government forces in collaboration with the local community.
The militants were driven out of Mogadishu in 2011, but still retain the capacity to launch attacks, including suicide bombings, targeting government installations, hotels, restaurants and public places.
Famine linked to war
The interlinked crises of war, drought and famine are poised to exacerbate a tsunami of hunger for millions of people in the Horn of Africa, many of them children, the UN Emergency Relief Co-ordinator has warned.
Martin Griffiths, UN relief boss told the Security Council to address these crises and work towards establishing lasting peace in the affected regions.
Griffiths recently visited Somalia, where more than 200 000 people are currently at risk of famine – a figure expected to reach 300 000 by November – with millions more on the verge of starvation.