Al-Shabab Claims Attack Killing Somali Soldiers

Islamic extremist militants killed at least 20 Somali soldiers in an ambush near Jameeca village in southern Somalia on Monday, according to a military officer who survived the attack. The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group claimed responsibility for the incident.

The Defense Ministry stated that its troops killed approximately 75 militants and wounded 56 during hours of fighting. Al-Shabab, however, asserted that it killed 321 soldiers and captured prisoners along with military equipment. These casualty figures and claims of captured personnel and materiel could not be independently verified.

Abshir Abdikarim, a military officer who was with the convoy, told The Associated Press by phone that he witnessed at least 20 fallen soldiers after the ambush. He described exchanges of heavy gunfire with militants after troops advanced from Leego into Jameeca, located in the Burhakaba district of the Bay region. Some soldiers who were previously unaccounted for reached Baledogle on Tuesday, while others remain missing.

The Defense Ministry characterized the engagement as an assault on militant positions, whereas al-Shabab described it as an ambush on a convoy moving into territory under its control. The ministry confirmed that militants used explosives-laden vehicles to attack army vehicles, resulting in damage to some of them, but did not specify the extent of the damage or address the claims of captured soldiers.

Al-Shabab also claimed to have seized Turkish-supplied armored vehicles, armed pickup trucks, supply trucks, weapons, and ammunition. African Union troops had previously dislodged al-Shabab from Mogadishu in 2011, but the group has since employed guerrilla warfare tactics, suicide bombings, and targeted assassinations.

Somali authorities have reported territorial gains as part of a U.S.-backed military campaign, though access restrictions have hampered independent verification of these claims. Al-Shabab has maintained the ability to operate across significant portions of central and southern Somalia. This recent fighting occurs amidst a separate conflict for control of South West state, following clashes last month near Baidoa between government troops and militias loyal to former regional President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen. The Defense Ministry has stated that government forces will persist in targeting al-Shabab positions and disrupting the group's efforts to regroup.