Somali army says it repelled attack on Baidoa — Al Jazeera English
Somali military officials said they repelled an attack by two armed groups on Baidoa, the largest city in Somalia’s South West State. According to Al Jazeera English, the fighting began on Thursday morning and lasted for several hours.
Statements by the sides
Somalia’s Ministry of Defence said in a post on X that the attack was carried out by militias loyal to the ousted governor, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen. According to the ministry, the attack began with explosions intended to intimidate civilians, and the military inflicted a significant defeat on the attackers.
A representative of forces supporting Laftagareen, meanwhile, told AFP that they had captured parts of the city and that fighting was continuing. The Ministry of Defence also accused the armed groups of acting together with fighters from al-Shabaab.
Situation in the city
Witnesses told AFP that gunfire and explosions could be heard in different parts of Baidoa, causing residents to remain indoors. Several residents told the agency after six hours of fighting that the city had become calm.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
The Ministry of Defence said it was determining the number of fighters killed during the attack and would release details after the assessment was completed.
Political context
In March, Somalia’s government deployed troops to remove Laftagareen. In May, he unsuccessfully attempted to regain control of the state, and in August his forces fought federal troops for control of Baidoa.
Laftagareen was among the opponents of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s plans to move Somalia towards democratic elections instead of a system based on clan elders. The country is also facing a long-running al-Shabaab insurgency, which controls significant territories in central Somalia.
