Over the past few days, Shabaab, al Qaeda’s branch in Somalia and East Africa, has claimed several attacks on Somali and African Union troops across southern Somalia.

The first attack was an attempted suicide bombing on a Somali military base near the town of Afgoye, just north of Mogadishu. A suicide car bomb was detonated near the base’s perimeter, killing one soldier and injuring three others. However, when the three soldiers were being transported for medical attention, Shabaab ambushed the vehicle with an improvised explosive device (IED). The IED killed four soldiers in the truck.

Other sources have put the combined fatalities closer to 11. Additionally, other sources have stated that foreign troops, namely South Africans, were killed in the suicide bombing at the base. This has yet to be confirmed.

Shortly thereafter, Shabaab’s forces also ambushed a convoy of Burundian troops near Balad, which also sits north of Mogadishu. The jihadists hit the African Union troops with small arms and explosives, destroying several vehicles and leaving at least five Burundian soldiers dead. After the ambush, Shabaab then launched a coordinated assault on Balad, briefly taking control over the town. When AMISOM sent reinforcements to the area, the jihadists then withdrew.

Today, Shabaab has claimed responsibility for an attack on Ethiopian troops near the city of Baidoa. While Shabaab claims to have killed 30 soldiers in the strike, local reporting has not confirmed that number.

 

Read more:  Long War Journal