Shabaab beaten in firefight

By Abdisalan Ahmed in Elwak and Agencies

Troops of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG) backed by the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) have forced Al Shabaab out of a major stronghold near the border town of Kolbio, with sustained ground and air attacks.

Kenya Army soldiers in Somalia. The military and TFG troops attack on Wednesday night forced Al Shabaab to leave Kolbio and Badade town. [PHOTO: FILE/ STANDARD]

Reports from the area said the Al Qaeda-linked terror group came under heavy bombardment and fire from Kenyan jets and troops, forcing them to scamper out of Kolbio, its environs, and Badade town.

Confirmation of how many were injured on both sides was not immediately available and Kenya’s military is yet to comment on the reports.

Al Shabaab fighters were reportedly attacked from four directions on Wednesday night, scattering their forces and making them scamper for safety.

On the run

Reports from inside Somalia indicate that the militants are fleeing towards Afmadow, one of their remaining major strongholds, which the TFG and KDF are planning to attack soon in their march to the port city of Kismayu.

Residents of Hulugho along the Kenya-Somalia border reported the sound of heavy gunfire during the fight.

"The fighting was long and continued to fade as the night grew. We could hear heavy gunfire from here," said Hussein Bishar, a resident of Hulugho border town in Ijara. He spoke to The Standard on telephone.

The latest development follows an effective similar raid on another major Al Shabaab stronghold in Gedo region on Tuesday.

TFG forces, with the help of Kenyan jets and surface-to-surface missiles launched by the KDF, forced the militia group out of their base in the town of Bursar in Gedo, Somalia, around 30km from the Kenyan border town of Elwak.

The KDF also secured Talha area near Bursar, which has been a strategic staging location for Al Shabaab and where they had a huge arms depot.

Earlier this month, KDF and TFG forces seized Al Shabaab bases in Gadon-dawe, Khadijo-Hajji, El-Adde and El-Gudud in Gedo region, but met little resistance and did not fire a single shot.

Kenya’s military spokesperson Major Emmanuel Chirchir confirmed the Bursar raid, saying 12 Al Shabaab soldiers were killed, although reports from locals suggests the number could reach 30.

The group had on a number of occasions used the base in Talha to carry out attacks on Kenyan soil, the last being an attempted raid on an Administration Police patrol base near Elwak.

The group reportedly left behind a huge cache of arms and other military hardware, including missile launchers and tons of food.

Other reports indicate that allied forces of KDF, TFG and the Ras Kamboni militia fought off Al Shabaab insurgents on Wednesday at Kulbiyow, Lower Juba.

The insurgents had attacked the allied bases, but were repelled, according to a TFG official. The extent of casualties was not immediately clear. KDF is yet to comment on the reports.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia and Kenya were to discuss sending troops into Somalia at an African Union Peace and Security Council meeting Thursday on the war-torn Horn of Africa state, a spokeswoman said.

Join Amisom

Kenya announced Wednesday it wanted to commit troops to the African Union Mission for Somalia (Amisom), one month after it sent its army across the border to fight Islamist Al Shabaab insurgents.

"We will see, they’re invited to discuss," Nissa Roguiai said about whether Kenya’s troop offer would be covered in the meeting.

Roguiai said members would also address a possible commitment of troops by Ethiopia to Somalia.

"It’s only discussions, no consultations will be made, we’re waiting for a commitment," she told AFP before the meeting.

If Ethiopia does commit troops, it is not clear whether they would be deployed under the auspices of Amisom or the regional body, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (Igad).

Ethiopia previously invaded Somalia in 2006 with US blessing, but pulled out in 2009 after sparking a bloody uprising and guerrilla attacks.

Kenya’s ambassador to Ethiopia Monica Juma would not comment on the matter when she arrived for the meeting.

"I have not been in there yet," she said, as she entered the chamber.

Last month, Kenya sent troops across the border into southern Somalia to fight the Al Qaeda- linked Al Shabaab after a spate of attacks, including kidnappings blamed on the extremists on Kenyan soil.

Those attacks were the trigger, but Kenya also wants to create a safe zone for the hundreds of Somali refugees in camps in Dadaab to return home.

It is not clear that if Kenyan troops do join Amisom, whether they would consist of forces already inside southern Somalia, or if the contribution would be a new contingent.

The AU force, currently comprising 9,700 troops from Uganda and Burundi, is tasked with protecting the Western-backed government from the extremist Al Shabaab militia.

The AU has repeatedly called for the swift deployment of 3,000 more troops authorised by the United Nations last year, especially after Al Shabaab pulled out of fixed positions in the war-torn capital, Mogadishu, in August.

In addition to the conflict in Somalia, member States are expected to discuss upcoming elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

US stand on incursion

In related news, the United States Department of Defence, based at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, said on Wednesday Al Shabaab militants in Somalia being targeted by Kenyan troops are getting what they "deserve", but insisted the US military was not assisting Kenya’s campaign against Al Qaeda-linked rebels.

"I’m not going to get into what other countries are doing or not doing, but Al Shabaab is a very serious terrorist threat and particularly in the region," Press secretary George Little told reporters.

"And pressure that’s brought to bear against them is something they deserve," he said.

Since Kenyan forces moved into southern Somalia to go after Al Shabaab militants a month ago, US officials have adopted a reserved stand in public comments on the incursion –although Washington has long portrayed the extremists as a dangerous threat.

Despite speculation about Western assistance to Kenya, Pentagon spokesman Captain John Kirby said the US military was providing no help to Kenyan forces.

"We’ve been certainly monitoring their (Kenyan) military operations in southern Somalia. We haven’t taken a view or expressed an opinion about that, but we’re certainly monitoring. And we’re not providing any aid or assistance to that effort," he told the same news conference.

Kenya’s UN envoy on Tuesday sought to promote American support for the KDF offensive during a visit to Washington, saying the United States and other countries should do their part to counter the militants.