TFG Back in Control of El-Wak District

[caydarus]

Pro-government forces are back in control of El-Wak District after militant Islamist group al-Shabaab pulled out its forces following fierce fighting at the weekend, residents said Monday.

 

Dozens of people were killed and more than 30 were injured as al-Shabaab fought against Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces in El-Wak, Gedo Region, on Sunday, with the insurgents saying they had briefly taken control of the area.

 

El-wak has been under the control of the government forces but locals told Somalia Report that more al-Shabaab fighters have entered the area after the group pulled its forces out of Mogadishu.

 

Residents told Somalia Report that hundreds of TFG fighters with more than 20 military vehicles entered the district last night and began searching villages for remnants of al-Shabaab forces.

 

“Al-Shabaab militia deserted the district last night and TFG forces immediately entered and kicked off searching operations,” Mahad Dhagahey said, adding that TFG forces buried their dead on Monday morning, including three soldiers who were beheaded by the insurgents,

 

Speaking to Somalia Report, Bashi Ilikili, TFG military official in Gedo denied that al-Shabaab fighters had controlled El-wak, but confirmed that four of their military vehicles were destroyed by the insurgents and seven soldiers were killed, including the chief commander of El-Wak forces, General Abdullahi Dhamas.

 

“The terrorists attacked our bases in El-wak on Sunday morning and tried to terrify the people, but we defended the community of that area and chased away the enemy,” he said. “We lost important individuals, like General Dhamas, and six other national forces.”

 

The fierce fighting erupted after al-Shabaab launched attacks on TFG bases in the district early on Sunday morning. After five hours of heavy fighting, the insurgents seized the district, local residents said.

 

“Early in the morning, al-Shabaab started shelling mortars at TFG bases in the district, and minutes later, they launched attacks on three TFG bases,” Dhagahey said. "I saw well known TFG soldiers and their vehicles which the insurgents had captured.

 

Another resident, Abdi Baari, told Somalia Report that he had seen at least 25 bodies, including those of TFG soldiers, women and children.

 

Speaking to Somalia Report, the al-Shabaab chairman in Gedo region, Sheikh Abbas Abdulahi, said the fighting was a major victory.

 

“Thanks to Allah, we have liberated the society of El-wak. We defeated the pro-Kenya militias and killed 21 of them, including their commander,” he told Somalia Report, adding that the militant group had also seized large military equipment, including six military vehicles, machine guns and ammunition.

 

“We initially told the media that we vacated Gedo districts on military tactics, and now we have begun to re-capture the districts," he said. "In the next few days, we are going to Luq, Beled Hawo and Garbaharey districts."

 

The military spokesman of al-Shabaab, Sheikh Abdi Aziz Abu Mus'ab, held a press conference in Mogadishu on Sunday, and claimed that they killed about 70 TFG soldiers.

 

Al-Shabaab had been expected to launch a major offensive in Gedo and Lower Juba with men redeployed from Mogadishu.

 

El-wak is a strategic district located at the border between Kenya and Somalia.

 

In recent weeks, there has been a conflict within the TFG troops in El-wak, especially among soldiers who hail from the ******* and Garre clans, both of whom want to take control of the district.

 

Many believe that the insurgents took advantage of the rift within the TFG troops.