According to Hirshabelle Vice President Yusuf Dabageed, joint federal and regional forces have been successful in connecting long-alone by Al-Shabaab provinces by opening up the Hiiraan, Middle Shabelle, and Banadir regions.
In an interview with the official media, Yusuf Dabageed claimed that the Al-Shabaab are hiding between the mosques of Ali Galgaduud and Aden Yabal, where the forces are currently in route to liberate.
According to the vice president, the liberated land is 300 kilometres long. It was a significant win in the fight against al-Shabaab, according to Dabageed. Additionally, he stated that rather than being transported by air, the aid from Mogadishu would be delivered by land to the liberated areas.
“I don’t have to worry if I drive to Mogadishu, stay the night, and then return (to Hirshabelle). The fact that the Mataban army, which launched the war, is currently on the Middle Shabelle border, is also a source of satisfaction and success for us “vice president Hirshabelle stated.
Late in June, close to the Qabno area of the Mataban district in Hiiraan, Somali government forces and Al-Shabaab engaged in a fierce battle that is regarded as the beginning of their “total war” offensive against the Al Qaeda-affiliated militants. Al Shabaab members allegedly set up roadblocks to extort vehicles traveling the main road before the fighting broke out. Early in April, after government forces left the region, al-Shabaab fighters took over Mataban.