Friday March 28, 2025
Moqokori (HOL) – The Director of the Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA), Abdullahi Mohamed Ali Sambaloolshe, and Hirshabelle Vice President Yusuf Ahmed Hagar Dabageed held a high-level security meeting with traditional elders in Moqokori district of Hiiraan region on Friday.
The meeting focused on strengthening regional security and accelerating military operations against the Al-Shabaab militant group, particularly in the Middle Shabelle region, where Somali forces have recently intensified efforts to reclaim territory.
Director Sambaloolshe emphasized that NISA has developed comprehensive security plans to stabilize areas under the Hirshabelle administration and prevent militant infiltration.
He also urged the traditional elders of Moqokori to actively support the government’s counterterrorism campaign and help mobilize communities in the fight against Al-Shabaab.
In response, the elders pledged their full cooperation with NISA and committed to supporting the federal government’s ongoing operations in central Somalia.
The meeting comes amid an intensified military campaign launched by the Somali government, with backing from local militia forces and international partners. While government forces have made notable territorial gains, particularly in Galmudug and Hirshabelle states, Al-Shabaab remains entrenched in rural strongholds, capable of regrouping and launching asymmetric attacks.
A recent example of the group’s reach came last Tuesday when a roadside bomb targeted the convoy of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud near Villa Somalia in Mogadishu. Although the president was unharmed, the attack underscored the persistent threat posed by the group even as its territorial control diminishes.
Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-affiliated militant group designated as a terrorist organization by Somalia, the United States, and the United Nations, continues to wage a violent insurgency against Somalia’s federal institutions.
