Thursday April 24, 2025
Mogadishu (HOL) — Somali government forces repelled coordinated Al-Shabaab attacks in the Wargaadhi and Labi Gooley areas of the Middle Shabelle region on Thursday, killing at least 40 militants, according to the Ministry of Information.
In a press release, the Ministry stated that the offensive began at dawn when Al-Shabaab militants launched an assault on Wargaadhi, a strategic command post used in counter-insurgency operations across central Somalia. Government troops and allied local fighters responded swiftly, killing at least 22 militants in the initial attack.
“The armed forces and local heroes, who were on full alert, bravely repelled the attack, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy,” the statement said, noting that no government-held territory was lost during the fighting.
Shortly after the Wargaadhi attack, the Somali National Army carried out a preemptive strike on Al-Shabaab fighters regrouping in Labi Gooley, approximately 13 kilometers northwest of Wargaadhi. More than 20 militants were killed in that second operation.
Officials described the Wargaadhi area as vital to Somalia’s wider campaign to eliminate Al-Shabaab from the Middle Shabelle corridor. The government considers the area a critical command center to counter the group’s cyber operations and communications network in the central regions.
The Ministry confirmed that the situation in Wargaadhi is currently stable. Security forces remain in control, and further verification of Al-Shabaab losses is ongoing.
Al-Shabaab, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization affiliated with al-Qaeda, has waged an insurgency in Somalia for over 15 years, aiming to overthrow the government and impose a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Despite military setbacks, the group continues to carry out deadly attacks across Somalia and remains a major security threat.
