Islamic Courts Union (ICU) gunmen captured a key military base in the outskirts of Baidoa, 250km northwest of Mogadishu, Radio Garowe reported Monday.

Residents in Daynunay town said ICU fighters battled local militias who had set up illegal checkpoints and were reportedly collecting extortion fees from travelers.

One of the local militiamen was killed and two others captured, the sources said.

Abdirahim Isse Addow, the ICU spokesman, later told reporters that the Islamist fighters came to Daynunay to stop illegal activities.

Daynunay is known as a major military base for the Somali government and is located 30km from Baidoa, where the country's interim federal parliament is based.