Barawe — The leader of Southwest State Abdiaziz Lafta-Garen hosted the speaker of the Lower House chamber of the Somali Federal Parliament in Barawe City on Tuesday.

Sheikh Aden Madobe arrived at the coastal town for the groundbreaking of a community-funded port after nine years of the liberation of Barawe in the Lower Shabelle region from Al-Shabaab.

According to the reports, the two high-ranking leaders discussed a range of issues during their meeting at the presidential palace last night, including security and war on Al-Shabaab.

Senior military and security chiefs were in attendance at the talks, which mostly centered on the planned second phase of the offensive against Al-Shabaab to kick off in the Lower Shabelle region, Baay, and Bakool region under Southwest State.

Non-ATMIS troops from Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti known as Frontline states agreed to put up a "united fight" against the al-Shabaab terror group, which poses a threat to their security.

The impending assault is expected to finalize the Al-Shabaab insurgency as The U.N. Security Council has set December 2024 as the exit date for African Union forces from Somalia.

Among the issues discussed include the implementation of a deal between the Southwest State president and opposition presidential candidates over his one-year term extension.

Lafta-Garen's presidential 4-year term expired in December 2022 and he extended his stay in power by one more year, a move that sparked clashes in Baidoa city early this year.