Wajid — Al-Shabaab members were killed in an operation by the Somali National Army in the western areas of the Wajid district in the Bakool region of the Southwest regional government.

A press release from the Somali government said that 25 Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in the operation in the Bakool region, which came following an ambush attack on the airport.

Also, the government said that five of the slain Al-Shabaab members were foreigners, who were assigned to the operations in the Bakool region that lies near the Ethiopian border.

Wajib DC Mohamed Moalin Yusuf confirmed the death of the members, including foreigners, adding that other members of Al-Shabaab were injured in the battle.

The government has said that it is concentrating its operations against Al-Shabaab in the regions of the state, especially on the road connecting the cities of Mogadishu and Baidoa.

In conjunction with clan militias, the national army has dislodged Al-Shabaab from swathes of central Somalia, marking a breakthrough in the fifteen-year war.

As its campaign proceeds to the second phase, Mogadishu should take steps to strengthen its hold on the territory it has retaken.