Baidoa, Somalia — The President of Somalia's South West State, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, on Monday chaired a high-level security meeting in Baidoa with senior officials from the African Union Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), including Sector 3 Commander Brigadier General Teklu Hurisa Janka, regional ministers and security chiefs, officials said.

The discussions focused on strengthening security across the region, accelerating joint counter-terrorism operations, and improving coordination between security agencies, according to a statement from the South West administration.

President Laftagareen praised the cooperation between AUSSOM forces, Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) troops, the Somali National Army (SNA) and local security units, saying their collaboration had contributed to maintaining relative stability in the region.

He urged the forces to remain vigilant and sustain ongoing security efforts.

Officials said the participants agreed to enhance information-sharing and intensify operations aimed at disrupting Al-Shabaab activities in rural districts of South West State.

Southwest State forces, often in collaboration with the Somali National Army (SNA) and international partners (such as the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia, ATMIS), routinely conduct military operations primarily targeting the Al-Shabaab militant group in the Bay and Bakool regions of Somalia.