Mogadishu — Fighters from Al-Shabaab fired mortar rounds at the airport in Buurhakabo in southwestern Somalia on Tuesday, security sources said, as a government helicopter was attempting to land.

The attack targeted the airstrip in Bay region while a helicopter belonging to the Federal Government of Somalia, which had departed from Mogadishu, was in the process of landing, the sources added.

The aircraft escaped the shelling without damage, although several mortar rounds landed inside and around the airport compound. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The Buurhakabo airfield hosts Ethiopian National Defense Force troops involved in security operations in the region, making it a strategic site that has frequently been targeted in past attacks.

No official statement has yet been issued by authorities regarding possible losses, and it remains unclear whether anyone was killed or wounded.

The incident comes amid a reported increase in attacks by Al-Shabaab across parts of southwestern Somalia, underlining persistent security challenges in the area.