Beledweyne, Somalia — Somali forces and allied clan fighters carried out a planned military operation in villages near Moqokori town in the central Hiiraan region, targeting suspected Al-Shabaab militants accused of harassing civilians, officials said Wednesday.

The operation took place in the areas of Moora Ari, Deedo, and Qarfo, where security forces said the Islamist group had been conducting activities that threatened local residents.

Military officials said the joint forces thwarted planned attacks by the militants and inflicted what they described as heavy losses on the group during the operation.

Major Naqiib Abdullahi Xersi, commander of the 8th Battalion under the 18th Brigade of the elite Gorgor commandos, confirmed the operation and said the army would continue its campaign against Al-Shabaab fighters in the region.

Somali government troops, backed by local clan militias, have intensified security operations in Hiiraan as authorities seek to weaken Al-Shabaab's presence in central Somalia.

The federal government has, in recent years, relied on cooperation between the national army and community-based fighters in its broader offensive against the al Qaeda-linked militant group.