Somali security forces killed 44 al-Shabaab terrorists during a recent security operation in the Lower Shabelle region, an administrative region located in the south of the country, Somalia’s Information Ministry stated.
The operation, backed by Somalia's international partners, was carried out by the national intelligence and security agency on the outskirts of Kurtowarey, a small town located 208 kilometers southwest of the capital, Mogadishu.
According to Somalia's Deputy Information Minister Abdirahman Yusuf Adala, senior al-Shabaab commanders were among those killed in the operation.
Al-Shabaab, which has been fighting against the Somali government since 2007, along with Daesh/ISIS*, poses the primary threat to Somalia's security, which has been plagued by insecurity for years.
Al-Shabaab is an al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist organization that has been operational in East Africa since the mid-2000s. The group has committed terrorist acts in Somalia, Ethiopia, and Kenya and holds sway over a significant portion of Somali territory. In response, the government of Somalia declared an "all-out war" against the group last year.