Monday, July 08, 2013
Bakol Governor Mohamed Abdi Tall said senior
al-Shabaab leader Mukhtar Robow Ali contacted officials in the region
and is now "in talks" with the government, Somalia's Garowe Online
reported Saturday (July 6th).
"We have agreed to fight al-Shabaab led by [top commander] Ahmed Abdi Godane," Tall said.
Robow and other senior al-Shabaab leaders, including Sheikh Hassan
Dahir Aweys who was recently jailed in Mogadishu, have been involved in
an escalating internal power struggle with Godane.
Last month, fighters loyal to Godane attacked members of a rival
al-Shabaab faction in Barawe, Following the battle that left a number of
militants dead on either side, Godane loyalists reportedly executed
al-Shabaab co-founder Ibrahim al-Afghani.
Also in the Bakol region, seven people were killed during a battle between Somali government forces and members of al-Shabaab.
Bakol Governor Mohamed Abdi Tall said government forces initiated the
attack on an al-Shabaab-controlled area between the Hudur and Wajid
districts.
"The fighting lasted for two hours and three al-Shabaab members were
killed," Tall said, confirming a number of government force casualties.