Hiiraan Online
Friday, July 24, 2015
MOGADISHU (HOL) ---Allied forces from the African Union and Somali government have drawn near the southwestern Somali town of Dinsor, sending rebel fighters withdrawing after clashes on the outskirts that have seen troops nearly take the crucial town in Bay region, officials said Thursday.
If captured, the fall of Dinsoor by troops would tighten grip for the government’s new belt of territory taken from rebels as militants lost the strategic Somali town of Bardhere on Wednesday without putting much resistance.
Military officials said the capture of the town could also cut off key supply routes for rebels still fighting in the neighboring Gedo and Bay regions.
After days of gradual advances, Somali army officials leading the offensive said the troops come within reach of 7km to Dinsor, raising the likelihood the town could fall as early as Friday.
The town serves as a regional center for business and trade for both Bay and Bakool regions as it also shares borders with towns in central and western Somalia.
No comment could be reached from the Al-Shabab on the development.
Facing the new multi-pronged offensive, Al-Shabab seems to be playing a u-turn military tactic in Bay region as fighters from the Al-Qaeda linked group have recaptured strings and towns previously lost to the allied forces, according to officials.
However, the group claimed it recaptured at least eleven towns and villages for the past few days in the backdrop of their latest losses of other towns to the allied troops.
Meanwhile, Security experts said that the new military operation led by AU forces is seen as a response to the al-Shabab’s recent deadly attack on an African Union military base in which dozens of soldiers were killed. The fighters have also looted the base.