Somalia prepares fresh troop deployment to Baidoa for operation against opposition forces

MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s federal government is preparing to deploy fresh troops to Baidoa, the seat of power of Southwest State, to join an operation aimed at pushing back opposition forces stationed on the outskirts of the strategic town.

The planned deployment follows a telephone conversation between Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Southwest State’s current leader, Adan Mohamed Nur, widely known as Adan Madobe.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has ordered the Somali National Army to carry out an operation aimed at driving the battle zone away from Baidoa and stabilizing the town, which opposition forces have attacked multiple times over the past three weeks.

Adan Madobe is understood to be deeply concerned about the presence of forces loyal to ousted regional president Abdiasis Mohamed Hassan Laftagaren on the outskirts of Baidoa, from where they have continued to launch attacks inside the town on a weekly basis.

Last week, the opposition forces entered Baidoa in an early morning attack that killed multiple people, including a regional commander, before withdrawing. Videos circulating from the town showed it transformed into a battle zone – a marked shift for a town that had enjoyed relative peace under Laftagaren before he was toppled in a federal military offensive in late March.

That offensive followed a long-running political dispute between federal authorities in Mogadishu and some of the country’s regional states.

Contact us: info@somaliguardian.com