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MOGADISHU (Somalia), Jan. 17 (AP) — Al-Shabaab extremist groups attacked a military installation north of the Somali capital Tuesday, killing five soldiers, officials said. Somali troops repelled the attack, killing 21 al-Shabab fighters.
The group claimed responsibility for the attack on the Hawaadley military facility in the village of Xawaadley in the Middle Shabelle region, 75 kilometers (approximately 45 miles) north of Mogadishu.
General Odawa Yusuf Rage, commander-in-chief of the Somali Defense Forces, said the attackers were “repulsed by brave Somali soldiers who were on high alert”.
A senior military officer, Colonel Abshir Shataki, was also killed in the attack, Reig said.
Abdi Hassan, a soldier at the barracks, told The Associated Press that 12 soldiers were wounded. He said the military had prior intelligence on the attackers, including their license plates.
Hassan said the morning attack began with a suicide car bomb attack at the camp entrance, followed by two more suicide bombers going off inside the camp before the shootout.
The Somali government is leading what is being called the most significant offensive against al-Shabab in more than a decade.
For years, the group has hindered the country’s recovery from decades of conflict by carrying out brazen attacks in Mogadishu and elsewhere. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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