MOGADISHU - Government forces and allied militias in Somalia have recaptured a strategic town that the al-Shabab armed group had controlled for six years.
Pro-government forces entered the town of Adan Yabal in Hirshabelle, about 220km (140 miles) northeast of the capital Mogadishu, after the al-Qaeda-affiliated fighters withdrew without resisting, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said in a televised address on Tuesday.
“Adan Yabal was very important for al-Shabab because it is the heart that connects the central regions and the south of Somalia. It was also their main base from which they manage the central regions,” Mahamud said. ATMIS said al-Shabab had used Adan Yabal as a training base. The force welcomed its return to Somali government control.
