KDF kills 50 Al Shabaab fighters

By Cyrus Ombati

Kenyan forces Friday killed 50 Al Shabaab militants in one of the heaviest casualty on the group in Garbahare area.

More than 60 other militants were injured and ten technical vehicles burnt down in the attack carried out by Kenyan fighter jets.

"No casualty on KDF/TFG troops. All in good spirit and focused on mission," KDF spokesman Emmanuel Chirchir said.

The incident came days after the Kenyan forces killed a top Al Shabaab commander and captured one more town.

During the engagement, three Al Shabaab fighters were killed, two AK-47, three Browning pistols and three HF radios were impounded. Only one KDF fighter suffered minor injuries during operation, according to a message posted on Twitter by Maj Chirchir,

He explained the capture of Fafadun was vital as it was one of the few remaining Al Shabaab bases in southern and central Somalia.

Besides the capital Mogadishu, the Al Shabaab militants mainly operate in the Gedo region where they have imposed a strict version of the Sharia law. Yesterday, Maj Chirchir said KDF’s ultimate aim was to capture the port town of Kismayu.

The capture of Kismayu will effectively deny the militants billions of shillings they collect in illegal taxes to fund their insurgency in the Horn of Africa.