75 al-Shabaab terrorists killed in central Somalia: Security official

The Somali military killed 75 al-Shabaab terrorists in a counter-terrorism operation in the central Hiran province, a security official said on Monday.

After a fierce firefight, the army liberated the village of Yasoman and seized weapons from the terrorists, the official told Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Meanwhile, a statement by the Information Ministry on Sunday said that the military liberated 30 villages in recent operations in several parts of the country and killed 200 al-Shabaab terrorists.

The Hiran region has seen increased military activities this month as the new government encouraged locals to take part in efforts to liberate villages from the al-Shabaab terror group.

Somalia has been grappling with increasing insecurity for years, with al-Shabaab being one of the main threats in the Horn of Africa country.

Since at least 2007, al-Shabaab has waged a deadly campaign against the Somali government and international forces.

The UN has also warned of growing instability in the country, with its periodic reports on Somalia this year detailing attacks by al-Shabaab and pro-Daesh/ISIS groups.

There were at least 1,518 civilian casualties-651 killed and 867 injured-in terrorist attacks in Somalia in 2018, followed by 1,459-591 killed and 868 injured-in 2019, according to the UN in Somalia.