Somalia
Somalia:Senior Puntland forces commander killed in Al Shabaab ambush
By
Mar 17, 2014 - 1:27:23 PM

BOSSASO, Somalia March 17, 2013 (Garowe Online)-The commander of Puntland Defense forces units operating in Galgala area in Somalia’s northeastern State of Puntland Col. Jama Saed Warsame (Afgadud) has been killed in an ambush near the port city of Bossaso on Monday afternoon, Garowe Online reports.

Initial reports disclosed that late Jama was targetted with roadside Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Laag village, about 27 km from Bossaso but independent sources tell GO that Al Shabaab gunmen sprayed his armored fighting vehicle with bullets, killing Jama along with one bodyguard and wounding another.

Health officials indicated that late Jama succumbed to heavy injuries to the upper body at Bossaso General Hospital where he was taken for medical treatment shortly after the attack.
The targeted official’s car was traveling on the main road leading to Laag village from Bossaso, sources said.

Puntland Government officials have not publicly commented on the deadly incident as Al Shabaab continues to lose grounds against Somali government forces and AMISOM peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia following multiple assaults on militant hideouts and bases.

Speaking on Pro-Al Shabaab Radio Station, Al Shabaab spokesman Ali Dheere claimed credit for the killing of the senior military official in plannned attack.

Jama went out on military training to Uganda and afterwards worked with Transitional Federal Government of Somalia under the incumbency of President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed.

Former Puntland leader Dr. Abdirahman Mohamed Farole assigned him to a military post as the commander of Puntland forces stationed in Galgala area in a bid to boost offensives against fugitive Al Shabaab fighters who for over three years have been engaging in fierce clashes with Puntland troops along Golis Mountain ranges and in Galgala hideouts.

Al Shabaab threat dwindled to the lowest magnitude in mid-2010 when the militants faced heavy resistance from Puntland defense forces.

GAROWEONLINE