Security forces killed 87 members of jihadist group al-Shabaab after they stormed a military base in Somalia’s south, deputy information minister Aden Ali said Monday.
Ali, making the announcement on state-owned news agency SONNA, did not disclose how many soldiers were killed in the battle near the port city of Kismayo in the Lower Juba region.
Earlier on Monday, a senior military official from the region, Mukhtar Mohamed, had placed the death toll at 15, including 10 al-Shabaab militants and five Somali soldiers.
“The attack began when a suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden car into the entrance of the base, and then it was followed by heavily armed militants from different directions,” said Mohamed.
“Following an hours-long assault by militants, our troops were able to repel them out of the area,” Mohamed added.
Al-Shabaab later claimed on pro-insurgent Radio Andalus that they had killed 27 soldiers at the base.
The base is staffed by regional forces and some…
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