MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – The Al-Qaeda-linked militant group Al-Shabaab took over control of a strategic town in central Somalia on Friday, hours after the army withdrew due to undisclosed circumstances.
Heavily armed militants entered the town of Ba’adwayn in Mudug region from multiple directions and captured bases that had earlier been home to government forces, residents have told Somaliguardian.
Federal government troops withdrew from the town early on Thursday due to unrevealed circumstances, with some reports suggesting that there was fear of an imminent Al-Shabaab attack that may have led to the move.
Galmudug authorities and Somalia’s army have not immediately commented on the news.
The fall of Ba’adway, a town that has met frequent Al-Shabaab attacks in recent years and change in administrations, comes amid heightened political turmoil in the Horn of Africa nation.
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