Politics & Security
Puntland Piracy Crisis Deepens: 67 Held in a Year
MOGADISHU – Somali security forces carried out one of the most intensive series of operations in the country's history against the terrorist organization Al-Shabaab during the May–August 2026 period. According to Red Sea Axis's compilation of official statements from the Somali Ministry of Defense, the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA), and the Somali National Army (SNA), approximately 452–454 members of the organization were killed in ground and air operations conducted over four months. Among the dead were the organization's general intelligence chief, a Shura member from the founding cadre, and dozens of regional commanders.
The heaviest toll in the monthly breakdown belongs to July. According to official statements, 243 militants were neutralized in that month alone. It was announced that 57 members of the organization were killed in May, approximately 109 in June, and 43–45 in August.
Among July's most notable operations were the July 13 airstrike on the Goobo area of Hiiraan, which killed 42 militants in a single strike, and the July 27 attack in the Adan Yabal district of Middle Shabelle, in which 11 senior officials and commanders were hit simultaneously. The Defense Minister described the Adan Yabal strike as one of the most significant blows delivered to the organization's command structure.
NISA also had an active period in the field. The agency announced that 26 militants were killed in airstrikes on three separate locations in Hiiraan on May 21, 29 in Masaajid Cali Gaduud and Buq-Aqable on June 2–3, and 19 including senior figures in Geel-gub and Buq-Aqable on July 13.
One of the period's most striking developments was the strike on Al-Shabaab targets in the Godey area of Lower Shabelle by Turkish F-16 fighter jets on June 30. The Ministry of Defense announced that approximately 35 militants were killed and more than 20 wounded in the strikes.
U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) also stepped up its tempo during the same period. The command recorded numerous airstrikes coordinated with the Somali government: six in June, eight in July, and one near Jilib in early August. Operations explicitly announced by Somali authorities as air operations include the Buq-Aqable, Hiiraan, and Ugunji strikes in May, six separate series in July, and seven strikes on the Warciise–Teedaan–Yasoomane line on August 14.
The names announced as killed during the four-month period show that the operations targeted the organization's leadership core. In a NISA operation in Jilib at the end of August, Al-Shabaab's general intelligence chief Abdullah Hashi Hirsi Labajir, code-named "Ikhlaas," was killed. In July, Maalin Jinow Ibrahim, a Shura member from the founding cadre and senior military adviser, and Axmed Eybka Caalim "Daqare," responsible for 107-millimeter mortar and rocket attacks, were neutralized.
The list also includes figures such as Cabdisamad Maxamed, director of the organization's Al-Andalus media unit; Cabdisalaan Macallin Abuukar, responsible for recruitment and extortion; Abdirahman "Abdi Mudallib," the Hiiraan explosives chief; and Ahmed Ali Jimcaale, the official responsible for Jowhar. Thus, the organization's intelligence, propaganda, finance, and explosives networks were all struck during the same period.
During this period, the army focused less on capturing towns and more on dismantling the organization's infrastructure. On July 28, the Sumadaale area of Cadale district in Middle Shabelle was brought back under control. On May 13, Danab commandos rescued 9 hostages in a raid in Gamboole. On June 7, checkpoints and an extortion network were dismantled at six separate locations in Lower Shabelle. On July 18, Danab and Jubbaland forces destroyed seven bases and underground bunkers on the outskirts of Jilib, considered the organization's stronghold.
The picture points to a period in which the organization's command and logistics networks were systematically targeted, particularly through air power and intelligence operations.
The Somali government announced that the operations, conducted with the support of its international partners, will continue resolutely in the country's central and southern regions.
